The Santa Clarita City Council is scheduled Tuesday to consider purchasing the site of the former Santa Clarita Elementary School for $13 million, according to the council agenda released Thursday.
The city and the Saugus Union School District have been in talks for months about the possible city purchase of the former school site, which was shuttered in 2024 due to declining enrollment and a need for costly seismic retrofitting.
At the time, the campus was the Saugus district’s oldest operating school site, having opened to students 64 years prior.
Community members have voiced a variety of concerns and wishes for the site in the two years since its closure.
“The property is a ±9-acre site in the Saugus area of the city,” says the city staff agenda report recommending the purchase. “Acquiring it would allow the city to retain a large, centrally located public parcel for community-oriented reuse.”
The report adds: “Potential uses for the site could include a community center, a library, a park extension, or another community facility. Community members who took part in the district’s public process generally supported recreational, educational, civic, or all-ages community uses and have opposed converting the campus to residential development. Acquisition by the city would keep options open for a community facility.”
The staff recommendation calls for a $13 million purchase price plus $8,000 for escrow and due diligence costs. The agenda indicates the parties reached an agreement in principle on Sept. 9.
Prior to the release of the council agenda Thursday evening, the school’s fate was very much up in the air, but the district was optimistic something would change soon, a district official said on Thursday.
Now, that may mean “very soon.”
During Tuesday’s special board meeting held at Bridgeport Elementary School, the Saugus board did not report anything out of closed session in relation to the Santa Clarita Elementary property, which was on the agenda item under conference with real property negotiators.
The negotiating party was the city of Santa Clarita and discussions about price and terms of payment was listed as the subject of the item.
On Thursday afternoon, Nick Heinlein, assistant superintendent of business services for the district, told The Signal that discussions with the city of Santa Clarita about the property were moving forward, but he could not provide additional details on the matter, only that “something soon” would possibly be shared when allowed.
Large trash bins could be seen on the property earlier this week, raising concerns from residents about the possible disposal of Santa Clarita Elementary School items.
Heinlein clarified that the district’s maintenance and operations facility, located in the 26500 block of Ruether Avenue, is undergoing an expansion, prompting the district to use Santa Clarita Elementary as an alternative location for “surplus property,” or equipment no longer needed for district operations and programs.
The elementary school was briefly emptied after it closed, with district staff removing items that were still considered useful and could be repurposed elsewhere within the district
Signal Staff Writer Katherine Quezada contributed to this report.
