Joint City of Temecula-TVUSD Committee Meeting Shows Opportunities, Challenges

1TVPAC Team

A rare meeting of the Temecula City Council and TVUSD Committee on April 9, 2025, included Temecula City Council Mayor Brenden Kalfus, Mayor Pro Tem Jessica Alexander, TVUSD Board President Dr. Melinda Anderson, and Trustee Dr. Joseph Komrosky. TVUSD Superintendent Dr. Gary Woods and staff from both the city and the school district were also present.

On the agenda were several items of interest to both local government bodies, including SCE emergency power shutoffs, e-bike safety, staff training on Narcan, and sports fields. The meeting clearly showed how valuable city-school district coordination can be and how competent both city and district staff are. Unfortunately it also highlighted some elected officials’ lack of basic understanding and inability to stay on topic, as well as several missed opportunities for coordination.

Coordination and communication challenges

The difficulty in scheduling this meeting highlighted continuing poor communication between the two entities, which have no official relationship but serve an overlapping community. The school district includes the city but extends far beyond city boundaries. 

Discussion showed cases where either TVUSD or the city had made substantial progress on an issue without the other's knowledge. One example is staff training for Narcan use in opioid overdose response. Dr. Nicole Dayus, Assistant Superintendent of Student Support Services, detailed the school district's well-established training program. City staff appeared unaware of TVUSD's progress on this issue but expressed interest in future collaboration, for example using city-ordered supplies and the district's program as a pilot for city employees. 

Meanwhile, the city planned its “Cartoon Palooza”—an event geared toward youth—without consulting the school district, which could have helped with promotion. And the district is planning a similar community event featuring district art teachers on a TVUSD campus, tentatively set for September 13. Better communication earlier could widen participation in events like these.

Mayor Kalfus presented an agenda item on sports fields, saying that the better-maintained city fields (such as Sommers Bend and Birdsall) should be prioritized for youth rather than adult leagues. School fields at middle and elementary schools have limited access and face maintenance constraints. City staff explained that while there is no formal policy prioritizing adult use of city fields, they honor school district requests that adult leagues not play on school-owned fields, since adult leagues contribute significantly to turf damage. Staff also noted the lack of lighting at many school fields, making adult evening leagues impossible there, and the financial impact to the district for additional field maintenance.

City staff offered to draft a master joint-use agreement to reflect input from the discussion and to research potential grant opportunities for field improvements. They will also provide letters of support for district grant applications.

Both agencies expressed strong enthusiasm for collaboration. Hopefully, improved communication earlier in future projects will pool resources to meet community challenges and improve events.

Staff competence and elected officials’ unpreparedness

Throughout the meeting both city and district staff demonstrated exceptional professionalism, with thorough knowledge of their respective areas. They provided well-researched, data-driven information on all topics discussed. In contrast, some elected officials presented misinformation, showed poor understanding of issues, and made inappropriate comments that added little value.

For example, the group discussed student e-bike and e-motorcycle safety, particularly off campus. A Sheriff's Deputy expressed concerns that some parents contribute to the problem by failing to enforce basic safety expectations. Mayor Kalfus noted that increased public awareness around prosecution could serve as a deterrent. 

Brian Pastor, Director of Safety and Security for TVUSD, detailed the district’s program to educate parents and students. The first awareness and safety event is scheduled for April 14 at Vail Ranch Middle School, and the program includes a new bike safety and sticker system to identify properly registered and permitted riders. Trustee Komrosky's questions during discussion, however, indicated a surprising lack of awareness about the program, which has been in development for several months. 

In the sports fields discussion, Komrosky raised questions about school athletic teams accessing city facilities and related transportation logistics. Staff clarified that the agenda item involved recreational youth leagues at elementary and middle schools—not school sports teams. 

During the discussion on Narcan training for staff, Dr. Dayus was fully prepared and on topic. When Trustee Komrosky asked about campus overdose deaths and Narcan administration history, Dr. Dayus reported no overdose-related deaths on campus, with Narcan being administered only once in the past five years, at a high school prom. City Councilmember Alexander, however, raised irrelevant points about fentanyl at borders. 

Trustee Komrosky’s agenda item on future developments was an unnecessary detour. The district’s finance team presents detailed enrollment projections to the school board each year. In addition, Komrosky had already been informed that a proposed land use redesignation in Wine Country is outside the city’s jurisdiction and would not affect the city or the school district. But he worried aloud that Riverside County might “sneak things by us,” incorrectly suggesting TVUSD might suddenly need to build a new school without adequate notice. Superintendent Dr. Woods reiterated that despite any new development approval, the school district predicts declining enrollment due to the area's high housing costs, which make it difficult for young families with children to move here. 

Councilmember Alexander then brought up the unrelated Winchester General Plan, citing an incorrect figure of 200,000 proposed dwellings—more than five times the actual number (39,028). The plan is currently under review by Riverside County, and the City of Temecula has already submitted its stance to the County.

Missed potential and future opportunities 

The meeting made it clear that better coordination between TVUSD and the city would save  effort and lead to better results on issues that affect both. 

An example is Southern California Edison (SCE) Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS). Both TVUSD and city staff expressed frustration over SCE's inability to give timely, accurate information. Staff noted problems during a January shutoff; they stressed that generators are not viable backup solutions, since sudden school cancellations due to power shutoffs could leave children unsupervised at home. 

Both city and district officials acknowledged that if they had presented a united front earlier, they might have had greater leverage to demand accountability and better information from SCE. Instead, their efforts were fragmented, and both students and residents had safety concerns.

Superintendent Dr. Woods was clearly pleased that Mayor Kalfus attended TVUSD’s beginning-of-year employee rally—a morale-boosting kickoff event—and expressed enthusiasm for city partnerships, emphasizing their role in building connections for a vibrant community.

Dr. Dayus outlined the upcoming Family Conference on August 2, which will offer breakfast, sessions on athletics and school programs, a showcase for community resources, and an opportunity to meet the superintendent. The conference will accommodate 500 attendees on a first-come, first-served basis and also provide emergency certification training.

Despite missed opportunities for collaboration, officials and staff for both governmental bodies remained optimistic and reaffirmed their commitment to better align in the future.