German-American School will stay at O'Connor site German-American School will stay at O'Connor site (May 25, 2005)

By Marjorie Mader

Almanac Staff Writer

The German-American International School is the lone bidder for a five-year lease on the former O'Connor School site, owned by the Menlo Park City School District and leased by the German school since 1992.

"We're happy and the German-American school is happy, too," said Superintendent Ken Ranella of the Menlo Park district, after the bid was opened at the trustees' May 19 meeting.

Trustees quickly awarded the lease that begins July 1, 2006, with an initial annual payment of $300,000. The lease will be adjusted annually for increases in the consumer price index, according to the agreement.

The German-American school has classes from preschool through eighth-grade and is located at 275 Elliott Drive in Menlo Park. About 170 students are enrolled.

Under state law, the school district could not renew the lease without going through a public bid process.

The Menlo Park district acquired the vacant O'Connor School site after the approval of a November 1983 ballot measure that transferred the site and surrounding property from the Ravenswood City School District to the Menlo Park district. The district has never operated a school on the 5.95-acre site.

While the district does not need the school now, it may need it in the future, depending on district enrollment and program needs, said Mr. Ranella.

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