Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Editorials

Study should help to build the case

For years, it seems, school bond issues always showed up on the ballot. They were never easy to pass, but there was often enough enthusiasm to rally a majority of the votes.

School bond issues pretty much disappeared from ballots after 1978. That's when Proposition 13 passed, and the super majority replaced the simple majority when it came to local taxes.

School districts began deferring maintenance rather than attempt the enormous--and probably futile--task of trying to win the support of two-thirds of the voters.

But 19 years is a long time to ignore the repair and upkeep of buildings, particularly ones that get the kind of use that school facilities get.

Now the Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District is wondering if it's time to bite the bullet and go to the public.

The board's decision to hire a consultant to analyze the needs and cost of repair work, as well as the mood of the voters, was a good investment.

Unless the district has a fighting chance to muster the support of two-thirds of the voters, it might as well save its energy and its money.

If the facilities are in the kind of shape those close to the two high school campuses believe, that information can help build the case for passage of a bond.

Those who led the battle for passage of Proposition 13 have always argued that requiring a two-thirds majority for most taxes, including school bonds, was reasonable because if taxes were really needed, it wouldn't be that difficult to convince two-thirds of the voters.

That's certainly what a number of school districts around the state--including Saratoga Union and San Jose Unified--are banking on. Both have bond elections on the June ballot.

Nineteen years is a long time to ignore facilities maintenance.

Decision was right

In giving its blessing to the housing element, the Planning Commission not only did what it had to do, it did the right thing. A mere seven citizens turned out for the public hearing, which might suggest that there won't be a hue and cry the first time a developer proposes a project that could provide affordable housing--if only the area were zoned properly.

That's not the way things usually happen in Los Gatos, however. The public outcry will come when the housing element moves beyond the philosophical stage to the hammer and nails stage.

But Planning Commission Chairwoman Sandy Decker said it all when she argued that high-density can be designed and placed in a way that is appropriate for the community.

That doesn't simply mean that apartments can be situated so they aren't adjacent to residential neighborhoods; it also means the town can demand design standards that ensure that affordable housing looks as if it belongs in the community.

No one wants to create a slum section on the edge of town, after all. And certainly, those whose incomes demand that they live in affordable housing don't want that, either.

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