Feb. 12 Election Set on Tax for New School

Newhall school trustees have set Feb. 12 for a special election on an unusual proposal that would raise taxes in a single neighborhood by $12 million to finance a new school in the fast-growing district.

The trustees of the Newhall School District formally set the election date Tuesday night at the urging of parents from the upscale Summit development in Valencia, who said they would pay higher property taxes to have a school in their own neighborhood.

Summit parents have sought their own school since a realignment of school attendance boundaries in 1988 split their neighborhood between two different schools.

Property owners would be assessed from $230 to $925 annually, depending on the square footage of their property, Supt. J. Michael McGrath said Wednesday. The measure must be approved by two-thirds of the area’s 1,600 registered voters to pass.

Because of the small pool of voters, the election will be conducted by mail. The ballots will be counted Feb. 12.

There are only about 200 students in the still-developing Summit area, so the majority of the students would come from other neighborhoods in the Newhall district, McGrath said. The burgeoning Newhall district currently has 4,580 students, up 5% from last year, he said.