GILROY
– The name associated with Gilroy’s world-famous garlic products
will soon be the name of Gilroy’s second high school.
GILROY – The name associated with Gilroy’s world-famous garlic products will soon be the name of Gilroy’s second high school.
The school district reached a tentative agreement with Garlic Festival co-founder Don Christopher to accept a 10-acre, $6-million donation of land on which to re-build an aging Las Animas Elementary School.
In exchange, Gilroy Unified School District will name the city’s second high school expected to open in 2008 “Christopher High School.”
“Obviously, it’s an expression of generosity towards the district that is quite out of the ordinary,” Superintendent Edwin Diaz said of Christopher’s donation. ”I think it’s unprecedented in this community. The Christopher family has had a long history of making contributions to Gilroy public schools, not just in the form of donations. And after reviewing the existing criteria for naming schools, I think Don Christopher fits well.”
Christopher, contacted at his home Monday evening, was nonchalant about his gift, which is currently being appraised.
“I heard that they needed a little help, so I came up and told them I wanted to give them this land,” he said.
After considering the offer for about six months, Christopher said it was time to keep up a family tradition.
“My grandfather started it in San Jose and my father kept it up and now it’s my turn,” he said. Christopher Elementary School in San Jose also bears the family name. ” I think it’s just a great thing for the kids. I thought it was just a great thing to do.”
The naming of Gilroy’s Christopher High School would continue that tradition as well, he said, without being redundant.
District officials presented the details of the windfall from Christopher during a board study session Monday evening. The proposed donation has the potential to resolve the district’s negotiations for a new Las Animas site, which have stood at an impasse for more than five months.
First, Don Christopher will donate his 9.57-acre portion of a 15-acre parcel at the southeast corner of Santa Teresa Boulevard and Miller Avenue.
Second, the district will purchase the rest of the parcel: Two acres from Bill Christopher, Don’s son, and 3.42 acres from Bill and Benita Reimal.
Once the district owns all 15 acres, “there’s several potential uses here, a lot of flexibility here,” said Steve Brinkman, Assistant Superintendent of administrative services.
GUSD’s preferred option is a 10-acre land swap for the long sought-after Greenfield Drive site, owned by the Filice family, just three quarters of a mile away. The Christopher parcel has anywhere from 49 to 68 housing permits associated with it, making its value and location within the Glen Loma Ranch development comparable to the Greenfield site, which is already zoned for educational facilities. The number of permits on the parcel would vary depending on the type of homes built there.
Tim Filice, who owns the Greenfield site, said Monday evening that he had not heard of the district’s proposed land swap and could not comment on the matter.
The district sees two other options, should that plan fail. It could sell the parcel to buy an altogether new Las Animas site, or choose to re-build Las Animas on the Christopher land.
“There’s a true cost differential to develop that site and it would put us back in time,” said Charlie Van Meter, director of facilities, planning and construction.
GUSD has already completed a six-month environmental review of the Greenfield site that cost about $75,000. Should it need to undergo that process again, the anticipated 2006 opening of the new Las Animas would be delayed. The district has also spent $250,000 on preliminary plans for the school.
Although trustees won’t vote to accept the proposed land swap and sale until May 6, several expressed their approval of the plan and gratitude toward the Christopher family.
“It’s been over three years that we as a board have gone to the community and said, ‘Gilroy Unified School District is not going to get to the level that we want this school district to be without the community’s involvement, and specifically, partnerships,’ ” Trustee Bob Kraemer said. “Anybody who has been in Gilroy and knows what goes on in Gilroy knows that Don Christopher is a leader … in every respect, as far as giving to this community.”
Christopher’s contributions to the school district include sponsoring and hosting the Gilroy High School Athletic Association has put on our Annual Crab Cioppino Feed and Dance, which will be held on May 8 this year and is hosted at Christopher Ranch. He also supported Measure I and contributed to GUSD’s campaign.
“The Gilroy Unified School District has benefited greatly by having the Garlic Festival in our community,” said Diaz, who figures the district has received more than $1 million from the event.
In order to approve the CHS name, trustees will vote to revise the board’s naming policy May 6. Instead of requiring a Citizens Advisory Committee to submit a recommendation, the new policy will allow the board to name a building after an individual to recognize an extraordinary contribution to the district.
“This is not meant to circumvent the use of a citizens committee and that process will continue to be used,” Brinkman said.
“I don’t think there’s any one of us here who would move forward with the naming of any facility unless we felt very, very good about it,” Kraemer said.
