Saturday, September 13, 2008

No Third High School in VUSD

The anti-public education crowd was louding crowing and bragging of their success in stopping the third high school from opening in VUSD in the comment section following an article published on April 7, 2008 in the NCTimes indicating money had run out to build new Mission High School at Highway 76 before the start of the 2008 school year. Of course had Guffanti and Gibson voted in favor of the Strawberry Hill site four years ago, then there would already be a third high school in VUSD, but the angry anti crowd want no new public high school. Here is what the angry nasty ones wrote in comment section followed by my comment that I tried to post in response to their jubliant celebrations and pats on the back.

Their comments:

TAXPAYER[-] wrote on Apr 7, 2008 5:41 PM:Build the school at Lincoln as Dr. G and Jim Gibson had said for years.
Taxpayer[-] wrote on Apr 7, 2008 6:02 PM:For years both Steve Guffanti and Jim Gibson have been telling everyone including their fellow Board members that there wasn’t enough money to complete the magnet high school campus at the proposed location. It appears that they have been right all this time. What will this wind up costing the taxpayers? Thank you Dr. Guffanti and Mr. Gibson for trying. You did your job.

Observer[-] wrote on Apr 7, 2008 6:34 PM:As a taxpayer it is heartening to note there are at least two members on the VUSD board who are awake and alert. Too bad the rest didn't listen to their request to look at Lincoln before all this. Onward Gibson and Guffanti!

I've heard this before[-] wrote on Apr 7, 2008 7:29 PM:It seems to me that Guffanti and Gibson have been saying this for about 6 years now, - the cost is too high. They kept being voted down by the other three. Even when adminitration admitted it would be half the price at the Lincoln site. It's a shame that Hubbard and Lilly insisted on wasting time and money on this site we would have had the school built by now if they would have cooperated

Unbelievably true![-] wrote on Apr 7, 2008 8:55 PM:Wow! Can't believe that it is true! The Board Majority finally admits that there really isn't enough money to build Mission Vista at Melrose. Dr. Guffanti and Mr. Gibson have over the past 6 years said so again and again. It is finally time to listen to reason.

Parent[-] wrote on Apr 7, 2008 9:37 PM:Thank you teachers union and thank you Herrera

My response (perhaps you could do better? I would be happy to hear your rebuttals to tne anti folks above.)

Yeah thanks a lot Guffanti and Gibson, your opposition to a new high school has finally succeeded. The delays you two caused now mean no new high school at 76 or anywhere else in the district including the better site at Strawberry Hill. Tens of millions of dollars wasted, children continue to be in overcrowded high schools all thanks to Guffanti and Gibson.

The Lincoln Middle school site NEVER will work for a full sized comprehensive high school. Here are four reasons that even Guffanti and Gibson cannot pretend away.

ONE-- the sewer system is inadequate. If two people happen to flush two different toilets at the same time and they both overflow—teacher’s bathroom.

TWO there is NOT ENOUGH PARKING. You G and G sycophants should go look at the parking disaster at the current Vista High School. The SINGLE parking lot at Lincoln is HALF the size of the horribly overcrowded STUDENT parking lot at VHS and VHS has a second separate teacher parking lot that Lincoln does not have. Lincoln does not have enough parking for a middle school staff let alone all the extra spaces needed for student vehicles.

THREE the Lincoln site acreage is TOO SMALL! Lincoln is maybe twenty to twenty five acres. It takes at least forty for a FULL SIZED third high school.

FOUR Lincoln is riddled with termites and ALL the flat roof rooms LEAK in every rain storm. The underlying wood of those roofs is filled with dry rot. You can smell it when you walk into any classroom in the 400 or 500 wing. How will students with allergies fare in those rooms?

Why don't you G and G lovers admit your real priority is to make sure as few public (or as you call them ("government schools") open as possible? You folks do not like public schools because they must teach facts and not mythology. Be honest and admit it, you all belong to the huge REALITY CHALLENGED group here in Vista that has opposed every bond and every new public school being opened. Doesn't your mythology require HONESTY? Why do you PRETEND you care about money when your opposition is all
about IDEAOLOGY?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

The bond called for 2 small magnet schools. The tax payers never okayed a comprehensive high school.

Anonymous said...

How could G and G stop the board from buying the strawberry hill site when you already have 3 board members on a five member board? Do you know how to count? Can’t blame G&G when our own 3 VTA board members refuse to vote for it. You web site is very extreme and one sided.

retired said...

Guffanti and Gibson stopped the Strawberry Hill site by both time and time again refusing to be the fourth vote to condemn the property for eminent domain. The California Department of Education requires four out of five board members for a condemnation proceeding. Their refusal cost our district 16 MILLION DOLLARS! The Strawberry Hill 50+ acre site cost 1 million dollars. It was the back of the site. The owner could have still grown strawberries where he always had before. He now has the site up for sale and reportedly wishes he had sold it to the school district.

Here our two NCTimes articles that confirm the 3 to 2 impasse--

(1) August 9, 2003
Vista still searching for home of magnet high schools

By: DAVID STERRETT - For the North County Times

Three board members say they wanted to build the high schools on a 50-acre tract known as Strawberry Hills in Bonsall.

(2)New Vista high school project picking up steam
| Saturday, February 15, 2003

MICHAEL J. WILLIAMS
Staff Writer


Two of the five members ---- Jim Gibson and Stephen Guffanti ---- have said they oppose putting the school on the Kawano property.

retired said...

The new high school site on Highway 76 cost the district 17 million dollars. The Strawberry Hill (Kawano) site cost was to be ONE million dollars!

Guffanti screams about the district wasting money. No two members of our school board have EVER cost our VUSD district as much as Guffanti and Gibson did. They wasted 16 million dollars of tax payer money for political advantage. They took money from the strawberry hill owner (Kawano) for their campaigns. He now regrets not selling the property and likely regrets every becoming mixed up with Guffanti and Gibson.

In addition their insistence on a dual magnet high school cost the district $80,000 that had already been spent to acquire the architect plans for Mission Hills High School in San Marcos.

We would have had an identical school high school here built four years ago except for the mule headed stubborness of Gibson and Guffanti.

The UNIQUE plans for the dual magnet high schools cost MILLIONS!! Another colossal waste of tax payer money caused by Guffanti and Gibson!!!

Altogether a conservative estimate of the VUSD taxpayer money Guffanti and Gibson wasted has to approach 25 MILLION DOLLLARS!!!