The 30,000-square-foot facility at 400 S. Kansas St., League City, was built in 1938 and used as an elementary and junior high school. As part of CCISD’s 2013 bond program, $300,000 was spent to update the building’s air conditioning and heating systems and wireless access, according to city documents.
In 2018 and 2019, the facility housed League City Elementary School students while their campus was torn down and upgraded. The building, which is the oldest in CCISD, has not served students since 2019, the documents read.
CCISD has determined the building is too outdated and expensive to renovate as a school and plans to tear it down before the 2021-22 school year begins in August. However, the district is willing to lease the facility to the city for 30 to 50 years for a “nominal fee,” according to the documents.
The facility can accommodate 500 people and has over 20 classrooms and a gym. The building would need about $500,000 to $700,000 worth of upgrades, including a new roof, carpeting, increased parking, furniture and technology.
“In June of 2021, staff members from various League City departments ... toured the facility and collaborated on how the building could not only be used to ease overcrowding and lack of meeting space at current city facilities but to serve the social, recreational, educational, and cultural needs of the greater League City community,” the document reads.
Council Member Nick Long said he toured the facility as well and liked what he saw.
“[It is a] pretty neat facility,” he said. “I think there’s a lot of opportunity there.”
Mayor Pro Tem Hank Dugie agreed.
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“It’ll provide us a lot of versatility,” he said.
One of the city’s problems is difficulty finding meeting spaces for nonprofits and other groups. This building would allow for that, programming for seniors and children and other advantages while preserving a piece of League City history, Long said.
Council Member Chad Tressler asked about other facilities the city leases, including the "blue building," or the League City Art Center. Sarah Greer Osborne, director of communications and media relations, said that building would be necessary to keep for reasons other than what the CCISD facility would be used for.
Council Member Andy Mann was the only one to vote down the idea, saying he wants to see a five-year plan for the city’s leased facilities. This proposal is the second time staff has brought a building lease “out of the blue,” but it needs to be justified in the budget, Mann said.
Osborne said the reason this was brought up without much notice is because council needs to act quickly; without action, the building is at risk of being torn down in just a few weeks, she said.
With City Council’s approval, city staff will begin coordinating with CCISD on leasing the building.
