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Phoenix Elementary board approves expanded ballot measure to authorize lease or exchange of district properties
Summary
After public push to include Emerson, the governing board voted to place a revised resolution on the Nov. 4 ballot authorizing the sale, lease or exchange of district property; board and legal staff said current intent is to pursue leases and not immediate sales.
The Phoenix Elementary District Governing Board voted unanimously May 27 to place a revised resolution on the Nov. 4 ballot that authorizes the sale, lease or exchange of district-owned properties, expanding the list of parcels to include sites not previously authorized and administrative properties.
Board President Carmen Trujillo said the amended resolution would allow the district flexibility to pursue long-term lease arrangements and other revenue-generating uses of land. “We want to be strategic and thoughtful with those buildings,” Sarah Sims, the district’s executive director of strategic initiatives, told the board during a presentation on land-use hypotheticals.
The vote followed more than an hour of public comment during which community members and nonprofit representatives pushed specifically to include the Emerson Elementary parcel so a local nonprofit, G Road, could pursue a long-term land lease to build a neighborhood center adjacent to the school. Jesse Stanton, writing for G Road in an electronic comment read at the meeting, said the group serves more than 200 Emerson students with after‑school care and needs a lease to begin fundraising for a center.
Sims described hypothetical uses for district land including a community center at Emerson, a sports complex at Lowell and combined rec/performing arts uses on other parcels. She said lease revenue is “much more flexible,” and that the district prefers leases over sales because leases can generate ongoing funds for programs such as preschool, enrichment, and field experiences.
Board members asked staff and legal counsel to include qualifying language clarifying there is no present intent to sell properties and requested explanatory language be added to the voter information pamphlet. Jim Gill, outside counsel, said the board may qualify the ballot language to state a present intent not to sell but noted a future board could change course.
After discussion, board member Kylie moved to adopt an amended resolution calling a special election to authorize disposition of all district properties not currently authorized; President Trujillo seconded. The board then took a roll-call vote: Erica De La Rosa — aye; Dr. Alicia Vink — aye; Carmen Trujillo — aye. With that the amended resolution passed.
Community speakers at the meeting urged separate votes for individual parcels, saying voters may have different views about different properties. Several callers asked the board to add Emerson specifically to the list so G Road could seek a lease longer than 20 years; district staff and counsel noted that certain partners, especially residential developers, often seek much longer leases (a presenter said some developers will not proceed without 75‑year terms) and that the district would retain discretion over any final agreements.
The board did not adopt any immediate sales or leases during the meeting; instead it approved placing the question on the ballot and directed staff to prepare ballot language and voter‑information materials that explain the district’s current preference for leases and the lack of an intent to sell now.
The board and staff said details about any future lease or development — including whether a parcel would be split to preserve an on-site school while leasing remaining land — would return to the board for approval. Legal counsel confirmed that the ballot authorization would allow the district to proceed with the public election but that any actual transaction would require subsequent board action.
The board’s action came amid broad public comment about district plans for school closures, preschool program changes and concerns about transparency. Several speakers asked the board to treat each parcel separately on the ballot; others urged approval to allow community partners to move forward with fundraising and programming plans.
The board scheduled follow-up work with counsel and staff to finalize ballot language and the voter pamphlet materials ahead of the November election.
