Board Makes a $14 Million Error

College, developer dispute Mountain House campus deal

Written by Ben Marrone/Sun Post Friday, 02 March 2007

A disputed deal between the San Joaquin Community College District and a Mountain House developer may force the district to pay an extra $14 million to build a satellite campus in Mountain House — putting the squeeze on other college projects in Manteca and Lodi.

According to the college’s business services director, Andy Dunn, developer Gerry Kamilos — the builder responsible for creating Mountain House — agreed to cover all the fees the college would have to pay to join the not-yet-incorporated city.

But for months, the district has tried to get Kamilos to sign a contract promising to cover $14 million in “traffic impact fees” that the district didn’t learn about until after it signed its first contract with Kamilos in 2005.

In February, college trustees voted to donate several acres of land to Mountain House for roads and a water-storage tank — which Dunn says everyone building in Mountain House is required to do — but the vote was not unanimous, and some trustees think the college is moving too fast.

Trustee Ted Simas, who represents Manteca and Escalon on the college board, said giving up land for the roads and the water-storage tank now — before Kamilos signs the new contract — leaves the college vulnerable to a bad deal.

“He’s been stalling,” Simas said. “My theory is without that water site, he’s not going to be able to do anything. To me, we just gave up our last bargaining chip.” ...

Complete article here.