Local CSU Campus in Line for Share of Bond Funds

Voter approval this week of a statewide school bond measure is expected to generate $55 million for Cal State University campuses, a significant portion of which could be devoted to converting Camarillo State Hospital into a four-year college.

Educators and lawmakers said it’s too early to tell exactly how much money will flow to local schools from the $9.2-billion bond issue approved Tuesday by 62% of voters.

But the ballot measure setting aside $55 million for smaller CSU campuses puts Cal State Channel Islands in line with four other state universities for the lion’s share of the cash.

“We are terrifically encouraged by the actions of the people, particularly the people in Ventura County, who overwhelmingly voted for the bond issue,” said Handel Evans, president of the Camarillo campus. More than six in 10 county voters supported the bond measure, Proposition 1A.

“I think those who know about the university recognize that this particular funding stream could make a significant and crucial difference to our planning,” Evans said. “It could significantly speed up the build-out of the campus.”

The measure, which authorizes the sale of $9.2 billion in general obligation bonds, is expected to generate millions of dollars for Ventura County schools to help build new classrooms and shore up aging facilities.

Of that amount, $6.7 billion will go to K-12 schools, while $2.5 billion is earmarked for higher education facilities

In the lower grades, at least $2.9 billion will be used to buy land and build new schools, while $700 million will help support class size-reduction efforts.

For higher education, $165 million will be divided among the University of California, Cal State University, and community college systems. Of that amount, officials expect a third to filter to CSU campuses with enrollments of fewer than 5,000 full-time equivalent students.

For the Cal State system, those campuses are Channel Islands, Bakersfield, Monterey Bay, San Marcos and Stanislaus.

While the governor and the Legislature ultimately will decide which projects to fund, state Sen. Jack O’Connell (D-San Luis Obispo) said he wrote an amendment to the ballot measure that almost guarantees bond money for the Channel Islands campus.

“Our objective was to develop criteria narrowly and specifically to increase the likelihood that we would receive our fair share of funding,” said O’Connell, who stumped for the initiative two weeks ago against the backdrop of the developing university.

The money won’t be available for three years, O’Connell said.

But when it arrives, he said, it will boost efforts to convert aging hospital buildings into the classrooms, offices and laboratories needed to transform the state hospital complex into Ventura County’s first four-year public university.

Moreover, the money will help relieve the pressure of attracting business ventures to the campus. University trustees have made it clear that the only way the Channel Islands campus would later expand is if it generated the cash to make it happen.

Toward that end, O’Connell and other university boosters have been working to lure private and public ventures to the property to help share the costs of renovating the campus.

“It’s hard to generate money when you don’t have an alumni association or a faculty behind you,” O’Connell said. “We set out to level the playing field. This money will be the equivalent of a capital outlay cookie jar.”

The 30-year bond measure will not boost taxes for California residents. Rather, the principal and interest--about $600 million a year--will be paid out of the state’s general fund.

For new school construction in the lower grades, districts will be required to pay half the cost for projects deemed eligible for funding by the state. And for renovation or modernization of existing facilities, districts will be asked to pick up 20% of the costs.

Officials said that arrangement will favor school districts with a lot of cash on hand, including several in Ventura County where voters have approved local bond measures in recent years.

That includes the Conejo Valley Unified School District, where voters Tuesday approved an $88-million measure for school construction and renovation.

It also includes the Ventura Unified School District, where Supt. Joseph Spirito said he has identified plenty of need beyond the $81-million bond approved by voters in 1997.

“That puts us first in line for funding and I think we’re looking at some big dollars coming our way,” Spirito said. “I’m thrilled and I’m excited, but I also know I’ve got my work cut out for me to demonstrate we can put this money to good use.”