Measure U was approved in November 2014 by voters authorizing Carpinteria Unified School District to issue $90 million in general obligation bonds for facilities improvements.

The overall goal of Measure U is to improve facilities throughout the District. The newest structures are almost 50 years old, with many buildings over 80 years old.

Although some improvements have been made over the years, the District does not have adequate resources to replace or adequately renovate these aging facilities. We must also keep pace with advancing technology. Part of our responsibility to the community is to maintain quality school facilities; good schools protect property values.

From a physical standpoint, 50 years without significant investment in our facilities has burdened our operational budget with excessive maintenance cost for leaky roofs, aging bathroom plumbing, and out of date lighting and HVAC systems. Updating our buildings to today’s energy and building codes will provide substantial annual savings in taxpayer money.

Thanks to the generosity of voters and the passage of Measure U, CUSD now has funding to address these needs. Most importantly, savings in operational costs can be redirected into instructional programs, directly benefiting students.

The Measure U Bond is funded by property tax assessments.

These bonds are funded by property owners at a rate of $47 per $100,000 per assessed valuation. We expect the bond terms to be 20-25 years.

The Facilities Master Plan (FMP) is a planning document that lays out the facility improvements and new construction needed to improve Carpinteria’s public schools and better serve our students. It is a twenty-year plan through 2035.

The FMP was developed over an 18 month period with solicited input from the CUSD staff, parents, School Site Councils and community members through the Superintendent’s Facilities Committee. The FMP was adopted June 10, 2014 by the CUSD Governing Board.

Download this PDF version of the plan.

Upgrade classrooms, libraries, science labs and computer system infrastructure to keep pace with advancing technology and energy efficiency. Repair basic infrastructure such as roofs, restrooms, fire and safety systems, flooring. Our newest campuses were built in the 1960’s. The oldest were built in the 1930’s. Replace aging portable classrooms with permanent classrooms. All 63 portable classrooms on campuses are in either poor or failing condition. Prepare students for college and careers with a new science wing and a new design and engineering classroom at Carpinteria High School.

All bond funds must be spent locally for school facilities and cannot be used for administrators’ salaries. In addition, bond funds are subject to a strict bond oversight committee.

The Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee (CBOC) shall inform the public/community concerning the CUSD expenditure of bond proceeds. The CBOC shall review expenditure reports produced by the District to ensure that bond proceeds were expended only for purposes set forth in Measure U and no bond proceeds were used for teacher or administrative salaries or other operating expenses.

Please see the CBOC Members page.

Each school site has formed a Site Committee. A Site Committee consists of 5-7 people and includes the Principal, Teacher, Classified Staff, Parent and a Student. The function of the committee is to meet regularly and to provide input and feedback to facilities staff and the architects on goals, priorities and scope decisions as they relate to projects. Learn more.

Several positions, both full time and part time, have been created to support the contract administrative duties associated with Measure U projects. David Weniger was hired in May 2015 as the Director of Facilities and Operations. Lina Plascencia was hired August 2015 as the Planning Department Specialist. Beverly Rodriguez, Accounting Technician for CUSD, also lends her time to assist with Measure U. Cindy Abbott was hired in September 2016 as the Measure U Facilities Coordinator. Learn more about the Measure U Team.