The timeline for the Naylor Act is determined by when the school grounds are are offered for sale or for lease. It appears that EUSD is attempting to sidestep the issue by not declaring the land to be surplus? Whether declared so or not, the land has been unused as a school, and is, in fact, surplus.

When former Superintendent King offered the property to the City, before, the offer was contingent upon the City purchasing the entire 2.82 acres for $10 million. According to the State Education Code relative to the Naylor Act, 30% of surplus property can be purchased by government entities, such as cities or counties for as low as 25% of the property’s assessed value. So 30% of the schoolground could be purchased for approximately $1 million, or less, because the land was donated, originally. This could be used for the old school house and a small pocket park. A community garden would be ideal!

The assessed value should include a formal assessment report, unlike what we were provided when Encinitas purchased the Mossy Property for a public works yard at an inflated price. An assessment report would take into account current zoning as public facilities, and that the City has said it won’t issue new water meter permits for projects without approved subdivision maps, because of drought conditions. Within eight years prior to EUSD leasing the property to the City for a public works yard, the schoolgrounds were used as fields. By reading the law, one can clearly see that it is disingenuous to declare the Naylor Act a nonissue based on what one attorney has opined.