Schools
BHUSD Allocates More Funds to Fight MTA
Also, Metro is reportedly considering a third location for its Century City station that would avoid tunneling under BHHS.
The Beverly Hills Unified School District Board of Education voted Wednesday to allocate another potential $400,000 in lobbying and legal fees to fight a Metropolitan Transportation Authority proposal to . The board has already for efforts to fight the subway proposal, which is part of the Westside Subway Extension.
At a special study session to plan the 2011-12 fiscal budget, board members questioned district staff about legal and lobbying fees in this year's and next year's budget.
Assistant Superintendent for Business Services Alex Cherniss said that projected legal fees for the current fiscal year ending June 20 will total $700,000. That amount includes a potential $400,000-500,000 total in spending related to the issue of subway tunneling in Beverly Hills, he said. The money would come from the district’s general fund.
Find out what's happening in Beverly Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The MTA has been considering two stops in Century City as part of the subway extension. A station at Constellation Boulevard would entail tunneling under BHHS, while the other potential stop at Santa Monica Boulevard and Avenue of the Stars would tunnel under Santa Monica Boulevard.
The Beverly Hills Courier, however, reported Wednesday that the MTA is now considering a third potential station at Santa Monica Boulevard and Century Park East. The proposed stop would avoid tunneling under BHHS and would also avoid the Santa Monica fault that is located under Santa Monica Boulevard, the Courier said.
Find out what's happening in Beverly Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Metro officials have said that the dormant fault is an impediment to subway construction and has prompted them to consider alternate routes through Beverly Hills.
Board members expressed hope that the MTA would choose the third potential station, saving the district the additional $400,000 on subway-related expenses. Any money saved could help them fill an anticipated $1.7 million shortfall in funding for the next fiscal year.
“We do not want to deficit spend in 2011-12,” Cherniss said when noting the need to cut $1.7 million from next fiscal year’s budget.
This columnist joins with board members in hoping that the $400,000 can be spent for educational purposes rather than fighting the MTA.
Check back with Patch for more coverage of the BHUSD budget deliberations.
