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Published on 07/28/1997 All articles from this issue

Community School of Music and Arts may soon be homeless

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Town Crier Staff Report

The metronome is ticking for the Community School of Music and Arts (CSMA) in Mountain View. Due to increased enrollment, the Mountain View School District plans re-open Huff Elementary School, the site being used by the music and art school. By next April, the not-for-profit organization may be homeless.

Executive director Andrea S. Temkin said another locally-based facility is needed. The school has, to date, no viable alternative locations, spokeswoman Evy Schiffman said last week.

"It is ironic that although the students served by the public school district will certainly benefit from the re-opening of our site, many of these same students will no longer have a place to come for their music and art classes and lessons," Temkin said.

Schiffman said the school has been "bursting at the seams," and needs approximately 25,000 square feet - considerably more than what the school has now.

CSMA has convened a facilities advisory committee of community leaders, including representatives from the school district and the school board to help locate a new site for the school.

Securing a permanent Mountain View location would be the best solution, but CSMA is also considering interim options and neighboring locations, Temkin said. She said the school's relocation will be particularly challenging because of the school's financial and time constraints.

CSMA, which has occupied its current site on Martens Avenue the past 10 years, must leave the site by April 30, 1998 Schiffman said.

Patricia Bubenik, superintendent of the Mountain View School District, said the district has been discussing the Huff re-opening for two years, and CSMA officials have been aware of the probability that the school would have to move. The state's mandated class size reduction program has only accelerated plans to reopen Huff, she said.

"We want to continue that cooperation (with CSMA). CSMA represents a tremendous cultural resource in this community," Bubenik said.

In its 29-year history, thousands of students of all ages have passed through CSMA's doors, creating and sharing music and art in a community of people committed to the arts. CSMA has grown to become one of the largest providers of arts education, serving 14,000 residents annually.

For more information about the Community School of Music and Arts, call 961-0342.