SFUSD Releases Draft Facilities Master Plan

10-Year Work Plan Outlines Priorities and Recommendations for Third-Largest Holder of City-Owned Property

San Francisco (March 7, 2023) - The San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) has released its draft Facilities Master Plan (FMP), an ambitious roadmap that highlights the initiatives on deck for the next 10 years that will have an impact on over 140 buildings in the district’s real estate portfolio, and the proposed recommendations to address them. The district owns 155 properties and 9.9 million square feet of buildings, making it the third largest holder of City-owned property.

Specifically, the FMP includes a detailed assessment of the condition of 148 of the district’s buildings and systems, analyzes areas of need in the context of policy priorities and projected enrollment trends, and identifies the financial resources required to support capital investments for the nearly 10 million square feet of property owned by SFUSD. 

In January 2022, the SFUSD Facilities Department launched a facilities condition assessment process of 148 properties owned by SFUSD, including building interiors, exteriors, and open spaces. The assessments evaluated the condition building systems, such as HVAC, elevators, boilers, plumbing and roofs. The Facilities Condition Assessment was presented to the Board of Education in October 2022 and found a need for $1.7 billion to fund building repairs and renewals across San Francisco. While this assessment is an important tool for SFUSD's long-term facilities planning process, it is separate from the inspections and repairs performed at San Francisco schools on a regular basis. If a life safety issue is presented, it is addressed immediately.

In addition, policies and programs that have been identified as emerging priorities such as building enhancements to keep schools healthy and safe, program expansions to better serve students, and responses to demographic trends and policy initiatives will require changes to and investments in district buildings. 

Each initiative has specific policy recommendations and objectives which are grouped into three categories (health and safety, learning environments, and policy directives) to guide the district’s efforts over the next 10 years. These initiatives will guide subsequent project planning and the allocation of all available funding streams, including the preparation of a 2024 General Obligation Bond Measure.

“San Francisco public schools occupy some of the most beautiful buildings in the city, and we take seriously our responsibility to keep students safe and to be good stewards of these great public assets,” SFUSD Superintendent Dr. Matt Wayne said. “Our goal is to provide comfortable and state-of-the-art learning spaces for all of our students, and we look forward to continuing our work with stakeholders to chart a path for these improvements over the years to come. When a school is intentionally modernized with features that address the entire spectrum of a student’s needs, inside and outside of the classroom, the whole child can come to school feeling supported, engaged, and challenged.”

The FMP identifies immediate and future capital facilities needs and new approaches for creating healthy and safe physical school environments. This includes changing the look and feel of school settings through innovative classroom design, engaging dining spaces, outdoor areas where students can learn and play, and updated school features, including improved lighting, durable materials, increased access to natural light, and cheerful colors.

The Facilities Department is sharing the information with school communities through in-person presentations, and an asynchronous training to gather feedback about the student experience and priorities at school sites. This feedback will be incorporated into a final draft that is scheduled to be presented to the Board of Education on April 25, 2023, for adoption. 

Once adopted, this process will provide the analysis for framing the district’s policy goals and capital program, which is largely funded by General Obligation (GO) bonds. The next GO bond is expected to be presented to San Francisco voters in 2024. The SF Board of Education must vote to determine the size of the bond and what content is in the bond before it is placed before voters.

The most recent voter-approved facilities bond was passed by voters in 2016, and secured $744 million for school modernization projects, technology improvements, improvements to the district's food service and kitchen facilities to increase healthy food access, expand the district’s green schoolyards program to 91 school sites, and support the development of affordable housing for teachers.

The draft Facilities Master Plan is available here. 

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