IRVINE : Sports Facilities Not in Northwood Plans

When Irvine’s fourth high school opens in the fall of 1997, residents will be paying higher taxes for a campus lacking many athletic facilities, according to school board member Tom Burnham.

When Irvine’s fourth high school opens in the fall of 1997, residents will be paying higher taxes for campus athletic facilities, Burnham said.

He is asking fellow Irvine Unified School District board members to take a closer look at plans for the Northwood High School.

At a recent community meeting, parents expressed concerns about the lack of athletic amenities planned for the new school, and the potential for overload at the district’s existing sports facilities.

District officials said there is no funding for the stadium that was originally planned for the $28-million school. The district’s only stadium is at Irvine High.

A swimming pool, tennis courts and baseball field are not in the Northwood plans either.

“This needs to be a comprehensive high school,” Burnham said. “This community has some pretty high demands.”

Burnham said the district should not repeat the mistakes it made 14 years ago when it built Woodbridge High. “We just broke ground at Woodbridge to put in tennis courts,” he said. “We just built a baseball field there three years ago.”

Unlike the district’s other high schools, the construction of Northwood High is funded by a community facilities district tax levied on homeowners. Burnham said that nearby residents will be paying a “premium price” in taxes.

But district Deputy Supt. Dean Waldfogel said it is common for high schools to share athletic facilities: “Swimming pools and stadiums are not common occurrences at most high schools. Ideally, if you had the money, these facilities should all be on each campus. But historically, that has not been the case.”