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District unveils broad communications push for educator workforce‑housing effort
Summary
San Mateo–Foster City School District trustees approved a comprehensive communications plan to support a workforce‑housing initiative, endorsing broad community outreach, partnerships with nonprofit housing providers and contracts for feasibility studies and polling toward a possible 2026 bond.
Diego Perez, the district’s director of communications, presented a multi‑layered communications and engagement plan for the district’s workforce‑housing effort, which he branded "Building a Bridge to Housing Affordability: securing a legacy of learning." Perez said the plan combines podcasts, mailers, neighborhood‑association outreach, district meetings and targeted tours of nearby successful projects to explain why the district is pursuing housing for employees.
The plan sets out roughly 70 district‑affiliated meetings and about 146 broader community meetings — about 300 total engagement hours — and identifies nonprofit and municipal partners the district will engage, including Samaritan House and Jefferson Union High School District staff who offered facility tours. Perez cited local rents as an urgency driver, noting example market rents of about $3,700 for a two‑bedroom and $2,400 for a studio to illustrate affordability pressures facing staff.
Trustees praised the scope and urged the district to recruit community “ambassadors” and volunteers to help distribute outreach. Foster City Council member Phoebe Vcat, who attended and identified herself as a council member, suggested training existing community leaders so they can brief service clubs and neighborhood groups and “divide and conquer” outreach.
The board moved forward with related steps tied to the initiative: it approved a feasibility and yield study contract with HKT Architects to analyze district sites (NES, Chess Drive and others) for potential housing capacity and approved a contract with Team Civics to poll the community on bond feasibility for a potential June 2026 measure. Trustees asked that the polling include Spanish and Chinese interviews when cost‑effective.
The board’s actions reflect a two‑track approach: use communications and partner engagement now to build public understanding and run technical feasibility (site yield, zoning, and community polling) before setting funding proposals. Perez said the communications materials and a public landing page would be available after the meeting and staff will return with feasibility outputs in May or June.
