By Sara Ballenger
Bullis-Purissima School parents and concerned community members voiced their opinions to the Los Altos School District’s Site Disposal Committee about what to do with the soon to be vacant Bullis School site at a public hearing May 28.
A range of suggestions urged the committee to make a fiscally responsible recommendation that was best for all of the children in the district and for the communities of Los Altos and Los Altos Hills. Some urged the committee to think of Bullis Charter School or some form of a public school in Los Altos Hills as the best use for the space.
The district voted to close Bullis, the only K-6 public school left in Los Altos Hills, Feb. 10, in expectation of severe state budget cuts. Bullis students are scheduled to be transferred to a newly renovated Covington School this September.
By law, when a school district has a piece of property or a school that is not in use, it must appoint a site disposal committee to decide what to do with the property. The committee is responsible for making a recommendation to the school board regarding the disposition of the site, expected to be given at the June 16 board meeting.
The board may or may not follow the recommendation of the committee.
The committee has made the following tentative findings:
Because of Education Code requirements, the district should first offer the Bullis facilities to child-care or child-development agencies and, simultaneously, to the County Office of Education for special education uses.
If the district does not reach an agreement with the above groups, then the district should attempt to lease the Bullis facilities for other purposes through an open bid process. These purposes include: schools, a community center or other town of Los Altos Hills permitted uses.
At the center of the Bullis school site debate, is the Bullis Charter School. Efforts to start a charter school in Los Altos Hills began soon after some parents learned that Bullis would be closing. A charter school is an independent public school, supported by public funds and held accountable by public authority. Charter schools have a written legal agreement with a sponsoring agency, usually a school district. The district denied the Bullis Charter School’s petition May 5. Charter supports plan to appeal the district’s decision at the county and state levels.
Charter school supporters have stated from the beginning that the most logical site for the charter school is the Bullis campus. The district announced its official position not to award the Bullis site to the charter school at its March 17 meeting, though no formal action or vote was taken on the matter.
Craig Jones, of Bullis Charter School, said the charter will consider other sites along with Bullis.
“We are willing to pursue this charter even if we have to go with an alternative site. We are hoping for a win-win situation with Bullis,” Jones said. Jones said the charter is willing to work with the district on finding ways for the Bullis site to generate revenue while being used by the charter school, like renting out space to the Los Altos Hills City Council who would use it as temporary meeting space while the new city hall is being built. The charter school has offered the district $150,000 to rent Bullis for the 2003-2004 school year.
A “Goodbye Bullis” barbecue has been scheduled Sunday, 4 to 7 p.m., at Bullis School, 25890 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills. For more information, call the Bullis School office at 941-3880.
The June 16 board meeting has been scheduled for 7 p.m., at the Blach Camp School, 1122 Covington Road, Room 9.
For more information, call the district office at 947-1150.
