MUSD board seeks acceleration of unification process

Perris Union High School District superintendent Grant Bennett and deputy superintendent Candace Reines (far right) address members of the Menifee Union School District governing board. Menifee 24/7 photo: Doug Spoon

Administrators of the Perris Union High School District were supposed to be the ones making a presentation Tuesday, but board members of the Menifee Union School District made a pretty clear argument of their own.

PUHSD superintendent Grant Bennett and deputy superintendent Candace Reines addressed the MUSD board to explain why they are seeking another school bond measure, in part to fund a new high school for Menifee. This, as they have said before, is a necessary step before two high schools can be transferred to MUSD, allowing it to be a Unified School District.

The response by MUSD board members: We have concerns, and we want to start working on unification, like, yesterday.

A Power Point presentation and video displayed the attractive elements planned for PUHSD's High School 4, to be built on Leon Road north of Scott Road. More than $2 million has been spent on the design of the school from the $76.7 million portion of a $153.4 million Measure T bond in 2012. The problem: Because of the withholding of the state's matching funds promised six years ago, PUHSD officials believe they have no other choice but to pursue another bond measure.

According to Bennett and Reines, that means convincing residents to support the bond measure, building the new high school, opening it in 2021, and turning over the new high school and Paloma Valley High School to MUSD in a unification process by 2023. That indeed may be how long it takes.

But what MUSD board members clearly stated Tuesday was their desire to begin meeting with PUHSD officials immediately to begin the process.

"What's different this time?" board member Jerry Bowman asked. "You talk about a five-year timeline (for unification). When would the five-year timeline start? I think it's time for us to push for unification now.

"Let's not wait for the new school. Let's begin the process immediately."

All four board members at the meeting on Tuesday questioned the percentage of funding Menifee residents would get for their schools out of the proposed $148 million bond measure. Like the bond measure in 2012, PUHSD officials propose devoting half the amount to the new Menifee high school and the other half to improvements at other high schools in the district -- including an outdated Perris High School facility and the California Military Institute.

"My concern is the 50-50 split of funding," said board member Robert O'Donnell. "In reality, all that money is needed in Menifee. I'm concerned that when we finally get the school built, there will be so much growth in Menifee that we'll already need another high school."

Reines explained that the split of taxes paid would "match the assessed valuation" of properties. "We would make sure voters pay only for the benefits they receive in their city," she said.

Reines and Bennett have been making that pitch in public forums, but O'Donnell said he worries whether that will be enough to convince voters.

"What plans do you have over the next couple months to get the word out?" he asked. "Seniors are the ones who go to the polls. You'll have to get into the senior areas to explain why the bond would be better for the community."

Bennett said he was "more than willing" to begin meetings with MUSD officials to address any issues so they can move forward toward unification. An application to the state for unification in 2009 was denied because it was determined that not all the criteria was met. Factors include how such a change would affect financing and educational programs in the districts.

MUSD superintendent Steve Kennedy has met previously with Bennett to discuss moving forward with the unification process. He said he remains sensitive to the issue of cost to residents.

"Right now when you look at the bonds that are outstanding, for the average priced house in Menifee, the pay is about $200 to the Menifee district for our existing bonds and it's about $500 to the high school district," Kennedy said. "All those things are going to have to come into play when we work toward unification.

"Right now it's the high school district's issue because they're the ones dealing with overcrowding. They're under the gun. Part of the criteria is, you can't leave a district that's losing schools economically disadvantaged. Demographics is also an issue.

"Eventually it's going to have to happen. The kids are going to show up on Day One sometime and they're going to need a place. Building a couple extra stories at Paloma Valley isn't going to necessarily help, given the growth we're facing. But we have to balance it with our taxpayers."