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CC Study Session - Annexation - 2005MEMORANDUM To: Honorable Mayor and City Council CITY OF CAMPBELL City Manager's Office Date: December 12, 2005 From: Daniel Rich, City Manager Subject: Study Session -Westmont High School Annexation Issues Background The issue of Campbell's possible annexation of Westmont High School has been discussed from time to time for many years. When Campbell High School closed in 1980, the City was left without a high school within its borders. Westmont is right on the city limits and a substantial percentage of the students come from Campbell. Many at the school and in the community consider it "Campbell's high school." In 2002, a meeting was held with San Jose Councilmember Linda LeZotte and City Manager Del Borgsdorf and a letter was sent, but no action was taken. Then, this summer, Councilmember LeZotte's staff contacted Public Works about the issue and she called me to discuss it. I asked her to send me a letter outlining San Jose's position regarding annexation. Her letter is attached. While she says she is "impartial" a number of concerns are raised. I also spoke with Superintendent Rhonda Farber and Principal Owen Hege of Westmont and indicated this issue would be discussed in December. Farber said she would mention it to the school board at their December meeting. Issues According to Superintendent Farber, who said about 60% of the Westmont student body is from Campbell, there are three primary benefits the school receives from being in San Jose: • Teacher homeowner program participation - Teachers who live and teach in San Jose qualify for their program. According to Councilmember LeZotte's letter, Westmont teachers would no longer be eligible if it was de- annexed from San Jose. It is my understanding that teachers at Prospect High School, located in Saratoga, have been allowed to participate, but San Jose students make up a high percentage of the student body at that school. • Homework Center grant - The City of San Jose provides a grant of approximately $45,000 annually to pay for a supervisor and tutors at a homework center on campus. • Police services - San Jose provides significant direct and indirect public safety services to Westmont as noted below. The school district pays San Jose for direct security services, but has concerns that, because of the size of the organization, Campbell might not have the resources available to provide the same level of direct and indirect service. Westmont Annexation Page 2 City of San Jose Police Services Campus Officers Approximately 1,500 students are enrolled at the Westmont campus. CUHSD contracts for the services of a San Jose police officer at Westmont High School from 9:30 AM to 2:30 PM on days that school is in session. Campus police officers are responsible for school security, calls for service during school hours, and are available as resources for teachers, administrators, and students. School security involves keeping unwanted persons (non-students or suspended students) off of the campus and curtailing student criminal activity. Typical calls for service involve smoking, trespassing, possession of drugs, illegal weapons, assaults, and fights. On the average, a campus officer issues two Juvenile Contact Report citations (JCRs) a day for criminal activities. On a busy day, a campus officer may issue three or four JCRs. When necessary, on-duty patrol officers provide transport and booking services, estimated at once every two weeks. Campus officers are frequently engaged in conversations with students and consulted by school administrators and teachers on student behavioral and campus security issues. Presently, five officers work at Westmont High School with each officer working an assigned day of the week. The San Jose Police Department charges $47 per hour for officer services and provides 900 hours of campus officer coverage (about .5 FTE) at a cost to the CUHSD of $43,200. School Events San Jose police officers staff football games (three officers) basketball games (one or two officers) and school dances (two officers). These are typically four-hour assignments. In FY OS-06, six football games, six basketball games, and an estimated six dances will be hosted at Westmont High School. These require approximately 168 hours of officer coverage (.08 FTE) at a cost to the CUHSD of $7,900. High school graduation ceremonies, the Grad Night Party, and other occasional events also require police staffing. Every I S Minutes "Every 15 Minutes" is an annual two-day event at high schools throughout the United States targeting student drinking and driving. The program involves students, school administrators, police, fire, and emergency medical personnel, the District Attorney's and Coroner's Offices. The San Jose Police Department has supported this program at Westmont High School. Calls for Service -Non-School Hours San Jose Police Department patrol officers occasionally respond to calls for service at Westmont High School during non-school hours. These include alarms (one or two a month) and infrequent reports of auto burglaries and other thefts. Other Services San Jose has a number of other resources that support its high school age population at Westmont (and other schools) such as: - Truancy Abatement and Burglary Suppression (TABS) - School Liaison Unit (SLU) - Gang Investigations Unit (GILL) Westmont Annexation Page 3 - Safe School Campus Initiative -Gang Intervention Services (Westmont High School is visited approximately once a week by Safe School Campus Initiative staff). - Bringing Everyone's Strength Together (BEST) Program - Clean Slate - Striving Towards Achievement with New Direction (STAND) - Mayors Gang Prevention Task Force Other San Jose Issues The letter from Councilmember LeZotte raises other issues, such as street maintenance and the importance of the perspective of San Jose residents, teachers, parent and administrators from Westmont. Fire Services County Fire Department Chief Ben Lopes and his staff indicated that the annexation of Westmont High School would have minimal impact upon fire prevention service duties. However, County Fire's responsibility for the high school would add to company-level fire inspection workloads and public school education programming. The City could expect that County Fire, at the time of contract negotiations (2008), will be looking for "appropriate increases" for this level of service should Westmont High School be annexed by Campbell. Campbell Police Calls For Service The table below lists calls for service and incident data recorded in the Campbell Police Department's Computer-Aided Dispatch System fora 12-month period ending September 19, 2005. These include calls to Westmont High School for incidents occurring in the City of Campbell, self-initiated activity by Campbell Police Officers, and medical calls handled by the County Fire Department. Nature Number Disturbance 3 Medical 2 Missin Person 1 Pedestrian Sto s 9 Shots Fired 1 Stolen Vehicle 1 Sus icious Vehicle 1 Traffic Sto 1 Welfare Check 1 Other Details 5 Total 25 Conclusion Unless the school is to get less service than is currently the case, the annexation of Westmont High School by the City of Campbell would require the provision of additional police services, including: Westmont Annexation Page 4 • Site presence by a police officer during school days and hours • Police staffing at specified school sports events and activities • Processing an estimated 300 - 400 juvenile arrests/referrals annually • Response to calls for service and investigation of crimes during non-school hours • Participation in school safety, security, and emergency response training and drills • Availability of a school liaison officer • Availability of crime prevention, intervention, and referral services to address juvenile truancy, gang, and drug issues Based upon staff's limited analysis, we believe between 1 and 2 police officer FTEs would be required to provide police services for Westmont High School. The cost of this would be approximately $149,000 for one fully loaded FTE (top step). The cost to the City of Campbell would be partially offset by the approximate amount of $51,000 that the CUHSD presently pays annually to the City of San Jose for contractual police services. In addition, if the school is to be "made whole," the City of Campbell would be expected to fund the Homework Center. While there is benefit to the City in having a high school, given the City's current budget situation and staffing levels, staff has concerns about the additional resources that would be needed should annexation be pursued. If it were to be pursued, San Jose would have to agree to de-annex it, and given the issues raised in Councilmember LeZotte's letter, that would not be any easy task. Staff looks forward to discussing these issues with the Council at the Study Session. Attachment: A. Letter from Councilmember LeZotte cc: Chief Gullo Superintendent Farber Councilmember LeZotte LINDA J. LE ZOTTE COUNCILMEMBER DISTRICT 1 CITY OF SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA 200 E. SANTA CLARA ST., 18T" FLOOR SAN JOSE, CA 95113 RlECE1VED (408) 535-4901 FAX (408) 292-6448 DEC 7 - 2005 linda.lezotte@sanjoseca. gov http://www.sanjoseca.gov/district1 CITY OF CAMPBELL CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE December 5, 2005 Honorable Mayor Jane P. Kennedy City of Campbell 70 First Street Campbell, CA 95008 Dear Mayor Kennedy: I understand the Campbell City Council will be discussing annexation issues in general this month. Your City Manager has asked me to put the City of San Jose's comments in writing, with respect to boundary adjustment to allow Westmont High School to be located within the corporate limits of the City of Campbell. Consequently I have discussed the issue with our City Manager, City Attonley, Planning Division, Housing Department and the Police Department, as well as Campbell Union High School District Superintendent Rhonda Farber. While I remain impartial the following is a summary of the concerns that have been expressed to me. Currently, the line between our cities roughly follows the back property lines behind Harriet Avenue. Both sides of Westmont Avenue in this area are in the corporate limits of San Jose. If Westmont is de-annexed, then the remaining neighborhood south of Westmont Avenue and east of San Tomas Aquino Creek becomes an isolated pocket. This would negatively affect community cohesion and the delivery of municipal services as well as eliminate the unique services the City of San Jose provides to Westmont students and teachers. In addition these other issues were raised by various departments. • Public Safety: The letter raised three related points on this issue. San Jose anal Campbell share an irregular boundary, and the de-annexation of Westmont High School from San Jose would make the boundary between our two cities even more irregular and challenging to service. The most efficient service delivery occurs when both sides of a street are serviced by the same city, as currently occurs with Westmont High in San Jose. Honorable Mayor Jane P. Kennedy December 5, 2005 Page 2 In addition, Westmont High School currently pays for one off-duty officer to be on campus every day. This service is important to deter ongoing gang activity emanating from the school. It is unclear if Campbell has off-duty officers who would be available every day of the school year. • Street Maintenance: The de-annexation of Westmont High School from San Jose would also present service delivery inefficiencies in terms of street maintenance. San Jose has invested in traffic calming devices in and around the school If the High School is annexed to Campbell, then Campbell would need to assume 100% of the street maintenance costs including the traffic calming devices. Maintenance of ahalf-street is not a viable option in this case. Teacher Housin Programs: San Jose currently has a very successful teacher housing program, and Westmont High School teachers are active participants. As of August 15, 2005, eight loans have been given to Westmont teachers, totaling $305,000. Loan amounts ranged from $25,000 to $40,000. Recently the Council approved an increase in the loan. amounts. The new amount ranges from 40,000 to 65,000, therefore we would anticipate even more participation. Teachers from other high schools in Campbell Union High School District have also participated, resulting in a total of $810,000 loaned to teachers in this District alone. Westmont High School teachers would no longer be eligible for San Jose's program if Westmont is removed from San Jose's corporate boundaries. All of the other schools in the district are in the City of San Jose. It is unclear if the City of Campbell could offer a comparable program, leading to potential disparities for teachers in the School District. Resident Perspectives: San Jose residents enjoy Westmont High School as well as Campbell residents. While no population would be directly affected by the proposed de-annexation, we believe de-annexation would alienate current property owner/residents who live in San Jose. Westmont's Homework. Center: Westmont currently participates in San Jose's After School Homework Center program. This program funds supervision and homework assistance on campus after school. If Westmont is de-annexed from San Jose, this program would no longer be funded. Almost every campus in the District (except one) participates in the program, resulting in potential inequities between campuses. • Parent, District Administration, and Teacher Perspectives: Given the fact that all of Campbell Union High School District's schools are currently within the City of San Jose, it is critical that the parents, administrators, and teachers have a voice in the issue of de- annexation from San Jose. This is especially important given the unique services that San Jose currently provides to Westmont High School, and would continue to provide to the remaining schools in the District. It is my understanding that the District Superintendent is concerned about creating disparities between campuses and the teachers. Honorable Mayor Jane P. Kennedy December 5, 2005 Page 3 According to the Campbell Union High School website, Westmont serves students from several cities including, but not limited to, San Jose, Campbell, and Saratoga. While I can certainly appreciate Campbell's interest in serving its citizens, the High School serves a much broader community and unifies our cities around high quality education for our children. Please contact me at (408} 535-4901, if you would like to discuss this further. Sincerely, ~~ Linda J. LeZotte Councilmember, District 1 cc: Del Borgsdorf, San Jose City Manager Richard Doyle, San Jose City Attorney Stephen Haase, San. Tose Planning Director Dan Rich, Campbell City Manager William Seligmann, Campbell City Attorney Sharon Fierro, Campbell Community Development Director Dr. Rhonda Farber, CUHSD Superintendent February 27, 2002 Honorable Linda LeZotte City Councilmember City of San Jose 801 North First Street San Jose, CA 95117 Subject: Westmont High School Dear Linda: I appreciate the time spent by City Manager Del Borgsdorf and yourself responding to the City of Campbell's interest in annexing Westmont High School. I have discussed your letter with my colleagues and believe that further discussion of the annexation would be beneficial. We have asked our staff to look at the issues involved in annexing Westmont, including that of geographical cohesiveness and continuity raised in your letter. Please understand that the Campbell City Council appreciates the issues raised in your letter. The reason we are pursuing this issue is that Campbell does not have a high school within our boundaries. When Campbell High School closed in 1980, the Campbell City Council acted quickly to reach an agreement with the Campbell High School District to lease the facility for 5 years, with the hope it would re-open. The residents then voted to allow the City to purchase the site and it is now used as our community center. Since then, the City has missed having a high school within its boundaries and the vitality a close relationship with our youth can mean to the community. I have assembled some information about annexation outlining significant points. • Annexation would not affect San Jose's ability to serve the homes south of Westmont Avenue. San Jose Police and Fire Departments currently serve this area and the continuation of high quality service to this neighborhood would not be affected. There are currently several areas where the boundary lines between City of San Jose re Annexation of Westmont February 27, 2002 Page 2 Campbell and San Jose jog in irregular shapes, yet it does not affect our ability to serve those neighborhoods. • San Jose would not lose property tax nor would Campbell gain any economic advantage from the annexation, in fact Campbell would assume additional costs. • The responsibility to provide Police and Fire services would be borne by the City of Campbell. • The City of Campbell may be able to offer a similar first time homebuyer program to the teachers at Westmont. • There are no residents that would be affected by the annexation; therefore it would not alienate current property owners/residents who live in San Jose. • The maintenance of the northern half of Westmont Avenue might be transferred to Campbell, relieving San Jose of costly maintenance of a highly used roadway. • The students of Westmont have adopted downtown Campbell as the location for their Homecoming Parade and this would strengthen our ties to the School and students. The majority of the students at Westmont are Campbell residents and many think now that the school is located in Campbell. Please contact me if you have any questions regarding the information contained in this letter. I would like to contact you at your earliest convenience to further discuss this issue. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Jeanette Watson Mayor cc: City Council Bernard M. Strojny, City Manager William Seligmann, City Attorney Sharon Fierro, Community Development Director Del Borgsdorf, San Jose City Manager CITY OF SAN JOSE CAPITAL OF SILICON VALLEY Del D. Borgsdorf C17Y MANAGER November 30, 2001 CITY OF CAMPBELL CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE Mr. Bernard M. Strojny City Manager City of Campbell 70 N. First Street Campbell, CA 95008 Dear Mr. Strojny: This letter is in response to your inquiry regarding the potential reorganization of territory with the City of Campbell involving Westmont High School. This school is currently within the corporate limits of San Jose. The de-annexatiori of Westmont High School from San Jose raises issues of the geographic cohesiveness of San Jose. In the area of Westmont High School, the current geographical boundary of San Jose follows the west side of Forest Hill Elementary School, the east side of Westmont High School, and continues southwest of Harriet Avenue. If Westmont High School were de-annexed, the contiguity of San Jose from north to south would be disrupted, resulting in the isolation of the residential neighborhood south of Westmont Avenue. For this reason, San Jose does not support the proposed reorganization of territory involving Westmont High School. Please call me with any questions at 277-5777. Sincerely, Del D. Borgsdorf