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OJUSD Looks To Future Budget And Spending
OJUSD

Developers are going to need to pay a bit more per square foot in order to support Oakdale schools.

Monday’s Oakdale Joint Unified School Board meeting was one of financial reports, budget updates and review of a Developer Fee Study conducted by School Works, Inc.

Assistant Superintendent Larry Mendonca presented the board with the study and reviewed it in great detail, noting that earlier this year the state of California did make an adjustment to the fees and in doing so, prompted a revisit to existing fees by OJUSD.

“If there is an adjustment up or down, we have the justification to either raise those fees or lower them down,” he said. “But when there is an increase we have to go through a process where we assure the community that we have a justification to charge that.”

The study presented three key factors when addressing developer fees: the burden nexus, cost nexus and benefit nexus. By use of a specific formula, it is anticipated that during the next five years development will increase current enrollment at Oakdale schools by 266 pupils. This will bring district enrollment from the current 5,299 students to 5,565 enrolled.

“With the study School Works did, we find an estimation of approximately 100 residential units per year over the next five years,” Mendonca said. “So we are at a growth stage. Maybe not as much as it was during the boom, but obviously we are in a recovery and we are looking at additional units going in.”

In looking at the burden nexus it was determined that existing school sites would not be able to accommodate the growth with adequate facilities. Additional growth of the campuses via increased classrooms, etc. would be necessary to handle the five year growth.

A roll call vote by the board approved the increase from the 2012 amount of $3.36 per square foot for residential and $0.54 commercial to $3.48 per square foot residential and $0.56 commercial effective beginning Aug. 12, 2016.

The Local Control Accountability Plan was given by Assistant Superintendent Kristi Rapinchuk, as well as the proposed 2016-17 Budget by Chief Business Officer Susan Dyke.

The board will recess for the month of July and reconvene on Aug. 8, 2016. The 6:30 p.m. public meeting will be hosted at the Oakdale City Council Chambers.