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Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Beyond Belmont

One thing that ceaselessly baffles me in this town is why there is no intense hue-and-cry over the LAUSD's utterly reckless building campaign. Even though it has been determined that the District's schools are declining in enrollment (here's some ugly html that speaks to that---the better pdf is also available here), and not for one but for many reasons, the push for building more expensive schools on more sites continues.

In this morning's DN, Councilman Smith, whom I realize many of you don't like, is trying to head off another iffy school project in Granada Hills---a community which doesn't have a single hospital within five miles.

I'd love to be able to apprehend and analyze the decisions to build these things at a glance, how the votes went, what the trends in the District were when the School Board in its wisdom decided to greenlight each particular project. And sorely needed are budget and site review of the various projects, review beyond what the fishwraps are capable of.

Nearly everyone I've ever spoken to in conjunction with building an LAUSD school only reports what a big boondoggle the project has been. And could they be building anything uglier than the new school at the old administrative building site? That school will embarrass the skyline from Sunset.

We have many great blogs in LA, but I'm not aware of any that track the ongoings of the LAUSD from the common-sense citizen's perspective. Some of you who dream of being another Zuma Dogg should get stupid busy with that---it would quickly become a vital reference tool for our City.

13 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Sorry Joseph but there's no open thread. Weiss Ass and Laura Chick-N-Shit have the audacity to ask for Chief Bamattre to be fired. These two should look at their own job performance before throwng stones. Laura signed the checks for $4 milion to Fleishman Hillard then questioned them, forgot to collect $164 million in traffic fines, Weiss Ass, well we all know what a moron he is. Chief Bamattre has done a great job with all the fires in this city and I'll be damn if those clowncil idiots attack him. Their embarrassed because finally the media is showing what idiots they really are with their motions.

November 28, 2006 7:46 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

It is utterly incomprehensible that there are no lynchings going on because of the out and out fraud and complete lack of fiscal responsibility regarding the building of these schools!!!!!!!!

I have been beside myself....but please tell us what we can do to rectify the situation?????


First of all, billions of dollars are going into illegitimate schools for illegitimate or illegal anchor babies and their ilk!!!! What the hell!!!!!!!!

Secondly, we have the MOST CORRUPT MEXICAN in power in LA!!!! He is lining his own pockets and using LA as a stepping stone to further his own malicious ambitions. The midget mayor is in bed with developers and has NO interest in the citizens, THIS COUNTRY, or even HIS OWN people!

I am filled with so much rage over the fact that my city is being pillaged and plundered by the Mexican mafia....that I have devised my own methods of screwing them! My family and I have been here for generations, and we PAY NO TAXES ...thanks to our ingenious lawyers and accounting firm. We have sizeable holdings in LA, but I will be damned if ANY of our money will go into the coffers of these thieves! And we aren't going to MOVE! WE will fight!!!!

The LAUSD school system is a debacle, and the schools should be CLOSED DOWN! Period!

The Belmont fiasco, and the $170M monstrosity downtown( the monument to Eli Broad) and the forthcoming Ambassador Hotel school for 4,000...all are a disgrace and sham perpetrated on the taxpayers. ALL OF IT FOR MEXICANS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rise up, citizens of LA.....show your outrage!!!!!!

November 28, 2006 7:47 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

It is utterly incomprehensible that there are no lynchings going on because of the out and out fraud and complete lack of fiscal responsibility regarding the building of these schools!!!!!!!!

I have been beside myself....but please tell us what we can do to rectify the situation?????


First of all, billions of dollars are going into illegitimate schools for illegitimate or illegal anchor babies and their ilk!!!! What the hell!!!!!!!!

Secondly, we have the MOST CORRUPT MEXICAN in power in LA!!!! He is lining his own pockets and using LA as a stepping stone to further his own malicious ambitions. The midget mayor is in bed with developers and has NO interest in the citizens, THIS COUNTRY, or even HIS OWN people!

I am filled with so much rage over the fact that my city is being pillaged and plundered by the Mexican mafia....that I have devised my own methods of screwing them! My family and I have been here for generations, and we PAY NO TAXES ...thanks to our ingenious lawyers and accounting firm. We have sizeable holdings in LA, but I will be damned if ANY of our money will go into the coffers of these thieves! And we aren't going to MOVE! WE will fight!!!!

The LAUSD school system is a debacle, and the schools should be CLOSED DOWN! Period!

The Belmont fiasco, and the $170M monstrosity downtown( the monument to Eli Broad) and the forthcoming Ambassador Hotel school for 4,000...all are a disgrace and sham perpetrated on the taxpayers. ALL OF IT FOR MEXICANS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rise up, citizens of LA.....show your outrage!!!!!!

November 28, 2006 7:47 AM  

Blogger dorit said:

Dear Anonymous,
FYI, the new schools near Downtown Belmont and the Ambassador Hotel will not be for kids of Mexican heritage. Those communities are mostly Central American. Please, if you insist on being a jack-ass, at least get your facts right.

November 28, 2006 8:07 AM  

Blogger Joseph Mailander said:

No problem, 7:46. I look at the hazing kerfluffle as something that was bound reach critical mass and experience a culture shift sooner or later, and it's unfortunate for Bamattre that it's happening on his watch. Hell, we even went through initiation like that for our high school service club, and nobody's complained to date---but I'd be surprised if it still went on today. I hope one of the more regular bloggers here gets to it, it's an interesting issue, and I don't think Weiss and Chick are showing exceptional courage here.

November 28, 2006 8:10 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Fire Laura Fire Crotch
& Weiss Ass

November 28, 2006 10:05 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

I like the alliteration in the title of this original post. Not just because it is alliteration but because the voters who passed initiative BB are the ones we can thank. Put your lips together and say "BB" and thank "RR". (too subtle for you?)

November 28, 2006 10:51 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

BB did nothing to build schools, it was a repair and renovation bond. Measures K, R and Y were the building bond measures.

Having said that, there is a need to reduce the high enrollments at overcrowded schools and it appears that this school is intended to reduce overcrowding at James Monroe HS (4,646), Polytechnic (4,773) and San Fernando HS (4,600).

This new school seems to be a step in the right direction with its 1250 seats.

November 28, 2006 1:06 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Thank you for that comment. If Granada Hills has no hospitals within 5 miles, what would you consider Holy Cross in Granada Hills on Rinaldi to be?

This is clearly a case of older citizens vs parents here in Granada Hills.

When Porter Ranch got built up (ridiculously), they didn't put in any schools. People who live in Granada Hills can't all send their kids to Granada High. Their kids have to go to Kennedy. Granada Hills Charter
School should be called Porter Ranch High. Kennedy is filled with kids from San Fernando. (who do NOT wish to be there by the way)

The Daily News article today was very misleading. All up and down Balboa Boulevard live children who must go all the way over to Monroe.

There is no hospital who wants to locate there. There were people at the auction, but they weren't prepared to pay the price OR to start a new hospital.

Don't blame LAUSD for the overdevelopment in an area that didn't have infrastructure that could support the overdevelopment, such as schools or traffic.

Why must the children who live along Balboa Boulevard have to go to Kennedy (who has had three lockdowns this year) or Monroe (just as scary)?

So go mapquest Holy Cross before you write silly nonsense.

November 28, 2006 7:52 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

We are pouring property tax money into schools in Los Angeles. By the way isn't San Fernando HS in San Fernando which is its' own city - it is not in LA.

The kids coming out of these schools are for the most part uneducated. They have not learned one-tenth of the information-history, civics, geography and on and on that was taught and learned fifty years ago.

But this city creates a housing crisis in the name of low-cost housing, a school shortage, and them gives all to the developers.

Why are the streets crumbling, the bridges becoming dangerous, the aged electrical transformers unreplaced, the impending water shortages ignored, the sewage plants overloaded, the air polluted, services diminished, while health clincs, hospitals, convalescent hospitals disappear, and all the larger, desirable properties are being developed into McMansions or high-priced townhouses?

November 29, 2006 1:03 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

It doesn't matter if San Fernando is it's own city. As you must remember during the whole mayoral takeover scandal, it involved many different cities who are part of LAUSD.

That is probably why the kids who live in San Fernando aren't happy about their school being overcrowded which puts them in a school in a different city, without their friends who live near them.

That's not a very community-oriented idea either if the kids don't play or hang out with the kids they go to school with because they don't see them all day.

You are crazy wrong about your stats about Los Angeles kids. I would like you to meet some children who have excellent grades and learn every single thing you claim they don't. Do you have children in LAUSD? Are you talking from experience or media hype?

November 29, 2006 2:21 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

My two boys are in LAUSD schools and they learn both History and Geography. They don't learn Civics, which is sad but who the hell wants to learn the same thing from 50 years ago! Times change and so should school systems. They learn more Algebra than they did just 10 years ago. So guess what? They don't teach typing anymore either. Home Economics has disappeared also. There is however extensive computer training in LAUSD schools and that is what they should be learning.

November 29, 2006 1:51 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

more kids in lausd schools are learning more than ever. there are areas to improve- such as classroom control, and bullying, Etc. But my kids are learning more at 15 years at lausd than I did -- much more.

November 29, 2006 8:21 PM  

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