A day after a fire of mysterious origin destroyed large parts of the former San Jose Mexican American Community Services Agency (MACSA) youth center, the local school board voted to take steps to demolish the site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During a rare Saturday emergency meeting\u2014announced less than 24 hours after a fire engulfed the one-time youth center<\/a> on Aug. 29\u2014Alum Rock Union School Board trustees took the unanimous action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the weeks preceding the fire, the site had garnered attention from cultural advocates and elected leaders who have sought to reopen the youth center, closed since MACSA collapsed in 2016 in the wake of scandals and fund diversions<\/a> from employee pension accounts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Established advocacy organizations like Silicon Valley De-Bug and the Mexican Heritage Plaza wonder why trustees appeared more focused on demolition rather than revival\u2014or investigating the fire\u2019s cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n San Jose Fire Battalion Chief Chris Fabiny said the initial emergency call early on the morning of Aug. 29 described an \u201coutside fire\u201d in the area of Renaissance Academy at Mathson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He affirmed the trustees\u2019 unanimous and sole position to explore demolition and protect nearby students from toxic debris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n East San Jose community advocates with SOMOS Mayfair and the \u201cSi Se Puede\u201d collective initially scheduled a public meeting with the board of trustees Sept. 4 to discuss a potential revival of the youth center\u2014though the meeting was delayed to Sept. 11.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hours after advocates staged a protest outside the Alum Rock Union School District headquarters to call for the trustees\u2019 attention, neighbors of the MACSA site reported a fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While Fabiny said initial reports described the blaze as an \u201coutside fire,\u201d video obtained from neighbors showed the flames were contained within the MACSA building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n SOMOS Mayfair co-executive director Victor Vasquez and San Jose State Chicana and Chicano Studies associate professor Jonathan Gomez say the board of trustees is considering listing the district-owned site as \u201csurplus land\u201d so they can profitably lease it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor<\/a> has served as the district\u2019s land use consultant through Public Property Advisors<\/a>, a real estate and consulting business that focuses on school district properties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe issues have not changed since last night, 60% of our kids in Alum Rock live in poverty, a lot of them are lagging behind preschool enrollment,\u201d Vasquez told trustees. \u201cI want to ask you three things; that you recommit to working with us, that you commit to renovating and reconstructing the center with us and that we explore all the ways to preserve whatever\u2019s left.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re here to remind you that you\u2019re not alone. Let\u2019s go ask the city, the county, the state and whoever is here to work with you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Board of Trustees President Linda Chavez grew frustrated by the concerns raised among community members and cut public comment short after only a fraction of attendants were allowed to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When community members called for Chavez to continue public comment\u2014she instead called a 30-minute recess. The board was quick to remind Chavez that she needed to call a vote before ordering a recess, which she promptly did. She received no support from her colleagues for the proposed 30-minute recess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Board Vice President Andres Quinteros described the community\u2019s calls for continued public comment as \u201cmilitant activism\u201d and was visibly in tears when approached for comment following the meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trustee Corina Loera-Herrera attempted to ask the board if the district\u2019s insurance policy can cover the financial damages of the MACSA site fire\u2014but Quinteros shut her down and said the topic was an \u201coffline conversation\u201d because \u201cwe\u2019re going to invite every lawyer to start coming out here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite his knowledge surrounding the potential optics of publicly discussing the district\u2019s insurance claims, Quinteros said he had no personal knowledge of the district\u2019s financial arrangements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDo you think I\u2019m keeping track of all the district\u2019s finances? Do you think I know everything they\u2019re doing? I don\u2019t know about the insurance,\u201d he said. \u201cI feel like I\u2019m being confronted and attacked right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chavez declined multiple requests for comment and locked herself in a public conference room before ordering the building to be closed to the public so trustees and legal counsel can meet in private.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trustee Minh Pham said the school district superintendent, currently interim Sandra Garcia, still has to approve the board\u2019s unanimous vote. Despite the vote to explore demolition, Pham said district-contracted workers will assess the site to determine if any aspect of the MACSA building can be saved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cStructural engineers will do an assessment of the site to declare what\u2019s safe, what\u2019s unsafe, and if found to be unsafe by the structural engineers\u2014they will take that part down under the state building code for schools,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A day after a fire destroyed large parts of the former MACSA Youth Center, the local school board voted to take steps to demolish the site.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14789,"featured_media":20183906,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","_expiration-date-status":"","_expiration-date":0,"_expiration-date-type":"","_expiration-date-categories":[],"_expiration-date-options":[]},"categories":[1686],"tags":[20485,20484,20483],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n