PUSD Forms Citizen Group to Assess Surplus Land

The Pomona Unified School District needs volunteers to apply for an advisory group to determine the best use of the district's unused land.

The district's attorney, Kasey Haws, said at an April 13 meeting that surplus property could "provide substantial revenues" to the district.

"The district recognizes that there is surplus property that was purchased at a time when the district was experiencing increasing enrollment," Hawes said.

Hawes said an architecture firm, HMC Architects, has conducted a survey of the district's unused real estate and now needs a committee representing various community groups to help advise the school board on the best use for the land.

The committee is required by state law to have at least seven members and no more than 11 representing the following dimensions of the PUSD community:

1. The ethnic, age group, and socioeconomic composition of the district;
2. The business community, such as store owners, managers, or supervisors;
3. Landowners or renters, with preference to be given to representatives of neighborhood associations;
4. Teachers;
5. Administrators;
6. Parents of students; and
7. Persons with expertise in environmental impact, legal contracts, building codes, and land-use planning, including, but not limited to, knowledge of the zoning and other land-use restrictions of the cities or cities and counties in which surplus space and real property is located.

An application can be found at the district's website and attached to this story.