PERRIS - The Menifee school system came a step closer to its decade-long goal of gaining control of Paloma Valley High School on Wednesday night when board members of the district that now operates the school signed off on an agreement to hand it over - along with outstanding debt from its construction.

The Perris Union High School District board voted 5-0 to approve the agreement and 5-0 to move forward with the lengthy process required before Menifee Union School District can take on the high school. The Menifee Union School District board is expected to vote on the deal at its Oct. 9 meeting.

The decision on whether to shift Paloma Valley High will ultimately be made by voters in the Menifee district after county and state officials weigh in on the change. The move could take as long as five years to come to fruition, officials said.

The Perris board's action is just one of a series of events that has to take place before the kindergarten-through-eighth grade Menifee district can take control of the high school. Then, the county and state boards of education must OK the plan before it is put before the voters in the Menifee district.

The Perris board vote was key, because trustees of that district have resisted the effort for years. Recent changes in the board's membership paved the way for Wednesday night's vote.

Perris Union Superintendent Jonathan Greenberg, who took the top spot at the district in April, told his board that the agreement is balanced. Greenberg likened the deal to a "no-fault divorce."

Fred Twyman, president of the Menifee Union board, attended the meeting and thanked the Perris board members for their cooperation in crafting the agreement.

"This is not going to raise taxes," Twyman said, referring to property taxes in the Menifee district. "That's great."

A key issue in the transfer is the amount of debt that would be shifted from the Perris district to Menifee Union. The first phase of Paloma Valley's construction was completed in 1995 at a cost of $26 million. The second phase, done in 2001, cost $25 million. The third phase, completed in 2006, cost $12.2 million. Perris Union is up-to-date on the payments, the district's attorney Alexander Bowie said in an interview following the board's vote.

Before the Perris meeting, Menifee Union Assistant Superintendent Dan Wood said there is no plan for a special tax assessment on property owners in the Menifee district to repay the debt from Paloma Valley.

Wood said Menifee Union would get the money generated from the special tax district already in place. That district that includes property in the Nuview, Romoland, Perris Elementary and Menifee Union school districts.

At this time, enough money comes from that special tax district to make the annual payment on the debt, Bowie said in an interview after the board's vote.

Also as part of the agreement, Menifee Union would receive $2.5 million of the $46 million in proceeds from bonds that a majority of voters approved in 2004 for a variety of school projects. The $2.5 million has been earmarked for the purchase of property where another high school would be built within the Menifee Union district's boundaries.

If Perris Union buys land before Menifee Union takes on Paloma Valley, Menifee Union would get the property acquired for the additional high school.

Before the meeting, Menifee Union board member Rita Peters said she thinks the agreement will be good for families served by the district she represents.

"It means that all schools that students in our district attend will have the same focus and the same educational philosophy," Peters said in an interview hours before the Perris board meeting.

- Contact staff writer Lorell Fleming at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2621, or at lfleming@californian.com.