DEAL PROTECTS CITY FROM EXTRA HIGH SCHOOL COSTS.

Byline: Angela M. Lemire Staff Writer

An agreement between the city and the high school district for building a road serving proposed Golden Valley High School would protect the city from unforeseen school-related costs, even if the school district decides not to build a school there.

The agreement indemnifies the city from liabilities related to the proposed high school and guarantees that the Santa Clarita Valley Facilities Foundation and William S. Hart Union High School District will pay to grade and prepare the school site, even if costs exceed initial estimates, documents show.

The foundation, a nonprofit entity formed by the high school district to purchase land, similarly would have no obligations for costs attributed to the city's two-mile road project, which would provide access to the otherwise inaccessible school site.

The City Council is scheduled to discuss the agreement at a meeting that begins tonight at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall, 23290 Valencia Blvd.

The three parties have collaborated on the $20 million road construction project under an interim funding agreement reached last summer. The city expedited Phase 1, which extends from Sierra Highway north to the proposed Via Princessa extension, in time for the high school district to apply for state funding for the $61 million Golden Valley High School.

The city, high school district and foundation combined the road and school site grading projects to avoid potential conflicts between separate contractors and save money by consolidating planning and administrative services, including the design and bidding process to take place later this month.

While the interim funding agreement set parameters for the city, school district and foundation to divide management costs, the funding agreement to be reviewed by the City Council tonight mainly will divide costs by property boundaries.

Billing will be determined by the exact location of work, according to the funding agreement. If billing disputes arise that cannot be resolved through negotiations, the funding agreement orders the parties to settle under nonbinding mediation with a mutually agreeable, third-party mediator.

City Manager George Caravalho described the funding agreement as simple and straightforward, as it essentially leaves the city and school entities responsible for their own properties.

The agreement recognizes the school district's discretion to reject the Golden Valley site for a new high school.

School officials currently are studying the site for unmitigable environmental hazards.

The establishment of the Facilities Foundation gives school officials the legal right to sell off the land for other uses, including residential and commercial development, if it cannot be used as a school, officials said.

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Map: Golden Valley Road Project (GVR)