Residents Air Concerns Over Proposed College Bond

By Juliet McShannon
Staff Writer

July 5 – College officials last week came under fire from Sunset Park residents who worried a proposed $175 million bond for parks and civic facilities is part of an ongoing expansion that would impact the residential neighborhood.

The meeting with members of Friends of Sunset Park at Olive’s Lutheran Church on Thursday was one of several community meetings held over the past month with college officials, who hope to convince residents that the bond slated for the November ballot is in the best interests of the community.

The two dozen neighbors present worried about growth, as well as the cost to local homeowners, who would contribute between $25 and $150 per year if the measure garners the support of 55 percent of the voters in Santa Monica and Malibu.

“Growth is a scary concept for us,” said local resident and Friends board member John Reynolds. “It seems that an acquisition bond such as proposed may lead to us being caught in a funding tumble.”

This sentiment was echoed by Bob Snyder, who feared another such measure might have to be passed again in the near future with residents still reeling from measures such as Prop T, passed in 1992, and the more recent Measure U, which would supposedly sustain SMC for 45 years.

“With all this talk of ‘expansion,’ might it not be possible that yet another bond measure will be put before residents in another five years?” Snyder asked.

College officials assured residents that the bond -- which would provide $75 million for the college, another $75 million in partnership with the City of Santa Monica and $25 million in joint projects with the City of Malibu -- would not be used to expand the campus.

Most of the money, said SMC Marketing Director Don Girard, would be used to build parks, off-campus facilities and day care centers across both cities and help redevelop the old Marion Davies estate at 415 PCH into a public beach club.

“I must challenge the assumption that all the project proposals on this list are ‘growth inducing,’” Girard said. “Retrofitting existing fields and making improvements at 415 Pacific Coast Highway are not growth inducing.

" In fact, only the replacement of the shower and locker room facility is on the main campus,” he added.

Although a few residents nodded in agreement, Reynolds warned that the college would have to tread carefully, especially with new bonds being introduced within a relatively short space of time.

“The equity that the college has had with the community has become damaged over the years, with a lack of communication and broken promises,” he said.

Some who attended the meeting were angry that the College was asking for yet more money from local residents.

“I don’t have any trust in what you are doing,” said resident Adam Dawson. “All of a sudden this has been thrust upon us.

“You haven’t swallowed the Measure U money yet, haven’t spent that, and now you come back and want me to give you a hundred dollars a year on what? On generalities?”

“Hear, hear!” the residents broke out.

Dawson continued to question the vagueness of some of the suggested projects, such as the Children’s Outdoor Fitness Park.

“What exactly is that?” he asked. “Does that mean jungle gyms? Swings?”

“We will go through a design process and think about that,” Girard replied.

“So you have no idea what that is?” asked an incredulous Dawson.

Blanca Malpartida-Girard, who has lived in Sunset Park for 17 years, felt that the tone of questioning would be less aggressive if there were more attendees with young children.

“I have benefited from the services that SMC has provided for my nine-year-old child,” she said. “I am thrilled that the college is interested in providing more outdoor space.

“I don’t know where to take my daughter to learn how to bicycle,” she added. “She is afraid of the beaches. We need more open, safer spaces. We need to think about the future of our children when we are thinking about twenty-five to a hundred dollars a year.”

Residents also worried about the increased impacts on traffic and parking.

“There is already a severe lack of parking space for students and residents alike, with students parking as far up as Bundy and walking to college,” said Friends board member Susan Hartley.

SMC Vice President Tom Donner agreed that students still preferred to drive to school, but he didn’t support adding more parking spaces on campus.

“So you would rather push them into the neighborhood?” a disgruntled resident muttered at the back of the room.

Donner suggested using some of the bond money to add shuttles to and from campus and addressed fears that they would increase air pollution.

“You can buy equipment with a Proposition 39 Bond,” he said. “We will consider partnering with the Big Blue Bus for buses which are eco-friendly with cleaner fuel emissions.”

Friends President Zina Josephs concluded the meeting on a cautious note.

“If you need to know what the community needs, then notify them,” Josephs said. “Communication has become very one way. If you want good communication with the community then you need to do your part.”