Aging school seeks a face-lift

The old campus hall, which once stood as the center of life at

Newport Harbor High School, now appears almost tomblike, with debris

scattered across the floor and the meager light through windows

leaving some corridors almost pitch dark.

The theater in back, once the main performing arts complex in the

Newport-Mesa Unified School District, has sat empty for more than two

years, its exit signs still glowing and its electricity in service.

The clock tower, for 75 years a symbol of Sailor pride, still

looks over 15th Street, but the concrete inside has decayed to the

point that a visitor could peel it off the walls.

As the Measure A school reparation project nears its end and a

second bond measure looms on the November ballot, Robins Hall, the

oldest building still standing in the district, sits in limbo waiting

for a replacement. Unlike the other major structures in Newport-Mesa,

Robins Hall was scratched from Measure A consideration entirely; the

building was simply too worn to be repaired at a reasonable cost.

Now, as desks and blackboards of the hall’s former classrooms lie in

portables around campus, administrators are searching for a way --

any way -- to bring the old centerpiece back.

“That displacement has made it really difficult to run the

school,” said Principal Michael Vossen. “We’re a very fragmented

campus at this juncture.”

In November, local residents will vote on Measure F, a

$282-million bond measure that promises to finish the work that

Measure A began and add new facilities to the 31 campuses in

Newport-Mesa. While the district has not yet laid out specific

projects for Measure F, it appears likely that Newport Harbor High

will be the school undergoing the heaviest transformation.

In 2002, the district’s implementation plan for Measure A set a

number of construction goals for each campus.

Ultimately, the $173.3 million did not cover all the goals, but

each school still met more than half of them, with Newport-Mesa

maintenance funds picking up some of the slack. Since its Measure A

construction began early last year, Newport Harbor High has had most

of its major buildings renovated, its pool upgraded, its elevators,

windows and security system replaced.

Robins Hall, which formerly housed the school’s library, science

labs, band room, administrative offices and Norman R. Loats

Performing Arts Center, was slated for an extensive list of repairs

under Measure A.

When state building inspectors ruled in June 2003 that the hall

failed to meet seismic standards, however, the district shut it down

altogether.

“To bring it up to seismic code, the dollar value was more than it

would be to actually replace the building,” said Bonnie Martin of

McCarthy Building Companies, the construction firm working with the

district on Measure A. “In essence, it was a funding issue. Now,

obviously, they’ve decided to move everyone out and do what was safe

for the kids and work on a new project for actually replacing the

building.”

Measure F, if it passes in November, may be the solution the

school needs, but administrators are prepared in case voters decide

otherwise. In May 2004, the district submitted a Facility Hardship

Application to the state asking for money to help reconstruct Robins

Hall. According to Deputy Supt. Paul Reed, the state returned the

request this week, asking for more technical information.

Newport Harbor High had the highest Measure A budget -- $23

million -- of any campus in the district, due mostly to the age of

its buildings and the fact that both gymnasiums and Davidson Field

were originally slated for repairs. In the end, Newport-Mesa’s

Citizens Oversight Committee, a group of community members that

oversaw Measure A, voted to set aside $4.2 million of Newport

Harbor’s budget for building a Robins Hall replacement in the future.

For longtime faculty members at the school, the hall -- in its

1930 form or a new incarnation -- is an essential center of activity.

“It’s like the hub of the school,” said culinary arts teacher

Janet Dukes. “It’s more difficult to get the whole faculty to come

together because we’re so far apart. The programs here are so

wonderful, but we have challenges trying to get people to connect.”

School officials have been among the firmest supporters of Measure

F, which the board of education approved unanimously in August.

Others in the community, including the Orange County Young

Republicans and members of the Newport Coast Mello-Roos district,

have protested the measure due to tax concerns. Many of the same

bodies opposed Measure A, which passed with a 72% vote in June 2000.

If Measure F passes, a new Robins Hall would likely be the top

priority at Newport Harbor High, but administrators mentioned other

wishes as well. Robert Cunard and David Martinez, the school’s

assistant principals, said the campus needed surveillance cameras,

larger classrooms and an expanded library.

Vossen, who expects Measure F to pass in November, said the ballot

item was the school’s main hope for modernization. If the measure

does not go through, the portables may remain on the campus

indefinitely.

“Could we get by?” Vossen said. “Well, if it’s just getting by,

the answer is sure, we could just get by. But could we move those

programs forward? No. We just wouldn’t be able, given the limitations

of these environments, to do that.

“You get to the point where you can only do so much.”

* MICHAEL MILLER covers education and may be reached at (714)

966-4617 or by e-mail at [email protected].