SLO County school district plans to sell 2 former school sites. What will happen to them?
Two elementary school sites will be sold by the San Luis Coastal Unified School District as it attempts to right its multimillion-dollar structural budget deficit.
The Morro Bay and Sunnyside elementary schools both closed in the early 2000s. The former is located at 1130 Napa Ave., Morro Bay, while the latter is located at 880 Manzanita Drive, Los Osos.
Since their closures, the properties have been leased to charter and private schools and other community organizations, housing few district programs.
But now, officials are working to sell the surplus properties as the district grapples with a $6 million deficit heading into next school year.
“With declining enrollment on the coast and schools that have low enrollment, the district will not need these properties ... We have been talking about this for many years, the board recently moved forward with the legal process,” Ryan Pinkerton, assistant superintendent of business services for San Luis Coastal, told The Tribune in an email.
Could county buy Los Osos elementary school site?
The district first opened up the sales to local public agencies.
San Luis Obispo County expressed interest in the Sunnyside campus in Los Osos and was in talks with the district, according to Pinkerton.
The Sunnyside campus currently houses the Wishing Well School, a private school that offers a Waldorf-style education model, along with other resources.
The SLO County Board of Supervisors was expected to discuss the site during a closed session conference with real estate negotiators at its Tuesday meeting, though the Board did not report out on any action taken Tuesday.
Several community members submitted public comments ahead of the meeting encouraging the board to purchase the property and save the Wishing Well School.
“Many of our families and teachers live all across San Luis Obispo County, and some have relocated specifically to participate in our community at Wishing Well School,” wrote Sarah Case, board president for Wishing Well. “The school’s presence in Los Osos is not just an educational asset, but an economic and community anchor, attracting families who contribute to the local economy and culture. The potential loss of this location puts these families in a difficult position and threatens the stability of our school.”
Representatives from the Los Osos pickleball community also wrote in to urge the board to consider purchasing the property for parks and recreation needs.
Morro Bay school site future more uncertain
While the Sunnyside property could be acquired by the county, the Morro Elementary property is in a more precarious position after the city of Morro Bay expressed interest in the site — but ultimately decided against the purchase, according to Pinkerton.
“Our Board was hopeful that this could be a win/win for the district as well as the respective communities,” Pinkerton said.
But the projected cost of modernizing the Morro Bay property is between $20 and $30 million, he said, not including the purchase price. The property was appraised at over $10 million.
“I understand the city not wanting to move forward,” Pinkerton said.
All hope there isn’t gone yet, however.
After hearing feedback from the public, the Morro Bay City Council voted unanimously Jan. 28 to issue a letter to the district urging officials to hold off on the sale for at least 120 days to give the community time to develop a purchase plan.
In the meantime, the district has moved forward with the plan to sell the property.
According to Pinkerton, the district cannot negotiate with private community members or organizations until after going through the legal process to list the property — a process that will likely take longer than 120 days anyhow.
The district needs to get the property approved as surplus through the Department of Housing and Community Development, and then start the California State Board of Education’s protocol for requesting proposals and approving bids.
Public agencies are notified of the district’s intent to sell throughout the process.
Once it gets through those legal obstacles, Pinkerton said, the district will have some choice in deciding who gets to purchase the property.
Any district programs that are still housed on the properties will be moved to other sites, Pinkerton said.
The money the district receives from the sales can only be spent on property-related uses, like school maintenance or the purchase of new properties. The money cannot be used to fund salaries.
The sale of the two properties is not the only action San Luis Coastal is taking to right its deficit.
The district is also considering staff cutbacks and recently proposed cuts to its transitional kindergarten program — a suggestion that was later rescinded after criticism from parents.
City hosts community forum on Morro Elementary sale
Morro Bay community development director Airlin Singewald hosted a community forum Thursday night to inform the public about the potential uses for the Morro Elementary site.
The property is zoned for high-density housing and is recognized by the city as a possible site for future housing, Singewald told a group of around 50 community members.
Before deciding to sell the property, the district had previously considered developing affordable housing at the site.
The city has not received any proposals to develop the site. If it does in the future, the public will be involved in the process of approving or denying projects, Singewald said.
The city is required to process development applications.
Some community members inquired about the site’s historic significance, but Singewald said the city doesn’t have the data to show that the school, which was built in 1936, meets the qualifications to be listed on the California Register of Historical Resources.
A historic resource evaluation would be required with any future development.
One attendee at Thursday’s forum described the potential for development as a “pave paradise and put in a parking lot,” situation.
“I hope that people here tonight appreciate the open space and the historic benefits of everything related to that property, and that we can make a difference about what does go there in our city,” she said.
This story was originally published February 5, 2025 at 9:00 AM.
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