Redwood City plots parcel tax spending

The $149 parcel tax is expected to generate about $3.4 million annually over 12 years for the cash-strapped district, if a supermajority of district residents vote in its favor.

Board President Dennis McBride said he believes the forthcoming discussion will help officials refine their strategy for discussing the measure with potential voters and members of the school community.

“This is about trying to come up with a little more specificity so when we go out to the PTAs and the PTOs, we can say this is what we are going to use it for,” he said. “It will help us discuss it with voters too.”

District spokesman Jorge Quintana said the discussion will also aid the Redwood City Education Foundation, the primary advocacy agency for the tax, in building its campaign as well.

“This discussion will be helpful to RCEF as they continue to speak to members of the public about the potential funds. As a district, we want our community to have all the information that they need as they make this decision,” he said in an email.

The district Board of Trustees unanimously approved floating the measure to the ballot in June, months after officials elected to close four schools due to years of financial hardship.

Officials decided last year that Adelante will be folded into a similar Spanish immersion program offered at Selby Lane Elementary School, Fair Oaks will merge with Taft Elementary School, Hawes students will be primarily distributed between Henry Ford and Roosevelt campuses, and the Orion program will be moved to John Gill Elementary School.

Officials reconfigured the district in hopes of overhauling a historically limited budget which struggled to operate a system comprised of neighborhood schools. Dwindling enrollment, popularity of local charter schools, concerns of inadequate state funding and rising pension costs were among the financial constraints which ultimately forced the decision by officials.

Looking ahead, McBride said the revenue from Measure H could be used to pay teachers more, hire more teachers to reduce class sizes and beef up supplemental programs such as reading intervention or STEM classes.

But with the limited amount of money raised by the tax each year, McBride said officials must develop a budgeting strategy which satisfies staff and the school community while always keeping an eye to the needs of students.

He said officials have not yet established priorities, but feedback from conversations he’s had with district parents suggests raises for teachers and smaller class sizes would be among the most highly-valued spending targets.

A district report in advance of the meeting suggested officials start the discussion with an assumption the tax passes.

“It is the administration’s recommendation that Superintendent [John] Baker and the school board discuss the manner in which Measure H funds will be spent when passed in the November 2019 election,” said the report.

McBride downplayed any potential concerns that the district is putting the cart before the proverbial horse in plotting a spending plan for money which the school system is yet to receive.

He noted the district is not obligated to adhere to any of the priorities identified at the discussion, and that no budgeting decisions would be made in advance of voters approving the tax.

To that end, Quintana said he anticipates the discussion will help officials discuss the measure more clearly and directly with community members seeking additional information about the tax.

“The board discussion is taking place because it’s actually the public who is asking specifics about how the funds will be spent should the funding measure pass,” he said.

The Redwood City Elementary School Board of Trustees meets 7 p.m., in the district office, 750 Bradford St.

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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