Panel Discusses Use of School Bond Funds

Eager to put the proceeds from an $88-million bond measure to work, a school board advisory committee met the day after the election to discuss how the money should be spent.

“We really got down to business,” said Thousand Oaks resident Patti Yomantas, who represents Weathersfield Elementary School on the Bond Facility Project’s District Advisory Committee.

The Conejo Valley Unified School District intends to spend the money from Measure R to repair leaky roofs, install energy-efficient heating and air-conditioning systems, modernize restrooms, build new classrooms, hook up computer network systems, upgrade science labs and libraries, update lighting systems, install security lights and fencing, modernize fire alarms and provide earthquake safety measures. The improvements are expected to be made over 10 to 25 years.

Gary Mortimer, the district’s assistant superintendent of business services, said the committee agreed the first phase of improvements will focus on performing health- and safety-related improvements as soon as possible.

Other priorities include building permanent classrooms to accommodate required reductions in class sizes, as well as updating school technology, particularly at the elementary and middle school level, he said. Technological improvements are expected to be among the first improvements made, because the work would have the least impact on students during the school year, officials said.

“We can get going on that pretty quickly through the winter,” Mortimer said.