West Sonoma County school trustees embrace parcel tax, reversing earlier rejection

School trustees representing western Sonoma County have embraced a proposed parcel tax to bolster district finances, reversing a split decision from last week while throwing their support behind a disputed county tourism tax that is also headed to the ballot in March.

The extraordinary pair of pivots came in a public meeting Monday after intense lobbying by parents over the weekend and a discussion featuring Supervisor Lynda Hopkins and top officials with the West Sonoma County Union High School District.

The district is struggling to confront a chronic budget deficit estimated at $2 million by the 2022-2023 school year. Campus consolidation has been floated to close that gap, raising the possibility that the district’s two main high schools, Analy in Sebastopol and El Molino in Forestville, would be combined.

Hopkins, who represents the west county and has come out against any immediate high school closure, over the weekend informed district officials about the availability of a county grant that could help cover the district’s cost for the special election. That cost, between $90,000 and $180,000, according to the district, had been one of several sticking points for the three-member majority on the school board that last Wednesday rejected the parcel tax.

“I think the new information is what changes this conversation,” said Kellie Noe, board vice president for the school district. She was one of two trustees who had backed the parcel tax last week. The board majority, including president Jeanne Fernandes, flipped on Monday night and backed the tax proposal in 5-0 vote.

“I feel that the reason why there may not have been this support last week is just that … taking on more risk with the potential of having to cut even more (classes) if it doesn’t pass just seemed like it was a lot to take on,” Noe said.

The reversal came at the start of a 5-hour meeting, the second marathon session in less than a week for the school board, which since October has been at the center of a public debate about possible moves to shore up district finances. West Sonoma County Union High School District operates two high schools and one continuation high school, serving about 1,900 students from Sebastopol to Forestville and surrounding parts of the west county.

Monday’s vote was the first of two remarkable shifts for the school board on the night. The second was its unanimous endorsement of the county’s proposed tax hike on lodging operators in west county. The measure, which the Board of Supervisors approved on Tuesday for the March ballot, would provide more than $1.3 million for west county schools. It was spearheaded by Hopkins as a way to help the district address its budget shortfall and forestall school closures.

The board’s sudden shift of support for the tax measures signaled that a highly controversial cost-cutting move to merge its two high schools, Analy and El Molino, is unlikely to happen at least in the near term.

Supporters of El Molino, especially, have railed against the consolidation plan, fearing the smaller Forestville school would would be closed in any merger. That would harm both students’ educational experience and community cohesion, they said.

Forestville parents were grateful for the board's change of mind, saying the taxes would buy more time for decisions about school consolidation. The county tax on hotel beds also would generate funds for several firefighting districts in west county. Both measures need a two-thirds supermajority to pass.

“I appreciate Supervisor Hopkins seeing that not only do fire and (emergency services) need some tourism mitigation funds, but the schools really do too,” said Debbie Ramirez, an El Molino advocate. “And it’s not a complete bailout forevermore in the future, but it gives us time to think through this process in a measured way.”

Fernandes, who has faced mounting public pressure amid the budget discussions, including calls by critics that she resign from the board, said she felt the update from Hopkins merited a followup discussion of the tax proposals.

“It was important that we bring this back,” she said.

Trustees Diane Landry and Ted Walker also flipped their votes on the parcel tax, citing the grant money that would cover election costs.

“Knowing that we’re not taking on so much of a risk … makes me feel a lot better about it,” Landry said.

The vote came after a private meeting Sunday over Zoom featuring Fernandes, Noe, Superintendent Toni Beal, Hopkins and a group of invited El Molino High parents and advocates.

The 90-minute meeting allowed Hopkins to present her offer of county financial assistance with election costs. It gave parents an opportunity to again present their goal — that El Molino be kept open at all costs, according to Gillian Hayes, an El Molino parent who took part in the meeting.

District officials said their goal was to have a balanced budget and to save programs and teachers, Hayes recounted.

“We had some very good conversations,” Fernandes said. “They were able to air some of their frustrations and that’s always really good. We were able to listen, and we had a few things to share as well.”

Hayes said the group of parents came away feeling more encouraged than after the town hall meetings of the past month.

“I think we’re making forward progress,” she said, adding that parents remain wary about the possibility of El Molino closing. “There are still trust issues,” she said.

Hopkins on Tuesday said she felt “relieved, hopeful and inspired.”

“I’m really inspired by the partnership this is developing between the county, the parents and the trustees,” she said. “It feels like we’re starting to all pull in the same direction.”

The scope and terms of the proposed parcel tax are still undetermined, with another school board meeting set for Nov. 30 to hammer out those details.

Campus consolidation is not off the table, meanwhile. The district by the end of this year needs outline a fiscal recovery plan that meets muster with the county Office of Education. That blueprint will have to include contingencies to achieve savings if the tax measures fail.

Campus mergers, classroom cuts and teacher layoffs are the three most significant options for budget relief, and March 15 is the deadline for the school district to hand out pink slips to staff. Those staff cuts, Beal said, will be guided by which classes students select in January.

“Making no reductions … is not an option,” she said during Monday’s meeting.

The district board directed Beal to continue with planning for potential campus consolidation as a backup in the event that both tax measures fail. Deeper teacher layoffs would be the next big cost saving move.

Hayes said she is pushing for the board to formally commit to drop school consolidation from budget planning in the event that even one of the taxes passes.

“I want it in writing,” she said. The sentiment was echoed by others during Monday’s meeting.

Board members lamented the high stakes and community impact involved in the decisions before them. Landry said her feelings were mixed about the tax proposals partly because of the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

“A lot of people all over are having a hard time financially,” she said. “I’m kind of caught between a rock and a hard place.”

But trustees and most community members who spoke talked about the need to rally support for the tax measures.

“It’s so much energy to get this started,” said trustee Ted Walker. “We need to start like next week.”

You can reach Staff Writer Kaylee Tornay at 707-521-5250 or kaylee.tornay@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ka_tornay.