OUR NEEDY SCHOOLS; ABANDONING BELMONT COULD FREE $142 MILLION FOR BOOKS, SUPPLIES.

Byline: Greg Gittrich Staff Writer

With the environmentally troubled Belmont Learning Center placing an unprecedented drain on Los Angeles Unified's general fund, teachers, students and parents districtwide say they lack necessary programs and materials.

The nation's costliest high school - unlike other school construction projects - is being financed almost entirely with general fund money normally used for textbooks, supplies and paying salaries.

To date, the district has invested more than $170 million in the school.

Four of seven school board members have said they are leaning toward voting to abandon Belmont at a special meeting on Nov. 19 because of concerns about safety and the cost of completing the complex.

Walking away from Belmont would prevent as much as $142 million from being siphoned out of the general fund to finish construction and pay off debt.

``I don't believe a school should be built on the backs of children, teachers and administrators, and rob them of what is needed for education,'' said Ramon C. Cortines, the educator hired by the school board last week to lead the district through major administrative and educational reforms.

``You can have the greatest building in the world, but if you don't have the books and technology, what do you have?''

``It bothers me that money to build Belmont is coming from the general fund,'' Cortines said, during an interview with the Daily News on Saturday. ``This public school system has never had enough money in its general fund budget to do that. And we probably should not have done that in the first place.''

The prospect of receiving even a small portion of the money set aside for Belmont for use in the classroom had Bob Kladifko, principal of Reseda High School, nearly salivating.

``Let's see - what would I want?'' Kladifko said, before rattling off a laundry list of items.

``Included on my wish list would be textbooks, library books, any and all instructional materials. I'd also like a salary increase for staff, both teachers and classified employees; money for professional development; and something to help improve student achievement on the Stanford 9 and enhance standards-based instruction.

``Those are the uppermost things that come to mind. Hmm, did I forget anything? We need just about everything.''

Ronald Frydman, principal at Frost Middle School in Granada Hills, said he would use some of the money to boost starting teacher salaries.

But first he wants back the $200,000 the district took out of the $350,000 his school earned last year for improved attendance. The district told him it needed the money for special education costs.

``The big B word never came up,'' said Frydman, referring to Belmont.

Frydman said he would use any added funds to finish buying books and computers for his school.

Sylvia Gonzalez, who directs the parent center at Polytechnic High School in Sun Valley, had similar ideas, eyeing computers for her students.

``Our students are our future, and they need these skills,'' she said.

Norma Ramirez, an Arleta resident with one son at Canterbury School and another at Sepulveda Middle School, said she would scrap Belmont immediately on safety grounds, even though ``so many schools are overpopulated.''

Mocking the administrative chaos that had engulfed the district's downtown headquarters in recent weeks and culminated with Superintendent Ruben Zacarias' $750,000 contract buyout, the wishes of many staffers drifted toward fantastical and sarcastic dreams.

A few LAUSD employees suggested using the Belmont money to buy a luxury box at the new Staples Center downtown to wine and dine potential candidates vying to become the new superintendent.

Others pointed out the school district could recruit its very own aspiring baseball legend in center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. The superstar just turned down an eight`-year, $135 million offer from the Seattle Mariners.

``They're throwing so much money around downtown, signing Griffey isn't that far of a stretch,'' said a San Fernando Valley principal who asked to remain unnamed. ``They should start taking care of the kids in the classrooms. It's not like the kids have everything they need.''

During the last two years, the state has repeatedly refused to give the district funding for Belmont, which sits partially built downtown atop an oil field that seeps deadly and explosive gases.

Only last month, state Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa, D-Los Angeles, told the district not to expect the state to give it ``a dime'' for the school.

Typically, the state pays for at least 50 percent of the costs to construct public schools, using bond money and other revenue, with the rest coming from local bond money.

Until recently, the district's downtown bureaucrats were adamant they were sticking close to the ``guaranteed maximum price,'' arguing the entire school could be built for about $170 million.

As the Daily News' ongoing investigation of Belmont continued to expose hidden costs, the district revealed on Oct. 7 that $170 million already had been spent with the school years away from completion.

Board members Caprice Young, Julie Korenstein and David Tokofsky have pledged to vote against building Belmont.

Board President Genethia Hayes said she is not convinced the site can be made safe, and Mike Lansing and Valerie Fields are withholding their positions. Victoria Castro remains a supporter of the project.

The board is awaiting a final report from the Belmont Commission. The tome will detail the reasoning behind the panel's narrow recommendation, on a 4-3 vote, to finish the school.

Unless the commission's report contains drastically new information about the safety of the site, which is unexpected, sources close to the board said they expect construction to be abandoned.

``Right now there are four definite votes aga`inst it,'' said one board member. ``I'd say at least five people are going to vote to not go forward.''

Staff Writer Robert Monroe contributed to this story.

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Box: Money well spent?

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