Guadalupe hopes voters pass $11.4 million in bonds for school improvements

Unsafe, unbearable conditions – school administrators in Guadalupe are saying 1300 students are facing this every day in their classrooms.

The Guadalupe Union School District gave KCOY 12 a tour of the schools earlier today, hoping it will convince people in town to vote Yes on Measures M and N next week.

Together these two bonds total about $11.5 million dollars. If passed these bonds would pay for everything from a new gymnasium to new classrooms.

Aging windows, rotting gutters and ramps that are falling apart – the Guadalupe Union School District is hoping voters pass Measures M and N next week.

“You can look at the gutters that just desperately need to be replaced,” Guadalupe Union School District Principal Jesely Alvarez said.

The bonds will also bring energy efficient windows.

“So as you can see the windows are the originals so they’re close to over 40-years-old,” Alvarez said.

“Always about the students, any decision I make as a superintendent it’s always, what’s best for our students,” Guadalupe Union School District Superintendent Ed Cora said.

Measure M would address safety concerns like old wiring, plumbing, heating and air conditioning – and bring a new gymnasium to the Junior High School..

Measure N would bring a new 8 classroom building – something the district says they need with all the homes being built in town.

“And the second part to Measure N is technology, we would love to become a one-to-one school district, meaning a piece of technology in the hands of every single student to prepare them for the future,” Cora said.

Another issue that would be addressed if these bonds passed would be replacing classroom ramps with aluminum ramps. The school district says their metal and wooden ramps are constantly rusting and needing to be repaired.

“This is the very first time that the Guadalupe Union School District has requested financial support from the citizens of Guadalupe,” Cora said.

If passed, each bond would cost property owners in Guadalupe about 30 dollars a year for every $100,000 worth of property you own. Or, a simpler example, if your home is worth $300,000, you’d pay about 180 dollars a year – for about 30 years.

“A lot of us are low income.. and we work very hard, really hard for our money.. and I know a lot of people have lost their homes who are originally Guadalupe homeowners,” Guadalupe resident Monica Ortega said.

(Cesar Aguilar – Guadalupe resident) “I think it’s great, anything for the kids to raise money for them, to repair the schools, to keep them educated, it’s a great thing,” Guadalupe resident Cesar Aguilar said.

You can vote on Measures M and N next Tuesday on November 8th. The measures need a 55% majority to pass.

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