The Coast News
VISTA, SAN MARCOS, ESCONDIDO
VOL. 10, N0. 24
NOV. 24, 2023
SMUSD ponders new bond
Survey finds support if placed on ’24 ballot By Laura Place
Shoutout
Partners has sought approval for the project. City officials sent an earlier version, which included a larger design with 55 townhomes up to three stories tall, back to the drawing board. This time, the coun-
SAN MARCOS — Could voters in the San Marcos Unified School District pass a new multihundred-million-dollar bond measure initiative in 2024? There’s a good possibility, a recent district bond feasibility study found. At the district board’s Nov. 9 meeting, survey research firm True North Outreach said that in a recent survey of district voters, 60% of respondents said they would support a new bond measure of around $320 million in the next election. Of the remaining respondents, 29% said they were opposed, and 11% said they were unsure. With a bond requiring at least 55% voter approval in order to pass, this indicates that a new bond in the district would be feasible, True North President Tim McLarney said. “A lot of the things that we want to see in place for a bond measure to have a reasonable chance of success, we see in place here,” McLarney said. San Marcos Unified has been exploring the possibility of a new general obligation bond in order to fund hundreds of millions of dollars in needed updates to district facilities, including the replacement of portable classrooms and campus reconstruction. Costs for needed facility modernization and updates are currently estimated at around $250 million to $425 million, according to the district. “Our district has big, big facility needs. We have aging schools that could definitely use some updates,” Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Erin Garcia told the board on Nov. 2. “We are never going to be able to do large-scale projects with the funds that we have, other than with a general obligation bond. That's the one that will bring the largest source of construction funds to the district.” Woodland Park Middle School
TURN TO PROJECT ON 5
TURN TO BOND ON 7
Members of the Cal State San Marcos women’s soccer team celebrate the program’s first California Collegiate Athletic Association championship after the Cougars defeated Cal Poly Pomona, 1-0, in the conference final on Nov. 12. Story on Page 3. Courtesy photo/CSUSM Athletics
Tri-City: Layoffs not tied to breach
Vista townhome project upsets nearby residents
By Samantha Nelson
VISTA — The Vista City Council approved a 38-unit townhome project off Sunset Drive this week despite major concerns among residents of an adjacent mobile home park about negative impacts on traffic and access. The Sunset Drive Townhomes project proposes 38 two-story homes ranging from two to three bedrooms, split between 10 different buildings. The 4.3-acre site near the Pavilion Shopping Center is divided into two parcels by the driveway to the Vista Green Valley Mobile Home Park, which abuts the property to the southwest. Leaders at Legacy Partners, the project developer, said the project will add needed homes to
OCEANSIDE — TriCity Medical Center officials confirmed that recent employee layoffs were due to “right-sizing” the hospital’s lopsided patient-staff ratios and not related to last week’s disruptive cybersecurity data breach or its newly forged partnership with UC San Diego Health. As Tri-City continues to recover from the ransomware attack on Nov. 9, layoff notices were sent to 100 employees in the days following the cybersecurity incursion, hospital officials confirmed. The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that a Nov. 13 letter to hospital staff from Tri-City CEO Dr. Gene Ma mentioned 60day layoff notices had gone out to an unspecified number of employees. Tri-City spokesperson TURN TO TRI-CITY ON 15
By Laura Place
Photo by Laura Place
Veterans share stories at school Baypoint Preparatory Academy in San Marcos hears from retired service members at 2nd annual Veterans Day event. 6
School alters gender ID policy Escondido-based Classical Academies changes parent notification rules under threat of lawsuit. 5
Shelter serving Vista gets boost Buena Vista Navigation Center receives $5 million in state funds. 7
THE SUNSET DRIVE Townhomes project as viewed from the main driveway that also leads into the Green Valley Mobile Home Park. Courtesy rendering/Dudek Architecture
the area. “We’re excited to deliver a much-needed supply of housing to the 78 corridor,” said David Pinto, vice president of Legacy’s Southern California office. The City Council’s Nov. 14 meeting marked the third time Legacy