The Santa Clarita Community College District board of trustees, which oversees College of the Canyons, is set on Wednesday to receive an update on the purchase and use of the Valley Center Drive property originally meant to be occupied by the Advanced Technology Center.
According to the meeting agenda, after COC bought the Valley Center Drive property, district administrators hired a brokerage firm to conduct an assessment on how the college could possibly go about selling the property to reimburse the $10 million that was taken out of the general fund.
“The objectives were to determine the property’s marketability and to assess the district’s ability to recover its acquisition costs through a potential sale,” reads the agenda item.
The brokerage firm reviewed zoning laws and legal permission tied to property, reviewed similar properties that were recently sold to get an estimate on its value and identified potential developers who might be interested in the property, according to the agenda.
The agenda reads that district administrators then met with the brokerage firm and legal counsel to evaluate the legal steps and limitations involved with selling publicly owned property. After this process was done, it was concluded that it would not be in the district’s best interest to sell the property.
The $10 million that was taken out of the general fund to purchase the land and the plans for the site will be reimbursed using Measure E funds.
Moving forward, the agenda lists that the district will begin to develop strategies for the property’s use that align with the Measure E criteria.
The board will also be receiving an update on the status of last year’s climate survey in which 19% of the 563 COC employees who took the climate survey reported they were either not sure they felt welcomed, or would not agree that they were welcome.
In June 2024, Eric Harnish, spokesman for the college, said that “concerns brought up in the survey will be given a careful and thorough evaluation with the aim of making improvements.”
The findings in the climate survey, conducted by The RP Group, included concerns over safety, especially at night; a trend of psychological harm; and diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility being offered, along with other inclusion efforts, but employees not having the time or work-life balance to participate; retaliation if they spoke up; and student well-being prioritized over employee well-being.
Wednesday’s meeting is set to begin at 5 p.m. in room 301 at the Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook University Center, located at 26455 Rockwell Canyon Road.
