William S. Hart Union High School District

Castaic Area High School Update
Tom Cole, Chief Operations Officer, provided the Governing Board with an update on plans to build a high school on the previously selected Romero Canyon site in Castaic. Geotechnical investigations are continuing and are on track for a late October completion. An appraisal company has been successfully engaged and discussions and negotiations are continuing with the land owner on project timelines, seller obligations and improvement cost assumptions, toward finalizing a purchasing agreement. The Los Angeles County Fire Chief has conditionally approved the proposed emergency access gate on Romero Canyon and will work with the property seller to meet specific standards, obligations and designs.

Investigations Proceeding on Castaic Site
Three consultants hired to conduct environmental and geotechnical studies on the chosen Romero Canyon site for a high school in Castaic are proceeding on schedule. The Planning Center, hired to prepare an Environmental Impact Report, is well underway with their initial research and studies on new and existing data of the site. The district has already achieved a $25,000 savings on the initial contract price by eliminating redundancies and taking advantage of data already gathered. GeoLabs has completed 75 percent of the borings required to investigate potential landslides and other geologic features on the site.  A full report of their findings will be available once the field and laboratory data have been analyzed. The third consultant (RMA) is conducting a peer review of GeoLabs’ work.

Romero Canyon Site Chosen for Castaic Area High School
The Governing Board has selected the Romero Canyon site for a future high school to serve the Castaic area, and has directed staff to begin the initial study of the California Environmental Quality Assessment (CEQA) analysis immediately. Concerned about a potential landslide area on the site, the Board also directed staff to proceed with geology studies required to determine the depth of the landslides and the potential cost of mitigation. The 5-0 vote for the Romero Canyon site follows months of consultant studies on such issues as traffic, geology, flood control, environmental impact and more. The studies found no “fatal flaws” on either the Romero Canyon or the alternate Hasley/Sloan site, and determined that either site could be developed in time to open a high school with ninth grade only in August 2013, as promised. In the end, it was the tight timeline that led board members to select the Romero Canyon site, in the belief that developer Larry Rasmussen had the necessary expertise to produce a construction-ready site on time. The Board also instructed staff to begin negotiations with the Romero Canyon owner to determine a development timeline and purchase price for the high school site. The district must be able to negotiate terms which are agreeable to both the district and the developer before actual construction can proceed.

The following report on the Castaic High School site study appears in the Round-up following the Governing Board meeting on June 9:

Castaic Site Studies Continuing
An update from experts hired to do preliminary research on two favored sites for a Castaic area high school focused on traffic issues, state requirements and civil engineering studies. Secondary access roads to both sites continue to be an issue, with more research required on existing easements and what the county will require. Accessibility for the disabled poses an issue for the Romero Canyon site if public buses cannot deliver riders to the top of the slope, while neighbors expressed displeasure at the thought of buses using their quiet cul de sacs for school access. Possible requirements for a second bridge and county acceptance of a proposed secondary access were issues with the Hasley/Sloan site. Environmental concerns at both sites could create delays if permission is required from agencies such as the Corps of Engineers and the Department of Fish and Game. Necessity to re-abandon an oil well on the Romero Canyon property and the cost involved were also discussed. Full reports provided to the Governing Board are available online at http://www.hartdistrict.org/index.php/schools/castaic-high-school by clicking on the link to the desired report. The Governing Board was assured that it would have enough information by July to make a decision between the two proposed sites, but it was stressed that no preliminary studies will have all of the answers and the Board must be prepared to take some risks in its site selection.

Several of the consultants working on preliminary investigation of the two potential high school sites in the Castaic area will be presenting reports to the Governing Board Wednesday evening, June 9. Copies of those reports are now posted online (see links from the Castaic home page). The updated reports include traffic, geology and water availability, among other issues. They will be added to the wealth of information the Board will study in choosing a new high school site.