Bond For New Foster City Elementary School Will Go To Voters

In an effort to handle a projected future enrollment hike, Foster City residents will be asked in November to approve a $25 million bond to build a fourth elementary school.

The San Mateo-Foster City School District Board Of Trustees Friday night voted 4-0-1, with Trustee Ellen Mallory Ulrich absent, to send the bond measure to voters in Foster City for approval.

The bond could cost Foster City residents about $20 per $100,000 of appraised home value. The measure will require 55-percent approval from voters in order to pass.

Should voters approve the bond, the revenue would be used exclusively to build the school and furnish it. Money remaining from the district's $175 million Measure L bond, which was passed in 2008, will be used to purchase the property where the school will be built.

Language approved for the new bond commits $12.5 million from Measure L toward the property's purchase cost.

A fourth elementary school is needed because the city's current facilities are operating near capacity, and more students are on their way, according to a district report.

By the 2013-2014 school year, about 545 new students are expected to attend city schools, which represents 16 percent growth since the 2005-2006 school year.

The board's approval of the measure culminated months of discussion.

Some trustees had earlier expressed concerns about splitting voters in the district, which serves both San Mateo and Foster City, and placing the bond measure exclusively before Foster City voters.

Most vocal was Trustee Lory Lorimer Lawson, who said once a majority of the board voted to move forward with the decision to split the district, she was willing to set aside her concerns and support the measure.

Trustee Julie Chan said despite some of the concerns, she was certain the district was moving in the right direction.

Chan, who is a Foster City resident, claimed a majority of the residents she had spoken with seem to support the bond measure and do not dispute the need for a fourth elementary in the city.

She said she could probably count on one hand the number of people she had met who had opposed the bond.

"I'm satisfied we are going the right course," said Chan, who will likely help build local support for the bond prior to the vote.

In February, more than 20 Foster City residents attended a board meeting to voice support for the bond measure, including representatives from community groups such as the Kiwanis and Rotary Clubs.

"I think we will all be proud of the result if we can all move forward and get it built," said Board President Mark Hudak.

Hudak earlier in the meeting announced he would not run for re-election to the board this fall. He attributed his decision to increasing responsibilities at work and changes in his personal life.

Hudak is an attorney at a firm in Burlingame as well as the assistant city attorney for the town of Hillsborough.

The meeting also marked the first of its kind for newly selected Superintendent Cynthia Simms. She previously served as the interim superintendent of the Los Gatos Union School District. Simms replaces the recently retired Pendery Clark, who served as the district's superintendent for 10 years.

Simms also welcomed new Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Donna Lewis to the district. Lewis replaces Joan Rosas, who joined the County Office of Education. Lewis served previously as the director of personnel services in the Cambrian School District in San Jose.