District 49 outlines plan to relocate Falcon Elementary to Bennett Ranch, repurpose facilities and time property sales with nearby development

Superintendent Hiltz told the board the district is moving forward with plans to relocate Falcon Elementary to the Bennett Ranch Elementary campus and to repurpose existing facilities to serve district needs.

Hiltz said the move is driven in part by planned road and highway expansions that will reduce or eliminate current carpool and parking space at the Falcon Elementary site and create safety concerns if students remain there. He also briefed the board on concurrent capital actions: final design work for an office addition, construction of an outdoor facilities cold-storage structure, and use of developer-dedicated ‘‘fee in lieu of land’’ capital funds to support the work.

As part of the plan, the district will convert former middle‑school locker rooms into preschool classrooms. Hiltz explained that the locker rooms already have infrastructure (water access, dedicated rooms) that can be adapted to licensed preschool use more efficiently than building new preschools from scratch. He said the district will upgrade flooring and HVAC controls and retain removed lockers and benches for future reuse.

Hiltz said staff are coordinating with transportation, nutrition services and local PTAs and that Title funding associated with Falcon Elementary will transfer to support programming at the relocated site. He also said staff are meeting with local partners and would present some items in an executive session when appropriate.

The superintendent provided a tentative timeline: the cold-storage pole-barn structure is expected to be available by June, with interior remodels and other bid work scheduled as funds and approvals proceed. He emphasized the district intends to time property dispositions with nearby commercial development to maximize fiscal return.

Board members asked for safety clarifications and praised the planning approach. Several details remain to be finalized; staff will return with design and bidding updates.