The town of Atherton has sued the local high school district in an attempt to stop the construction of a performing arts center on the campus of Menlo-Atherton High School in Atherton.
The complaint alleges that the Sequoia Union High School District misused a provision of the law to exempt the project from environmental analysis. Impacts of concern to Atherton include rainwater runoff, traffic congestion, and increased calls to the police department.
The district has offered to share the cost of a traffic study and plans to bore “dry wells” to handle rainwater runoff on campus, said Ed LaVigne, the Sequoia district’s assistant superintendent of administrative services.
In the lawsuit, Atherton asks the court to “vacate and set aside” the district’s theater plans until an environmental impact report is done.
Atherton officials are also concerned about the city of Menlo Park’s plans to pay for $2.6 million of the $26 million project in exchange for rights to use the theater, said Sequoia district Superintendent Pat Gemma in an interview.
Atherton wants Menlo Park to apply for permits if events go past 9 p.m. and notify the town of schedule changes, in keeping with Atherton’s ordinance meant to regulate use of school facilities for non-school activities, said Mayor Charles Marsala.
Menlo Park has refused the advance-notice request, he said. “I don’t think the facility is going to be abused,” he said. Notification would be a gesture, “but also a gesture in writing.” And the permit? “We can’t just say ‘Thanks for the notice,'” he said.
Since April, the school district has met a half-dozen times with officials from Atherton and Menlo Park, Mr. Gemma said, noting that the matter has still to go through mandatory mediation.
“We continue to go back and forth with the town,” he said. “If it does go to court, I think it will be decided very quickly. … I just regret that the lawsuit was filed.”
State law tends to support school districts in disputes with local governments. The Civic Center Act, part of the state’s education code, states that public schools must serve as community gathering places and make facilities available for public use, such as artistic and recreational activities, with guidelines for use set by school boards.
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