Cerritos : City to Provide $2 Million for School Gym Expansion

The Cerritos Redevelopment Agency will provide $2 million for expansion of the Cerritos High School gymnasium under an agreement with the ABC Unified School District that calls for joint city and district use of the facility.

The project, expected to be completed in 16 months, will double the size of the gym by providing a second regulation-size basketball court. The agreement was approved last week by the City Council, sitting as the Redevelopment Agency; school board approval is expected May 5.

Under the agreement, the district will use the gym addition on school days until 5:15 p.m., when the city takes over until 10 p.m. On non-school days and all summer, the city will have use of the addition between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. The district will maintain control over the existing gym, but the city may use it when there are no district events.

With the Cerritos High pact concluded, the agency and the district will begin negotiations for a gymnasium at Whitney High School, which has none. Patricia Koch, assistant superintendent for business and operations, said an agreement similar to the one for Cerritos High will be negotiated, with the Redevelopment Agency providing $2 million for the gym. That project is expected to be completed in mid-1995, she said. Negotiations also will include shared use of athletic fields at Cerritos Park East, which adjoins Whitney High, she said.