The Manhattan Beach school board unanimously approved the final draft of its 10-year plan on July 15, ending a six-month process.
The master facilities plan rated the current physical state of all of the district’s campuses and included a “wish list” of changes and additions the district would like to make. The schools all fell somewhere between a B and D+.
Kevin Fleming from DLR Group explained the purpose of the process.
“Our primary focus was, ‘How does one teach in the 21st century?’” he said. “Do the facilities support that?”
And if not, he added, how to correct the shortcomings?
Board member Christine Cronin-Hurst clarified that the board wasn’t agreeing to have any of the $320 million worth of proposed work done, but rather was accepting and agreeing to pay for the work done by the architects from the DLR Group.
The plan changed significantly since its first draft after getting feedback from the community. The biggest changes were to proposed additions to Manhattan Beach Middle School and Polliwog Park, which the school district owns and which borders on the middle school.
The Friends of Polliwog Park, a neighborhood group representing the residents around the park, was concerned about proposed upgrades including an Olympic-sized pool, a 750-seat multipurpose room, expanded central kitchens to serve all of the school district and new athletic fields. They feared that bigger facilities would draw larger crowds, increasing problems with parking, traffic and noise.
The Friends objected to the pool in particular since an Olympic pool would allow regional aquatic competitions.
Superintendent Dr. Michael Matthews pointed out that the final plan showed a smaller, more square-shaped pool in a different location than that originally proposed.
“The pool changed dramatically,” said Matthews. “We all know Begg Pool needs to be improved and renovated. The question is, with what?”
Matthews acknowledged that the plan originally had an Olympic-sized pool.
“That’s no longer in the plan,” he said.
He stopped short, however, of guaranteeing specific dimensions, which a couple of speakers requested during the public comment period of the meeting.
“We haven’t heard from everybody,” said Matthews. “We want a great pool for the community.”
The principal of the middle school, John Jackson, would prefer that the pool be closer to the school so it didn’t take the students so long to get there, Matthews said. He also mentioned that the demand on Mira Costa High School’s pool was high “because Begg is inadequate for events.” He referred to the possible desires of the city, which has long kicked around the idea of building a new pool, and which the school board said it would approach about sharing the cost and use.
“It’s very clear the community is concerned about an Olympic pool,” said Matthews. “Let’s work with the city and then make a recommendation” as to the specific dimensions.
“I hope people see. . .that we listened to everybody in the community, including the neighbors,” he said.
The proposed additional athletic fields were also dropped earlier on in the process.
The district kept the multipurpose room, intended to be used for performances and assemblies, though reduced its square footage from 28,000 to 22,500 and moved it closer to the current campus, so as to encroach less on the park. The room is necessary to accommodate student interest in activities like music and theater and the fact that enrollment is around 1,525 but the school was built for 1,100, DLR said. At an earlier meeting, Fleming pointed out that 750 seats would only accommodate half the student body.
The district also kept the 4,200-square-foot central food facility, which the plan proposes moving from the middle school campus into the location currently occupied by the school district’s maintenance and operations yard at the southwest corner of the park. Matthews said the expanded facility wasn’t intended for catering outside activities, as the Friends of Polliwog Park had suggested. Students have to pass by the current facility, which receives deliveries from large trucks, and which wasn’t safe, he said.
“I believe it will be no more revenue-producing than it is now — right now it’s zero,” said Matthews. “The intent is to increase the safety of the students and to provide meals for all in the district.”
After the meeting, the chair of the Friends of Polliwog Park, Julie Profet, said she was pleased with the outcome.
“I’m thankful,” she said. “They made a lot of concessions. There was a lot of green space on the chopping block.”
She wished, of course, that they had committed to not pursuing an Olympic pool.
“Even one inch smaller means no national events,” she said.
During the meeting, several residents said they could already hear the PA system at Begg Pool, and worried that more events would mean speakers going all day. A couple of residents said that their cars were regularly trapped by traffic or cars parked in front of their driveways.
Standing outside the district’s building after the meeting, resident Eric Johnson said he was “encouraged” by the changes made, but worried about the “price tag” of the plan.
“A lot of our members, even if they’re happy about the park, they worry about the cost,” said Profet.
Some other changes highlighted by Fleming during the final presentation were related to traffic issues at Pacific and Pennekamp elementary schools.
“Many of the facilities were built at a time when the automobile was not the primary way of delivering kids to campus,” said Fleming. “They walked, biked — even took buses.”
Next, the school district must choose what among the proposed work it wants to pursue and ask taxpayers to pay for through a bond measure in an upcoming election. It won’t be able to do everything. According to DLR’s presentation, $284 million is the most the district can ask for through a bond. Fleming said the district might be eligible for up to $11 million in funds from the state. So $295 million is the most it could possibly spend. Fleming also said that it would cost $50 million just to maintain the district in its current state. ER
