Move could remove city from sports facility

Newport-Mesa Unified School District trustees will consider refunding Costa Mesa’s contribution to the creation of a sports facility at Costa Mesa High School during their meeting Tuesday night.

Such a move by the board could mean that the city would not have any claim over the sports facility and all-weather track and field.

“With the nature of the project now being a dedicated district sports facility rather than a joint-use facility with the city of Costa Mesa, it is now appropriate to recognize and appreciate the efforts of the city and to refund the $15,000 contribution to the joint-use proposal,” states a district staff report approved by Paul Reed, the district’s deputy superintendent and chief business official.

In March, the city and Newport-Mesa entered into an agreement to study the joint construction and use of a stadium or athletic facility at Costa Mesa High for educational and community purposes.

The city chipped in $15,000 for the study, the staff report stated.

However, in June the school board learned that two redevelopment agencies were being dismantled, meaning $25 million would be available for capital improvement purposes. It budgeted $7.4 million out of those funds for the sports facility during a meeting in September.

“The receipt of the capital improvement funds from the dismantled redevelopment agencies opened the door to the district building a dedicated sports facility at Costa Mesa High School from its own resources,” the report stated.

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Contract review

The board will also consider extending Supt. Frederick Navarro’s employment term to 2016 and increasing his annual salary by $14,376.

Navarro was hired by the district in July 2012. At that time, his employment agreement had a three-year term, effective August 1, 2012, through June 30, 2015, according to a staff report.

An evaluation of Navarro’s performance during his first year was recently completed, and with those results, the board president directed staff to prepare an addendum to his employment agreement.

The new agreement will give a Navarro salary of $253,976, including a specified amount that was previously separate as a doctoral stipend. If approved, the agreement eliminates all future consideration of a doctoral stipend as an add-on to his salary, according to the report.

The agreement also specifies that Navarro must work 224 days during the fiscal year and adds a new clause required by law that states that in the event his agreement is terminated and he is convicted of a crime involving an abuse of his position, any money paid to him as a settlement of contract termination must be reimbursed to the district within 30 days.