1 year ago
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PRATHER, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - On Thursday night, a petition proceeding held by the Fresno County Committee connected School District Organization astatine Foothill Elementary School successful Prather saw a back-and-forth of beliefs, ideologies, and preferences.
It came aft a petition was submitted by a radical of residents successful the Ventana Hills assemblage disconnected Auberry Road successful Fresno County, betwixt Clovis and Prather, who privation to autumn successful the Clovis Unified School District bound alternatively of the Sierra Unified School District boundary.
"If you asked america what assemblage we consciousness astir intimately aligned with, I deliberation it would beryllium unanimous successful the neighborhood. They would each accidental that they see themselves to beryllium portion of Clovis and not portion of the Sierra Mountain community," said Marc Thurston, the Ventana Hills petitioner starring the complaint to alteration the boundaries.
Thurston, an proprietor of 1 of the present 16 occupied homes successful the development, which features upscale homes and gated access, says helium and astir others determination enactment successful the Fresno-Clovis area. He says due to the fact that of that, residents are disquieted astir the agelong travel up and down to the Prather country each day, arsenic good arsenic entree to their children successful the lawsuit of an emergency.
One speaker, who petitions to nonstop her peculiar needs girl to Clovis North High School, said others successful the aforesaid vessel required to spell to Sierra Unified would beryllium greatly impacted.
"If she were successful Sierra Unified, we would person to driblet her disconnected astatine school, spell to work, prime her up 45 minutes oregon truthful to prime her up for a doctor's appointment, instrumentality her to the doctor's appointment, instrumentality her backmost to school, spell backmost to work," said Enjoli Black, a Ventana Hills resident.
The spot consists of implicit 200 acres. With the petition, it and 400 acres westbound of it would determination into Clovis Unified territory, geographically adjacent to its boundary.
Clovis Unified states it cannot officially remark connected the substance astatine this clip and says it volition enactment neutral successful the matter.
However, Sierra Unified Claims the determination would termination the schoolhouse district's maturation and could outgo millions successful enslaved dollars implicit the adjacent respective years. All arsenic it aims to walk its archetypal bond, for astir $25 million, successful the November election.
"I deliberation the impacts to our students and our programs would beryllium severe. We're a precise tiny district. Losing truthful overmuch arsenic 5 oregon 10 students would beryllium wholly detrimental to our programs," said Sierra Unified Superintendent Lori Grace.
Others accidental it would wounded a assemblage that aims to grow.
The developer of Ventana Hills is Granville Homes, which galore successful the territory impeach of pushing the petition guardant arsenic a selling constituent to aboriginal buyers who privation to acquisition homes successful the Clovis Unified School District.
Their president and CEO Darius Assemi, took the podium during nationalist remark to respond to those claims.
"School prime is precise important to maine and my company. I heard a fantastically orchestrated, choreographed presumption by Sierra Unified. Their attorneys and their consultants. I privation they would walk that overmuch assets connected the acquisition result of their kids," Assemi said, arsenic those successful absorption vocally voiced their opinion.
The adjacent portion of the process volition spot Clovis Unified clasp a proceeding of its ain connected Sept. 17.
As for a determination connected the matter, the region says connected mean it typically takes 120 days.
