District Delays Sale of 2 Surplus Schools

Simi Valley school officials have delayed the sale of two surplus campuses after discovering that they failed to hold required public hearings.

Over the objections of some parents, Simi Valley Unified School District trustees had been planning to put the former Belwood elementary school campus out for bids Tuesday and the former Walnut Grove campus out for bids in June.

“We took them off the market,” board President Janice DiFatta said. “Fortunately, we hadn’t sold anything yet, so it was just a matter of catching it in time.”

DiFatta said a surplus property committee recommended the sale of Belwood and Walnut Grove last year without conducting a public forum.

“I don’t know why it was overlooked, but ultimately the board is responsible in making sure the Education Code is followed,” she said.

Earlier this month, a group of parents, concerned that selling Belwood would limit class capacity in a growing community, petitioned the board to stop the sale.

DiFatta said a meeting between interim Supt. Ken Moffett and the parents to examine the committee’s rationale for selling Belwood revealed the missing public forum.

Parent Nan Mostacciuolo said the technicality may have stopped the sale of Belwood for now, but she is still concerned that the board will end up selling the school anyway despite a growing demand for classrooms.

“They’re just going to restart the process,” Mostacciuolo said. “It’s scary that parents had to point out that they weren’t following the rules and, if we hadn’t spoken up, it would’ve just gone through.”

DiFatta said the new process will be open to the possibility of retaining the schools.

“It’s hard to say how it will turn out, but perhaps after the public forum, there will be new information to look at,” DiFatta said. “The parents have a vested interest in their neighborhood and should be given all the information.”