City Will Exercise Right to Buy School Sites

The city has indicated a desire to buy a portion of the land that the Huntington Beach City School District is proposing to sell.

"The Naylor Act is a State of California initiative that ensures no loss of public open space. Properties with public open space, such as playgrounds, can be divided up but the District must offer the open space to the Parks and Recreation District, the City and/or County for continued recreational use. There are also limits on the price for which such property may be sold. Minimally the price must be 20% of the fair market value but it cannot exceed more than the original cost plus inflation plus the cost of improvements done." -from a Pasadena Unified School District report.

The OC Register reports:

The City Council voted Monday on a plan that allows the city to purchase up to 30 percent of Huntington Beach City School District's four school sites that it may deem surplus.

The city is entitled to purchase about 13 acres of the district's 42 potential surplus acres for one-fourth of the price of the property's market value, according to the state Naylor Act, city officials said. If the city purchased the sites, the land would have to be used for recreation areas or open space.

Of the four sites, the Burke and Gisler elementary school campuses are leased by Huntington Christian and Brethren Christian Junior/Senior High schools. The Kettler Elementary School site is not occupied and the LeBard Elementary School site is used for the district offices.

District officials called the plan premature because trustees have not officially voted to sell the land.

"We aren't in such a dire state that we need to (sell to the city),'' said Mike Curran, an assistant superintendent with the district. "Our buildings aren't falling down around us.''

Read the rest here.