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District reports continued delays in SFOB appeal over campus replacement funding
Summary
Glendale officials told trustees the school facilities oversight board has repeatedly delayed an administrative appeal over funding for two campuses, and the district has successfully defended a motion to enforce a subpoena but faces further appeals.
Glendale Elementary School District staff and outside counsel updated the board on a separate administrative appeal seeking funding for replacement of two district campuses, saying the district has faced repeated procedural delays from the School Facilities Oversight Board (SFOB).
Lynn Adams, a strategic adviser retained to present the update, described the matter as an administrative appeal of an SFOB decision made Dec. 15, 2022 that denied funding to replace buildings at the Mensendik and JACC campuses. Adams said the district filed an appeal, sought settlement, and issued a subpoena for Scott Thompson, a long-serving SFOB member and facilities manager for Mesa Public Schools, to testify at the hearing.
Adams said the SFOB moved to quash the subpoena and the administrative law judge partially limited its scope, allowing questions about Thompson's work for Mesa and prior roles but barring questions about his internal thought processes. The district then prepared for a hearing set in April but said SFOB filed special-action appeals in superior court and later sought review in the court of appeals, creating further delays. Adams said the district won the superior court special-action briefing on Nov. 8 and was awarded attorney's fees of more than $30,000; the SFOB has indicated it may seek further appeals, and Adams said that could push the hearing schedule farther out.
Why it matters: The district argued the SFOB's repeated appeals and postponements stall needed campus replacements and increase costs. Adams told the board she and district counsel have tried to resolve the dispute through tours, memos to the attorney general's office and settlement talks, but SFOB appeals and procedural motions have repeatedly delayed a final decision.
Key details: Adams said the district prefers to present all hearing testimony together so the judge can consider the full record; the district declined options to proceed without testimony from Thompson or to take his testimony months later. She said the SFOB's tactics amount to repeated delay and that the district will continue to press for full testimony and additional attorney's fees if it prevails on further appeals. Board members later asked for a confidential executive-session discussion of strategy on SFOB matters.
No new public dates: Adams said April hearing dates remain on the calendar but are unlikely to proceed while appeals are pending. She told trustees the SFOB has also considered rule changes and that the district has provided public comments on proposed SFOB policies.
