Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Sweetwater school district's real estate deals gain momentum

But will sales of surplus property help the financial situation?

Sweetwater Union High School District's L Street property
Sweetwater Union High School District's L Street property

The Sweetwater Union High School District's financial picture looked grim at the September 23 board meeting. During the budget report, it was established that the district continues to spend and holds the minimum that the state requires — 3 percent — in reserve.

Chief financial officer Albert Alt stated at the meeting that the 3 percent would allow the district to operate normally for only about two and a half weeks.

Several of the district’s real estate ventures are wending their way through the entitlement process. If successful, will the transactions change the district's financial situation?

The Reader reported in February that the district hired E2 ManageTech to get surplus district property on Third Avenue (in Chula Vista) “shovel ready” for a condo/apartment development. The district initially purchased the property to build new district headquarters, but now the land is slated for an apartment development. Named the Colony, the project will comprise 167 apartment units and possibly the Chula Vista Heritage Museum.

Sponsored
Sponsored

According to an email from Janet Kluth, the city’s senior project coordinator, the Colony development will go before the city council on November 5. “The item includes consideration of the Rezone, the Design Review Permit, and the Tentative Map.” The zone change has already received the stamp of approval from the Planning Commission.

Charles Diamond of C&D Consulting, principal at HTI Property Group, and Disposition Strategies Group, was contacted by the Reader to find out if the project has a developer. According to Diamond, he was obliged by the district to decline an interview.

In addition to the district’s Third Avenue project, Chula Vista’s city council will vote on October 15 to employ E2 ManageTech to do a “brown field assessment” on the site where Sweetwater’s district office and transportation center are headquartered. The agenda enclosure states that 435 Third Avenue, 1116 Fifth Avenue, and 610 L Street “have begun the entitlement process for development into residential uses.”

Sweetwater’s L Street property has been the subject of media scrutiny for over a year. In an article entitled “Sweetwater is underwater on land deal” the U-T reported “What began eight years ago as a deal to develop a new administration complex for Sweetwater schools has cost the district $40 million, with no new district headquarters.”

As the Reader reported in February, a nonprofit organization called California Trust for Public Schools/Plan Nine Partners holds the deed to the L Street property in a complicated deal that involves all of the district’s properties. Marc Litchman, of Plan Nine, proposed in February to put a soccer stadium, soccer fields, a conference center, and a charter academy on the land.

In a recent interview, Litchman said he is pleased that his project is gathering momentum. He also notes that if the property is developed with an educational/recreational use it will not have to go through the lengthy entitlement process entailed by a residential development.

Litchman said his proposal is supported by the Chula Vista Premier Football Club, AYSO, the California Soccer Association, Academia de Futbol, the Olympicos Soccer Club, and YALLA (an organization that uses soccer to help kids overcome the trauma of war).

But will these transactions make the district more financially sound?

The district’s surplus property is tied together in an exchange agreement, which means that — when and if — “shovel ready” projects are sold, the money will not go to the general fund to alleviate the deficit spending problem; rather, the money will be used to pay down the district’s debt on the L Street property.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Oceanside toughens up Harbor Beach

Tighter hours on fire rings, more cops, maybe cameras
Next Article

Oceanside toughens up Harbor Beach

Tighter hours on fire rings, more cops, maybe cameras
Sweetwater Union High School District's L Street property
Sweetwater Union High School District's L Street property

The Sweetwater Union High School District's financial picture looked grim at the September 23 board meeting. During the budget report, it was established that the district continues to spend and holds the minimum that the state requires — 3 percent — in reserve.

Chief financial officer Albert Alt stated at the meeting that the 3 percent would allow the district to operate normally for only about two and a half weeks.

Several of the district’s real estate ventures are wending their way through the entitlement process. If successful, will the transactions change the district's financial situation?

The Reader reported in February that the district hired E2 ManageTech to get surplus district property on Third Avenue (in Chula Vista) “shovel ready” for a condo/apartment development. The district initially purchased the property to build new district headquarters, but now the land is slated for an apartment development. Named the Colony, the project will comprise 167 apartment units and possibly the Chula Vista Heritage Museum.

Sponsored
Sponsored

According to an email from Janet Kluth, the city’s senior project coordinator, the Colony development will go before the city council on November 5. “The item includes consideration of the Rezone, the Design Review Permit, and the Tentative Map.” The zone change has already received the stamp of approval from the Planning Commission.

Charles Diamond of C&D Consulting, principal at HTI Property Group, and Disposition Strategies Group, was contacted by the Reader to find out if the project has a developer. According to Diamond, he was obliged by the district to decline an interview.

In addition to the district’s Third Avenue project, Chula Vista’s city council will vote on October 15 to employ E2 ManageTech to do a “brown field assessment” on the site where Sweetwater’s district office and transportation center are headquartered. The agenda enclosure states that 435 Third Avenue, 1116 Fifth Avenue, and 610 L Street “have begun the entitlement process for development into residential uses.”

Sweetwater’s L Street property has been the subject of media scrutiny for over a year. In an article entitled “Sweetwater is underwater on land deal” the U-T reported “What began eight years ago as a deal to develop a new administration complex for Sweetwater schools has cost the district $40 million, with no new district headquarters.”

As the Reader reported in February, a nonprofit organization called California Trust for Public Schools/Plan Nine Partners holds the deed to the L Street property in a complicated deal that involves all of the district’s properties. Marc Litchman, of Plan Nine, proposed in February to put a soccer stadium, soccer fields, a conference center, and a charter academy on the land.

In a recent interview, Litchman said he is pleased that his project is gathering momentum. He also notes that if the property is developed with an educational/recreational use it will not have to go through the lengthy entitlement process entailed by a residential development.

Litchman said his proposal is supported by the Chula Vista Premier Football Club, AYSO, the California Soccer Association, Academia de Futbol, the Olympicos Soccer Club, and YALLA (an organization that uses soccer to help kids overcome the trauma of war).

But will these transactions make the district more financially sound?

The district’s surplus property is tied together in an exchange agreement, which means that — when and if — “shovel ready” projects are sold, the money will not go to the general fund to alleviate the deficit spending problem; rather, the money will be used to pay down the district’s debt on the L Street property.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Mary Catherine Swanson wants every San Diego student going to college

Where busing from Southeast San Diego to University City has led
Next Article

Aaron Stewart trades Christmas wonders for his first new music in 15 years

“Just because the job part was done, didn’t mean the passion had to die”
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader