Paramount Unified hears PHS reunification study; architects recommend phased schedule, flag LA Metro bridge as wildcard

Paramount Unified’s board on Aug. 13 reviewed a facilities master-plan update that lays out options for reuniting the district’s West Campus and Senior Campus at Paramount High School.

PBK architects told the board a combined senior-campus capacity figure of 3,396 seats under the district’s loading standards. Josh Jackson, PBK’s director of planning, said the study models three schedules: an aggressive option (move next year), a moderate option (about two years), and a deliberate option (three-plus years). "If we were combining the West Campus and the senior campus this year, we would expect a utilization rate of 97%," Jackson said, adding that anything above about 90% tends to feel crowded and that spaces such as counseling, visual and performing arts, and cafeteria capacity would likely be strained.

Why it matters: consolidation would change campus traffic, parking and instructional space allocation across the district. PBK recommended the moderate or deliberate timelines so the district could add parking, address specialty-space shortages and stage summer projects that ease disruption.

The presentation flagged a separate but connected variable: an LA Metro bridge project that would cross near district property and could be used to link the campuses. Bruce Russo, PBK principal in charge, described the bridge as a "wild card" for scheduling: coordination could reduce disruption but would also tie the district’s timeline to Metro’s design and DSA (Division of the State Architect) review, adding scheduling uncertainty.

Trustees discussed parking at length. Superintendent Josh Lytle and PBK said the proposed buildout could add roughly 220 parking spaces with new lots and cleanup work, but board members asked about teacher, staff and event parking and whether satellite parking or shuttles might be needed. Vice President Sonia de Leon advocated exploring workforce-housing ideas and shuttle options for families; she said parents often cannot drive and that safe, reliable access should be prioritized. "If we could get the bigger part of the plot," she said, "it would be great," urging attention to long-term parking solutions.

PBK suggested phasing that keeps the most disruptive construction later in the sequence and packages early projects (tennis, sports field and bridge coordination) that could create construction staging areas and reduce overall impact. On the timing question, Jackson said the moderate schedule (two years out) would bring utilization closer to the 80–90% "sweet spot" and allow two rounds of summer projects and a new parking lot before consolidation.

Board members asked for follow-up details on the 220-space estimate, phasing costs and coordination plans with the city and LA Metro. PBK said it has begun preliminary conversations with Metro and the city and that formal coordination and DSA review timelines remain to be defined.

Next steps: PBK will return with refined cost estimates, clarified phasing and a more detailed parking plan; the board did not take action at the Aug. 13 meeting on reunification itself and will consider the study as part of ongoing facilities planning.