HomeMy WebLinkAboutAvila Ranch DEIR Public Comment received 1-18-17 (San Luis Coastal Unified School District)From: Kim Holmes [
Sent: Wednesday, January 18, 2017 8:38 AM
To: Corey, Tyler <tcorey@slocity.ore>
Cc: < >
Subject: Avila Ranch Development
Good morning, Mr. Corey,
RECEIVED
CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO
JAN 18 2017
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Please find attached a letter from San Luis Coastal Unified School District regarding the
impacts of the Avila Ranch project on our school district.
KIM HOLMES
Executive Assistant to the Superintendent
San Luis Coastal Unified School District
1500 Lizzie Street, Suite 131
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
(
SAN LUIS COASTAL
1hp, UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
1500 Lizzie Street
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401-3062
(805) 549-1202
fax (805) 549-9074
ERIC PRATER, ED.D.
SUPERINTENDENT
January 18, 2017
Mr. Andy Mangano
Avila Ranch LLC
735 Tank Farm Road, Suite 240
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
Dear Mr. Mangano,
San Luis Coastal Unified School District is pleased to have the opportunity to provide input regarding the
potential impacts that the buildout of Avila Ranch could have on the finances and attendance for our
elementary and secondary schools.
While I cannot take a position for or against any specific project, I am willing to provide my perspective
on any factors that are likely to have a material impact on the quality of our schools. Three key factors
will come into play in the foreseeable future:
1. Enrollment Trends: Prior to asking our voters in 2014 to approve Measure D, a bond initiative to
upgrade our facilities, we commissioned an extensive district -wide demographic analysis. That study
projected a slow to moderate percentage growth of our student population, most of it coming in our
secondary grades 6-12, and took into account the anticipated impacts of full buildout of the Avila
Ranch project along with all other housing projects then on the drawing boards.
We believe the combined impacts of an Avila Ranch buildout are fully manageable within our current
primary and secondary school facilities. The successful passage of Measure D will assist us in making
necessary facility improvements. Developer Impact Fees, including the estimated $3.8 million that
will be paid from Avila Ranch projects, will assist us in managing future facility needs due to growth.
2. Employee Recruitment Challenges: This area's high cost of housing poses difficult challenges in
recruiting and retaining quality employees, as it does for all businesses in our region. While we
expect a sizable number of our teachers to retire in the next two decades, they will likely stay in their
current homes. The addition of workforce housing included in the Avila Ranch project could assist
our ability to recruit and retain new teachers to our region. The housing challenge is second only to
the financial hole we face with the anticipated closure of the Diablo Canyon Power Plant.
S:\SUPTOFFICE\SUPERIN"I\Admin\BCA\Correspondence\Avila Ranch Impact 2017.docx
Mr. Anthony Mangano, Avila Ranch LLC
January 18, 2017
Page 2
3. Revenue Trends: Diablo's closure presents our most severe challenge given the anticipated loss of
$8 million annually in property tax revenues, or approximately 10 percent of our current annual
operating budget. In our future we will need to focus on replacement revenue sources to continue our
robust programs and to retain our quality workforce. Due to the loss of revenue from the Diablo
Canyon closure, we are confronted with a potentially new funding model in San Luis Coastal,
transitioning from basic aid to state -funded status. Subsequently, we will need to rely on increased
student enrollment which is a dramatic change from our current reliance on local property taxes.
Should this occur, growth that includes young families with children is in our interest as a school
district.
Sincerely,
f
ERIC PRATER, Ed.D.
Superintendent
EP/mkh
S:ASUPTOPFICI?\SUPERIN'l\Admin\BCA\Correspondence\Avila Ranch Impact 2017.docx