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District committee recommends Bright Park be declared surplus, asks for appraisal and Riverbank access protections
Summary
A 7-11 citizen advisory committee recommended the Washington Unified School District deem the parcel adjacent to Riverbank Elementary (Bright Park) surplus. The committee urged a third‑party appraisal, acreage clarification and priority access for Riverbank students, while noting the board will consider surplus status at a later meeting.
Patrice Griffin, chair of the district'appointed 7-11 surplus property committee, told the Board of Education on June 26 that the committee recommends the parcel adjacent to Riverbank Elementary, known locally as Bright Park, be deemed surplus and considered for sale.
The committee'appointed in May and required to include community members said its recommendation includes four specific requests: that the district obtain a third‑party appraisal before any sale; that the exact acreage be clarified because committee materials contained conflicting figures; that Riverbank Elementary be guaranteed priority access to the property for academic and extracurricular use with at least six months'advance notice required of any new owner; and that tenant improvements made under the existing memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the city not be deducted from the assessed value at sale.
Monique Sova, the district's chief business officer, introduced the committee report and said the written report would be added to the agenda record after delivery to the board.
Committee members and several trustees pressed for clarity about next steps. Trustees were told the committee has no authority to sell property; the board will consider whether to surplus the site at a subsequent meeting and that sale terms (including any priority access) would be subject to negotiation between the district and any buyer, typically the city. Committee members said a third‑party appraisal was recommended to avoid perceived bias and to ensure the district receives appropriate value for the land. Committee members also requested that any acreage or building included in a sale be clearly defined in writing before a transaction proceeds.
No formal board action to surplus the property took place at the meeting; the committee's written report was accepted for the record and will be included with future agenda materials when the board takes a surplus decision.
Board members asked district legal and facilities staff to provide guidance before a final surplus vote on how priority access can be written into a sale and what legal limits apply to long‑term access arrangements.
The committee emphasized that Riverbank uses the park for physical education, sports practices and other academic purposes during the school year, and that any sale that limits student access would affect programming at Riverbank.
