If plans for a school in the downtown library keep moving forward, San Diego Unified wants to protect its part of the project, guaranteeing that it can keep occupying the space if the library is closed and separating out the costs of electricity, water and other utilities so it can control its own expenses.
Citizens who are helping oversee the $2.1 billion school construction bond for San Diego Unified are sketching out ways to protect its investment in the schoobrary, a project that would place a high school in two floors of the proposed downtown library. An ad hoc committee has drafted a list of musts for the schoobrary deal, but its advice is still awaiting school board approval.
Their advice includes making sure that the school bond money isn’t given to the city in advance, giving the school district the right to buy the space, and listing other costs, such as spending to maintain common areas of the library, explicitly in the lease.
“The purpose of this document was to articulate a lot of things … so that dollars aren’t at risk,” said Matt Spathas, a member of the oversight committee.
Want to check out their full recommendations? Click here for the document.
— EMILY ALPERT