The Planning Commission Thursday backed Vista Norte Public Charter School's long-running Casa Blanca campus, approving a conditional use permit that would legalize the school's operation and allow enrollment of up to 450 students.
The proposal formalizes a use that has operated on the property at 7680 Casa Blanca St. since 2015, according to the staff report, while preserving Casa Blanca Home of Neighborly Services' community center programs on the site.
Staff said the school's setup is unusual compared with a traditional campus because most students work off-site and come in only once a week for appointments, limiting on-site activity and traffic.
The charter school is an independent study program that serves students ages 14 to 23, according to Vista Norte Principal Memo Velasco on Thursday.
"We have a differentiated assistant program where we specifically target areas of growth like testing scores, and these are things that we continue to track, that we continue to work on," he told commissioners. "A lot of our students are behind in credits, and unfortunately, they cannot continue in the traditional school setting, so they come with us behind with credits, and we are able to service them until the age of 23."
Velasco said the charter's students meet with their teachers one to two times a week for one- to two-hour appointments and receive work packets. Students complete the packets at home, and they come to school and ask questions, review the material, work with tutors or paraprofessionals if they need to, and leave the center with an additional credit.
The property, on the south side of Casa Blanca Street, is zoned for single-family residential use but allows charter schools with a conditional use permit.
Staff found the project consistent with the city's general plan, zoning code and citywide design guidelines, and said it would not be materially detrimental to the surrounding neighborhood.
The school operates Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with no weekend or nighttime use allowed under the recommended conditions.
