Judge rules in favor of district on Broadway

SJUSD hopes to complete move to Muir by spring

By Jessica Lyons

San Jose Unified School District can begin moving Broadway High School onto the John Muir Middle School campus, after receiving the green light from a Superior Court judge last week.

The court denied CAIR's (Community Action in Robertsville) request to block the move, allowing construction to begin on between 14 and 16 portables that will house the district's continuation program.

The community group in December filed a legal challenge against the district, alleging that San Jose Unified selected the Muir campus as Broadway's new home before conducting a state-mandated environmental study and asking for a temporary stay, preventing the district from moving the continuation high school.

While denying the stay, the judge did not rule on the "writ of mandate" alleging the district did not complete a comprehensive environmental study. At press time, a court date had not been set for the writ of mandate.

"We feel very positive about [the judge's decision]," said Carol Myers, the Board of Education's president. "I think this is very positive for Broadway and for the whole school district. [The legal challenge] was really creating a problem for all schools involved, not just one. Now was can get started with the move."

Trustees say Broadway's nearly 200 students must be moved by spring to allow other district-wide construction to keep on schedule. This means the continuation high school's new portable classrooms must be built, Broadway's students and teachers moved to their new home, and the existing Broadway campus remodeled to house the district's award-winning Spanish dual immersion program within four months.

"We're looking to still be in by April," said Ron Edwards, the district's school construction manager. "It's about a nine-month job we're trying to do in four months."

CAIR president Jim Chase says his group plans to continue fighting the move. "We're still going to pursue the process legally," Chase says. "I don't see this as changing the fundamental issue that they didn't give us due process in the environmental review. We recognize that the district has the right to go ahead and build, but if they lose the writ, they are going to have to tear everything out, which would be another needless expense of our tax dollars."

Around the Glen

The Domino Theory: One thing always leads to another

Sports Briefs

High school wrestling

WGHS Rams soccer