Pomona Unified School District staff on March 7, 2025, presented a proposed project list and funding plan for Measure UU, the $385,000,000 school bond voters approved in November, saying the presentation is intended to guide the district’s first and second issuances of the bond.

Fernando Mesa, assistant to the superintendent for facilities maintenance and operations, told the Board of Education the goal of the presentation was “to develop a project list so that when we do the first and second issuance of the bond, that we have clear direction as to which way to move forward.” He said staff were not asking the board to take action that night but to provide feedback.

The presentation covered recent completed work, projects under construction and in design, funding sources and an example project schedule. Mesa described recent work including green space at Lopez Elementary, varsity baseball and softball field upgrades at Ganesha, Diamond Ranch and Pomona High School, LED and HVAC upgrades funded partly with ESSER funds, parking expansions at La Verne Charter, ADA ramps and renovated tennis courts, and improvements managed at the district’s Village at Indian Hill facility. Projects under construction or in design Mesa cited included window and door replacement at Harrison Elementary, restroom renovations at several campuses, the Gary High School science lab redesign, and an expansion of Lexington Elementary to replace end-of-life portable classrooms.

Mesa emphasized regulatory timelines. “It takes several months to come up with the scope of what a project should be. So 4 to 6 months minimum of preliminary designs… and then we get in line” with the State Architect for review, he said, explaining projects that require State Architect review typically have much longer schedules than routine repairs.

Mesa laid out the district’s funding picture. He said prior bond measures remain active: “Measure P… currently, we have about $13,000,000 left on the construction side and about $5,000,000 left on the Tech side.” He said Measure PS has about $4,000,000 remaining. Mesa said the district has received approximately $40,000,000 in state reimbursements over the years and had submitted applications in line for an additional $64,000,000 in state funding. He described other revenue sources the district uses to leverage projects, including charter contributions, capital facilities proceeds from property sales and developer fees collected on new construction.

Mesa also described planned work and priorities reflected from community input and the Facilities Master Plan: asphalt and parking repairs (including the district maintenance yard), gymnasium HVAC and bleacher/floor replacements, roof maintenance, continued restroom renovations, playground replacements, additional solar carport canopies (design work with Forefront Power), portable building renovations, expanded CTE spaces at Park West and Diamond Ranch, and stadium turf replacements. He said the district attempts to group summer projects to avoid disrupting the academic year and that some projects are scheduled in phases across clusters of schools.

Public comments during the meeting pressed for greater audit and community review. Claudia Cano, a parent and speaker, urged performance audits of school construction bond spending and said past audits in other districts sometimes failed to meet Government Accountability Office standards; she recommended additional public hearings and a forensic audit before further spending. Mesa acknowledged community engagement used to shape the plan; he told the board the facilities team had gathered input from school staff, parents, students and the public and that “I believe we had over, 3,000 responses” to the surveys used to set priorities.

On historic preservation, Mesa said district staff are coordinating with the local historical society on upgrades to Lincoln Elementary’s historic auditorium, and said salvaged materials from removed seats or gym floors are being evaluated for reuse or fundraising opportunities.

The board asked staff for clarifications during the question-and-answer period, including how the Facilities Master Plan informed the project list, how survey results were used to prioritize work, and how academic program needs drive facility design. Mesa said the master plan combines a campus-level desirability list (community “dream school” input) with technical facility assessments and life-expectancy analyses for building systems.

Mesa closed by reminding the board that Measure UU proceeds will be issued over time and that staff were seeking direction on which projects to start, defer or package for state reimbursement. The board did not take immediate action on any projects at the March 7 special meeting and requested additional information and follow-up from the superintendent and cabinet.

Ending: Staff said they will use board feedback to refine a recommended list of initial projects and issuance timing and will return with more specifics, including bid timelines and recommended contract awards, at future meetings.