SMUSD Faces Stoneman School Lease and Deficit

The Board of Education meets tonight to decide on two more bids for the Stoneman School lease, which can help compensate for a potential $5.6 million district budget deficit.

In January, the San Marino Unified School District projected a 2011-2012 $5.6 million budget deficit and various ways to address it.

The SMUSD Board of Education has a special meeting scheduled for tonight at 6 p.m. to discuss two more bids for the lease of the Stoneman School.

The Stoneman School, which currently houses San Marino Preschool and the San Marino Recreation Department—leased yearly to the city—is surplus land owned by the SMUSD.

“It’s a very important decision and long-term agreement so we need to take our time and make sure we find the best match for the property and benefit to our families and our community,” said SMUSD Superintendent Gary Woods. “These are both considered counteroffers so they are not exactly what we are requesting. We are looking for a 99-year lease agreement because at this time the school district is not allowed to sell the property and use those proceeds for operational expenses.”

The Almansor Center and the submitted bids during the second round of bidding and the district will decide tonight whether to accept one bid or reject both bids.

SMUSD Superintendent Gary Woods could not disclose the dollar amounts of the bids.

As , The SMUSD rejected the two bids they received in January to lease the property—one bid was $6.3 million from the City of San Marino and the other $4 million from the Almansor Center, a learning center for children up to adults, according to San Marino City Manager Matt Ballantyne.

Woods said the bid amounts can be complex and various factors must be considered as to their actual value.

“The value of money is different depending on how someone proposes they are going to pay for it,” said Woods. “It depends on when they (bidders) want to pay it and how they want to pay it and how much it’s worth and we obviously are looking for payments up front because of trying to solve the budget crisis issue.”

The city of San Marino did not submit another bid during this second round, but the San Marino City Council met for their monthly special meeting at 8 a.m. this morning and further discussed a possible bid for the Stoneman site.

“Our meeting was in regards to what options are we going to have and we need to establish a game plan on if they accept those bids, if they reject the bids, what direction do we go in,” said San Marino Assistant City Manager Cindy Collins.

If both bids are rejected tonight, the SMUSD will open another round of bidding, said Woods, though in that case the Board of Education needs to decide the timing.