Overview
The New Haven Unified School District (“NHUSD”) serves more than 12,000 students with diverse cultures, heritages, languages, and economic conditions. NHUSD is comprised of seven elementary schools, two middle schools, two high schools, one independent study school and one adult school. NHUSD includes Union City and part of south Hayward.
Vision
NHUSD’s mission is to develop and empower every student to be productive, responsible and successful. While in the midst of carrying out their mission, NHUSD faced unprecedented financial challenges, caused primarily by dramatic reductions in state funding in each of the past five years. Under Proposition 98, passed in 1988, NHUSD’s base revenue limit --the amount received per pupil each year-- was supposed to be increasing each year. However, NHUSD was receiving $1,495 less per student than it should have been receiving, a difference of $18.5 million. As a result, NHUSD had been forced to reduce services during the past several years. NHUSD closed and made surplus their Cabello Student Support Center in 2007 to rent it to non-profit agencies. NHUSD wanted a solution to avoid further impacting students. NHUSD wanted to sell the Cabello Student Support Center as a means of augmenting the capital improvement funds made available from the bond.
Challenge
NHUSD needed to assure that the sale of the Cabello Student Support Center would generate sufficient funds to eliminate the risk of any further impact to students in either the present or future time; use for the property would be supportive of NHUSD’s goal of enhancing their long-term fiscal sustainability; and finally; that the buyer of the site has a demonstrated history of working collaboratively with both the cities and the communities in which they have developed land in the past.
Solution
Cerro Vista Land & Development (“CVL&D”) evaluated the benefits of selling their Cabello Student Support Center in 2012. It performed an extensive analysis of the potential sale and facilitated the process in ways including but limited to arranging meetings with the city and other stakeholders, assisting staff with Naylor Act negotiations and providing the Board with critical updates and guidance. CVL&D effectively managed a lot line adjustment between the City and District to assure that a buffer zone was created between the park and the subdivision boundary. CVL&D also managed a key property swap between the City and District.
The 7-11 Committee voted unanimously to recommend to the Board that they sell the site, and CVL&D received direction from the Board direction to sell the site. Alan Cerro then served as NHUSD’s project manager for the entire state-mandated process for selling a surplus school site in ways including but not limited to issuing a Request for Proposal for the site in 2013, managing the close of the escrow, and providing the expertise needed for NHUSD to make informed decisions every step of the way. Alan’s expertise in marketing and negotiating the sale provided NHUSD with options, as they received eleven offers for the site ranging from $9 million to over $14 million.
Outcome
NHUSD accepted an offer that closed for $14,272,000. The escrow closed in January 2015, and the property was purchased by Pulte Home Corporation who subsequently went on to create a 45- lot subdivision for which they used to construct detached single-family homes. Funds from the sale helped bring NHUSD towards fiscal sustainability. NHUSD reinvested in its mission to develop and empower their students to be productive, responsible and successful member of the community.
Property Address
4500 Cabello St, Union City, CA
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