COSTA MESA : Plan to Drop School Opening Irks Parents

After months of discussions and promises that Victoria Elementary School would open its doors next year, a school board trustee this week proposed scrapping the plan indefinitely and using the earmarked funds for other schools.

The surprise move was met with outrage from parents whose children are tentatively scheduled to attend the school and who have been working with the board in recent months to ensure that the opening, originally scheduled for this fall, would not be further delayed.

“Opening a scaled-back school is more desirable” than not opening the school at all, said resident Connie Jameison, a member of the Victoria School Parents’ Assn., a group that has been dubbed a PTA without a school.

The proposal came from Newport-Mesa Unified School District trustee Roderick MacMillian, whose district includes Victoria school. He said he was concerned that the district was spending funds to ready the school that could be used elsewhere as the district tries to balance its budget.

“As more and more dollars go to construction, that’s more and more money being taken away from children,” MacMillian said. “I’d rather see as much money as possible being put into the youngsters.”

Opening the school would probably cost the district about $375,000 more than originally estimated. The board decided Tuesday to study the proposal to see if the district could afford to open the school as planned.

After being closed for nearly two decades, Victoria was originally slated to reopen this fall after the school district received its share of funds from an agreement to operate a water reservoir on the school site.

That agreement, and the expected $4 million it was estimated to bring the district, was delayed, forcing the district to postpone the reopening because funds for site renovations and improvements were unavailable. The funding came through about three months ago, allowing the district to go forward with plans and set the September, 1993, opening date.

Now, faced with a $3.7-million shortfall, the district is trying to find ways to cover the deficit, which in part prompted MacMillian’s proposal.