Dear Ms. Korenstein,
Thank you for your response and for passing on the statement from the Superintendent's Office. In no way, does
the STA or the community at large hold you personally responsible for the decision to issue the civic center
permit. We do appreciate your personal concern over the impacts a Home Depot store would have on our
community and our school children.
However, after reviewing the letter that your office issued today, we would like to address those statements.
Home Depot should not be allowed to promote their For Profit business in a public school facility; the activity they
will be presenting does not qualify as Non-Profit nor are they a community benefit organization. In essence, they
will be utilizing school facilities to promote their business. This intended Open House is an opportunity to
advertise their business and their products, while selling the concept of their proposed store. Ultimately, this
event will be nothing more than an sales pitch. Their singular focus is to promote their For Profit warehouse store,
even though the profit would not be realized until, if and when, they open their store. The only activity advertised
in their brochure is the promotion of their intent to open a building materials warehouse store in our
neighborhood.
We have throughly reviewed the LAUSD Application for Civic Center Use of School Facilities. In addition to the
"nothing for sale" requirement, the following sections are relevant to the Home Depot permit application.
In the section, Request for Use of Facilities, the LAUSD permit application states, "Any form of announcement or
advertisement regarding activities held on school property for non-school purposes must include the following
statement, 'This meeting is neither sponsored by nor is it in any way connected with the LAUSD'. If announcement
is in printed form, statement must appear in equally large and prominent type." On Wednesday, June 11, at your
request, we faxed you a copy of the brochure Home Depot mailed to the community. Hopefully, you reviewed it
and noted the required disclaimer was missing. On that same day, we also faxed a copy of the same brochure to
Kathy Friedman, Supervisor of the Civic Center Permit Office. Ms. Friedman said that the Home Depot would be
required to do another mailing.
We feel it is necessary to see the Home Depot's completed application to see if other district requirements were
complied with. On June 12, we submitted a formal written request by email to review Home Depot's completed
permit application to Ms. Friedman. She responded to Mr. Barrett in a telephone conversation that our request
would be forwarded to the LAUSD legal department. To fulfill the district's efforts at fairness, neutrality and
transparency, we are again requesting that the Home Depot application, permit, and any comments or
correspondence associated with that application and permit be made public immediately.
In the official reply from LAUSD, you wrote, "I wish there would have been something else we could have done."
We believe that the Home Depot should be held accountable to the rules that were in place at the time the permit
was submitted for the use of a school facility. Instead, the LAUSD has chosen to change the local regulations
after issuing a permit. In response to the hundreds of community members who have expressed their outrage
over Home Depot's proposed use of the school facility, LAUSD changed the wording on the permit guidelines on
June 12, 2008. This action appears to favor Home Depot and does not appear to be a fair or neutral position by
LAUSD. Simply stated, up until June 11, 2008, LAUSD guidelines required a group to be a non-profit to use a
district facility.
The Civic Center Act, Education Code Section 38130-38139, Section A, lists "citizens" and names specific groups
who are allowed to use a school facility. The Home Depot is a For Profit Corporation, not an individual citizen, not
a singular community member, not a community group, public agency, or a non-profit community benefit
organization.
Here is the text of the Civic Center Act in its entirety (emphasis added):
"38131. (a) There is a civic center at each and every public school
facility and grounds within the state where the citizens, parent
teacher associations, Camp Fire girls, Boy Scout troops, veterans'
organizations, farmers' organizations, school-community advisory
councils, senior citizens' organizations, clubs, and associations
formed for recreational, educational, political, economic, artistic,
or moral activities of the public school districts may engage in
supervised recreational activities, and where they may meet and
discuss, from time to time, as they may desire, any subjects and
questions that in their judgment pertain to the educational,
political, economic, artistic, and moral interests of the citizens of
the communities in which they reside. For purposes of this section,
"veterans' organizations" are those groups included within the
definition of that term as specified in subdivision (a) of Section
1800 of the Military and Veterans Code.
(b) The governing board of any school district may grant the use
of school facilities or grounds as a civic center upon the terms and
conditions the board deems proper, subject to the limitations,
requirements and restrictions set forth in this article, for any of
the following purposes:
(1) Public, literary, scientific, recreational, educational, or
public agency meetings.
(2) The discussion of matters of general or public interest.
(3) The conduct of religious services for temporary periods, on a
one-time or renewable basis, by any church or religious organization
that has no suitable meeting place for the conduct of the services,
provided the governing board charges the church or religious
organization using the school facilities or grounds a fee as
specified in subdivision (d) of Section 38134.
(4) Child care or day care programs to provide supervision and
activities for children of preschool and elementary schoolage.
(5) The administration of examinations for the selection of
personnel or the instruction of precinct board members by public
agencies.
(6) Supervised recreational activities including, but not limited
to, sports league activities for youths that are arranged for and
supervised by entities, including religious organizations or
churches, and in which youths may participate regardless of religious
belief or denomination.
(7) A community youth center.
(8) A ceremony, patriotic celebration, or related educational
assembly conducted by a veterans' organization.
(9) Other purposes deemed appropriate by the governing board. "
As you read in Section 38131, you will note that it does not provide for a For-Profit Corporation to utilize public
school facilities to advance it's own business goals.
Please bring our concerns to the Superintendent's attention, and the fact that the permit for Home Depot to utilize
facilities at Mt. Gleason Middle School is in violation of the Civic Center Act. The Home Depot event should be
immediately canceled, and the permit revoked.
Our expectation and intention is that the LAUSD adhere to the Civic Center Act, keeping this process fair, neutral,
and transparent for the public, rather than accommodating the business interests of a For-Profit Corporation. If
Home Depot desires to promote their store, a private facility would be more suitable.
Thank you for your careful review of our concerns. We look forward to your reply.
Joseph W. Barrett, President
Sunland-Tujunga Alliance, Inc.
Abby Diamond, Secretary
Sunland-Tujunga Alliance, Inc.
STA/No Home Depot Campaign response to LAUSD statement
regarding Home Depot/Mt Gleason facility use.
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