Valley Middle School in line for $5M in Prop. P money
By: PHILIP K. IRELAND - Staff Writer | ∞
CARLSBAD - From cracked sidewalks and listing stairs to the musky smell of mold in the principal's office, 40-year-old Valley Middle School is moldering along toward middle age.
The sprawling school for sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders on Magnolia Avenue in Carlsbad is in line for a $5 million renovation if voters approve Proposition P in Tuesday's election. Dedicated in 1966, Valley was originally built as a junior high school for seventh-, eighth- and ninth-graders. It is one of the oldest schools in the Carlsbad Unified School District.
The district-sponsored initiative asks some 34,000 voters within the Carlsbad Unified School District boundaries to approve or deny a $198 million bond for four major building and renovation projects.
The district's master plan calls for allocating bond funds among these projects:
The push for this initiative began as school trustees sought ways to alleviate overcrowding at Carlsbad High School. They originally planned to rebuild the 49-year-old school to accommodate 3,700 students. But under pressure from parents, trustees opted to rebuild a smaller Carlsbad High as well as a second small high school.
The district of more than 10,000 students is bounded by Oceanside to the north and east, San Marcos to the east and Encinitas to the south.
The planned work at both high schools will take the lion's share of the bond money -- about $170 million. But the district also plans to spend $5 million at Valley - the most of any of the smaller renovation projects.
Rob Todd, district director of construction, said the district plans to upgrade classrooms and restrooms, renovate the food service areas and the kitchen, and provide seating, flooring and lighting in the multipurpose room.
Upgrades to the school's electrical system, air-conditioning and heating systems, and general site improvements such as new parking lots, fencing, water fountains and sidewalks are also planned. The school will also get upgraded wiring to provide computer access.
Principal Carolyn Milliken said the archaic electrical system in the classrooms cannot handle today's modern power needs, adding that heating and air-conditioning systems create problems, too.
"You can't run all of the electrical systems here without crashing something," said Milliken in her office that smelled of mold. "If the counselor and I both had our computers on, I couldn't run my space heater without it shutting off the computer, and then they'd lose data. And so I was in a tough choice. And God forbid you turn on the coffee maker."
Standing in the courtyard among a dozen old portable classrooms, Milliken spoke Tuesday of the need to replace the temporary buildings.
"It's just like any homeowner with their home," she said. "Carlsbad homes are in far better shape than where we're asking our staff and kids to teach and learn. There is no business person who would work where the air conditioning doesn't work and the ventilation doesn't work and the temperature exceeds 100 degrees on a day with high humidity - and we're asking kids to learn there," Milliken said. "Or on the reverse side, the heat's not working and they're shivering and they're freezing.
"Yeah, we've got good test scores," she said in summation. "We've got great learning taking place, but just think what those kids could do if they just had the basics."
Most of the district's construction plans are predicated on passage of the initiative. Policymakers are waiting on Tuesday's outcome before spending money on architects, engineers and planners, Superintendent John Roach said. Until then, plans are sketchy and subject to change.
-- Contact Philip K. Ireland at (760) 901-4043 or online at pireland@nctimes.com.
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