It also marked the beginning of the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association's keen interest in how the renovated school campus will affect traffic, particularly along Lincoln Avenue.

Part of the project involves relocating kindergarten classrooms, including the drop-off point for the kindergartners, from Minnesota Avenue to Lincoln Avenue. The existing parking lot and drop-off area on Minnesota Avenue will be replaced with a new two-story building.

The association is particularly concerned about the relocation of the kindergartner drop-off, which it believes will generate greater congestion along already busy Lincoln Avenue. At the association's meeting on June 8, board members requested that the San Jose Unified School District's construction team share the findings from its traffic study at the association's August meeting.

Steve Adamo, the district's construction project manager, told the Willow Glen Resident at the groundbreaking ceremony that he is confident the findings will support the district's decision to relocate the kindergarten area and parking lot. The district construction team met on June 17 to review the findings. Ellen Santomauro, the association's first vice president, questioned the logic of conducting a study so close to the start of construction.

"With any good project, you plan and work out any kinks there are in order to eliminate having to go back and make changes," she said. "Why are they putting the cart before the horse?"

Bill Gould, the project's architect, explained at the association's meeting that the district was exempt from conducting a traffic study because the project does not involve the expansion of the campus. However, the district decided to do one, with the help of the San Jose Department of Transportation, in response to community concerns about traffic.

With the school starting five single-session kindergarten classes in the morning next year, Santomauro is worried about the increase in traffic volume.

"The traffic pattern is definitely going to change," she said after the meeting. With the school buses dropping off students, and parents lined up to drop off their children at the same time, cars could be backed up along Lincoln Avenue, she added. Santomauro suggested staggering the school start times for kindergartners and the different grades.

At the June 8 meeting, Pam Foley, the school board trustee who represents Willow Glen schools, explained that the relocation of the parking lot was necessary.

"There is no way to incorporate the new two-story building without moving the parking space," Foley said.

She said the new parking lot will add extra parking spaces and is a safer drop-off point for parents sending their children to school.

Santomauro, however, isn't convinced it will be safer.

Currently, kindergartners alight at a designated drop-off point along Minnesota Avenue where a parent volunteer opens the door and ensures that children get to class.

"Minnesota is busy but not as busy as Lincoln," she said. "With the new parking lot, parents still won't be able to park their cars and walk their children to class. So what's the difference between the current and proposed situations?"

She is also concerned about the impact of the right-turn-only out of the parking lot onto Lincoln Avenue. Drivers wanting to go north on Lincoln Avenue might have cut through neighboring streets such as Iris Court and Nevada Avenue to turn around.

Santomauro said there are still many unknowns and hopes the district can return in August with more specifics.

"We want to know how many students are taking the bus, how many will walk and how many parents are expected to drop off their children at a specific time," she said. "This way, we can get a full picture of what is happening."