Burbank School Funds Issue Evaporates

An all-day summit meeting between the Burbank Board of Education and Burbank City Council members ended with a whimper, not a bang, Wednesday, as an anticipated conflict over $1.8 million in lost revenues failed to materialize.

A controversial Burbank Unified School District report, which claims that the district has been deprived of the $1.8 million through a series of agreements with the city that date back 15 years, had been expected to produce a heated debate.

However, after a brief discussion, school board members said they were satisfied merely to lay their grievance before the council and let the matter drop.

“At issue is not whether we agree how these figures have been arrived at. The idea is just to look at them and move on,” school board member Audrey Hansen said.

School officials contend the district lost the $1.8 million because it was unable to levy taxes based on the true value of property it owned in the Golden State Redevelopment Project. The value of that property was frozen at 1970-71 assessment levels by the creation of the redevelopment project, district Supt. Wayne Boulding said.

City officials disagreed with the district report. City Manager Robert (Bud) Ovrom said the city has reimbursed the district through a series of payments meant to relieve the losses incurred by redevelopment. The city has also negotiated an agreement to pay the district $4 million more than fair market value for a school located on the future City Center site, Ovrom said.

Steps were also taken during the joint meeting to resolve a dispute which erupted between the council and school officials this summer regarding the allocation of in federal Community Development Block Grant Program funds.

The council directed its staff to research whether school officials are eligible to sit on a citizen’s advisory committee that will recommend future projects for funding.

In June, school officials expressed dismay when they learned that $100,000 had been allocated to repair toilets in the Golden Mall shopping area, whereas the school district received only $70,000 of $2.8 million it had requested.

The issue was resolved when the council agreed to redirect $100,000 in general funds for school improvements.

Wednesday’s meeting, in a rented conference room at the Burbank Hilton, got such high marks from participants that they decided to make it a quarterly occasion. The next session, open to the public, has been scheduled for Jan. 30.

“It was an opportunity for both bodies to get together and open the lines of communication,” said Councilwoman Mary Kelsey.