Board OKs $79.5M school sale

The vote Wednesday, Jan. 15, advanced a process intending to overhaul the district’s finances and shift its foundation to a model built around large, regional campuses rather than small, neighborhood schools.

Recognizing the magnitude of the decision, board President Teri Chavez shared the justification for her vote which she said in a prepared statement was made with some consternation.

“The idea of selling surplus property is one that I have not taken lightly. However, the fact is that this sale of land is the most viable option for our district to obtain the funds needed to invest in modernizing our school facilities,” she said.

The former campus at 2101 Sneath Lane last housed students in 1978, and had been leased to the San Bruno Golf Center. Officials reserved the right to cancel the agreement with the driving range if a more lucrative offer came along.

But both Mason and Blanco said they voted against the proposal to sell the land because they instead preferred to continue renting it. Money received from property sales can only be used to address facilities, while rental revenue goes into the district’s general fund and can be used to pay operating expenses.

“I’ve advocated for this because I realized the long-term value of a lease, like a 60-year ground lease, would reveal a larger benefit to the students, teachers and community,” said Mason.

Blanco shared a similar position, and preferred officials would have preserved the asset as a rental property generating ongoing income for the district.

“That land is a gold mine,” she said. “It’s not rocket science. It’s very valuable. And once you sell a piece of land, its gone.”

Chavez though said financing improvements to school facilities is a top priority for the district.

“Our schools are older and need much financial investment. Through this sale, we will be able to work on that goal immediately,” she said.

Additionally, the dissenting voters said they would have seen the process involve more input from community members and city officials in the interest of building greater consensus around a move of such magnitude.

“I wanted to explore lease options, but if my colleagues are not willing to do that and they are in a rush to sell, I’m walking uphill,” said Mason.

Officials late last year identified Pulte as the preferred bidder among a group of interested home development companies seeking to acquire the property currently zoned to allow construction of single-family homes. Though details of the bids are not publicly available, some of the development companies offered to rent the land.

But the decision to sell the property is not isolated. The board last year opted to sell the former El Crystal Elementary School site for $13.5 million to the Stratford School.

El Crystal Elementary School was closed by officials in a movement to reconfigure the district’s budget, which for years hamstrung operations. The revenue generated by the property sales will help rebuild facilities needing to be revamped and improved to accommodate more students. Officials will use the $93 million of sales income in tandem with the $79 million raised by a recent bond measure. Rollingwood Elementary School was also identified as surplus land recently, making it eligible potentially for sale or lease, but the fate of the campus remains in the balance.

Reflecting on the decision to sell the campus and shun the opportunity to establish an ongoing source of rental income for the district, Blanco expressed her disappointment.

“It is a sad moment in time for our district,” she said.

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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Note to readers: this article has been amended to note that Andrew Mason is a trustee, and that the board voted late last year to select Pulte as the preferred bidder.