School District Seeks Input On Oddstad Property

The Pacifica School District could use some extra cash, and the old Oddstad Elementary School Site is burning a hole in its pocket. 

The site, on Oddstad Boulevard, could be declared surplus and then sold, leased or left as-is. It was closed as a school in 2004 and is now partially leased to the  and the Kiewit Pacific Company, the contractor building the . The district must undergo a formal process with the public before declaring it surplus.

A meeting tonight at the office board room is the beginning of that process. It will be the first meeting of what is called a 7-11 committee, made up of no less than 7 and no more than 11 community members of various interests appointed by the district board of trustees, that will recommend or not recommend making the property surplus. Community members tonight will have a chance to speak their minds on whether the site should be declared surplus. 

According to the district, if, after hearing from the public and a recommendation from the 7-11 committee, the district decides to make the old school site surplus and lease the land to a new party, revenue could be used in the district's general fund for teachers, maintenance, books and ongoing expenses. If the district decides to sell the land, then the money may only go to the district's building fund to be used for one-time expenses, such as equipment. 

When Kiewit finishes leasing part of the space in the Fall of 2012, the district will lose about $150,000 in annual revenue from the rent. 

According to the district, it hopes that if the site is declared surplus, it can do something with it that requires minimum investment on its own part, maintains the sports field at the south end which is currently heavily used, and creates ongoing revenue for the district. 

The property is zoned for 58 single family homes, and if, in the future, homes are built there, the entire plot could be homes with no sports field.

Josie Peterson, chief business official for the Pacifica School District, said it is too early yet to know what will happen to the site. 

"It's too preliminary yet," she said. "The board has to follow strict guidelines on selling property, with a formal RFP (request for proposal) process, and it must be offered to certain public agencies first if the district decides to sell. We haven’t received input from the 7-11 committee, and no decision has been made."

Pitto Ranch on Perez Drive, another piece of district property, is also being considered for surplus. 

In addition to tonight's meeting at 7 p.m., there will be another public hearing on Tuesday at . A final meeting of the committee, when it will decide on its recommendation to the board, will be June 2 at the district office. 

For more information, see the attached PDF in the gallery to the right.