Murrieta Valley Unified trustees move to terminate purchase of Ivy and Hayes site after residents’ objections

Murrieta Valley Unified School District Board President Paul Diffley called a special meeting to order at 5:03 p.m. and opened the floor to public comment, where a steady stream of residents urged the board not to proceed with buying the parcel at Ivy and Hayes for a new school.

Why it matters: Residents told trustees the parcel would require millions of dollars in new streets, flood mitigation and fire‑defensible work, that narrow historic roads and a small bridge would not safely handle daily drop‑off and emergency access, and that the district paid an unusually high price compared with recent sales. After public comment the board moved to closed session and later reported a closed‑session vote to give notice terminating the purchase agreement.

Speakers who addressed trustees repeatedly raised the same themes: safety, infrastructure cost, environmental vulnerability and process transparency. “This property has so many issues and so much history for the community,” one resident said, asking why the district chose the site at an “astronomical price per acre.” Several commenters said storms and flooding have previously inundated low areas behind homes and that wildfire and evacuation risk remain high.

A speaker citing the district’s redistricting packet said current district utilization stands at about 77% and is projected at 92% in 10 years, arguing there is no immediate need to rush a purchase. Other commenters urged the district to partner with the City of Murrieta on site selection and pointed to alternative locations that would need less new infrastructure.

Trustees acknowledged the public input and adjourned into closed session at 5:35 p.m. The board later reported a closed‑session decision: on a vote of three in favor with two absent, trustees approved providing notice to the Ivy and Hayes property owner that the district will terminate the purchase‑and‑sale agreement. The board did not release additional details of the closed‑session discussion at the meeting’s public close.

Context and next steps: Commenters warned that the cost to the city for roads and drainage could be $10 million or more, and several speakers said they would pursue legal counsel if the district pushed forward. The board’s formal action to notify the owner ends the district’s pending purchase, but the board did not at the meeting offer a public timeline for further site selection or whether it will reopen negotiations. Trustees also noted the meeting had been scheduled in response to community requests for discussion.

Funding and numbers cited during comments included a referenced district utilization of about 77% now and 92% projected in a decade, a reported rumor that the property had traded hands recently for markedly different prices (speakers compared a roughly $2 million earlier sale to a reported current figure in the millions higher), and an estimate that city infrastructure upgrades tied to the site would cost “$10 to $20 million” in some comments. The transcript does not record a formal motion or roll‑call vote in open session on the purchase; the decisive action was reported from closed session.