Anomaly found under school campus not immediate threat, engineer says
District now seeking bids to identify cost of state-required trenching on site to expose the feature
– The Paso Robles Joint Unified School District released a statement this week regarding a seismic anomaly that was recently discovered under a current school district campus:
As part of the state approval process for the reconstruction of Georgia Brown Elementary at the 36th Street campus, PRJUSD was required to do a geological soil investigation due to the possibility that a fault line exists. From the results of the study, it has now been confirmed that a seismic “anomaly” exists directly under the current campus. The community of Paso Robles was notified through a press release on May 15, 2023.
Since then, a structural engineer has physically examined all existing buildings at the 36th Street campus and determined there is no reason to consider any danger or immediately move to the temporary campus as there is no evidence of any seismic activity currently impacting buildings there.
The district is actively seeking bids to identify the cost of the state-required trenching on the site to expose the “anomalous feature” identified electronically. A majority of the board of trustees (four of seven members) would be required to approve this first step. The trench would measure 30’ deep, 3’ wide, and 150’ long. The district has received one bid for $293,000, but that work, if approved, cannot start until probably August or September and may take over a month to complete.
We have asked State Senator Laird, our representative for Senate District 17, to advise us on options that might be sought with the Department of the State Architect (DSA), on whose oversight committee he sits.
The next board of trustees meeting on Tuesday, June 13, will, in all likelihood, include formal board action and direction only to schedule a special board meeting devoted solely to soliciting public input and professional advice on this critical decision. This meeting may be held in August to have the most current reports available and have time to communicate to all stakeholders what is happening, why, and how they may best participate in that decision-making process.
The district and its trustees commit to an open, transparent process, including interpretation services and fully publicized meetings.
Any specific recommended alternatives from the superintendent, other school personnel, or individual board members are suggestions for further study or personal opinions. They should not be misinterpreted as evidence that decisions have already been made.
Although the board of trustees will make the ultimate decisions, the administration will provide information for options, and make recommendations, including the only recommended action on Tuesday night of setting a special board meeting for August.
On the district homepage at www.pasoschools.org, or the Georgia Brown Elementary homepage at https://gb.pasoschools.org, you may view and submit questions on a Q & A Fact Sheet in English and Spanish and eventually review documents as they become available.
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