By Traci Newell

The Los Altos School

District Board of

Trustees spent nearly an hour mulling over the pros and cons of where to place permanent facilities for Bullis Charter School.

The board took no action at its June 19 meeting regarding the proposed sites of Covington Elementary School, Egan Junior High School and Bullis-Purissima.

Board member David Pefley posed a possible fourth option - finding a new location for the charter school entirely.

Moving the charter school to Covington is the least expensive option for the district, but board members feared negative reaction.

“I have concerns regarding the educational and social issues with two elementaries on the site,” said Board Member David Luskin. “The kids have to pass back and forth through each other every day.”

The same concerns were raised over locating the charter school and a seventh elementary school side by side at the Bullis site. Most board members expressed doubt that the Bullis site could accommodate the growth needed for both the district and the charter school.

“Putting a cap on growth at the Bullis-Purissima site would happen if they are collocated at that site,” said Margot Harrigan, board president. “That negatively affects the other schools in the district.”

Board members also discussed accessibility issues for each of the sites if they are shared with the charter school.

“I hear about the neighborhood impact every day,” said board clerk Mark Goines, who pointed out that the Egan neighborhood where the charter school is located in portables is congested.

Luskin said he thinks the Egan site is the best to accommodate traffic concerns, because it is located off San Antonio Road, a major road in Los Altos.

Harrigan said that if the board decides to collocate the charter school at Covington, lawsuits could ensue. The district had difficulty opening Covington there in the first place she said, so to add traffic to the neighborhood would cause animosity toward the district, which would have an impact on district programs down the road.

Luskin said that since the construction for the charter school depends on passage of the Phase II bond measure, the district may not be able to complete the project until 2009.

In other board news, Superintendent Tim Justus gave an update on the construction project at the Bullis-Purissima site.

Justus said he met with architect Lisa Gelfand of Gelfand Partners Architects of San Francisco, and they adjusted the Bullis site map and finances. The district recently refinanced its general-obligation bond, providing an additional $10.9 million for capital facility funds, which will be used to renovate the Bullis-Purissima campus.

Justus said the district will have a plot plan and cost estimates for the August board meeting.

Justus also said that it was a priority for the district to assemble a new Citizens’ Oversight Committee for Construction. He said the district is looking for residents with backgrounds in finance and/or construction to serve.