On Tuesday, May 12, the Fort Worth ISD Board of Education trustees approved the first sales of surplus property identified after a year-and-a-half-long strategic study of inefficient and underused District facilities.
The three properties will net a total $11,514,180 and include:
· The Fort Worth ISD Professional Development Center at 3150 McCart Avenue ($9,000,000)
· 840 Cooks Lane ($750,000)
· 3 acres at 168 Northwest Corner of Wichita Street and I-20 ($1,764,180)
“This is the initial phase of the sale of outdated, inefficient facilities that no longer serve the needs of our children or educators,” said Superintendent Kent P. Scribner. “Their sale can and will support a brighter future for public education in Fort Worth. Our goal is to do the right thing for both our students and our taxpayers.”
The sales were approved at a regular meeting of the board of trustrees.
“Five years ago the District established a Long Range Facilities Master Plan,” said Board President Jacinto Ramos Jr. “The sale of these properties support our plan to both operate efficiently and support student outcomes through improved and equitable learning environments.”
The facility located at 3510 McCart Ave. now functions as the District’s Professional Development Center. Employees who work there and students who attend class there will be relocated to another facility. The other two properties approved for sale are vacant parcels of land.
A fourth property sale was also approved by the Board. The Thomas Place Community Center, a District property operated by the City of Fort Worth, will be purchased by the City. It will continue to function as a community center. The District will realize an additional $1.4 million from that transaction.
The Fort Worth ISD leadership has completed a detailed evaluation of the District’s administrative buildings and other, non-instructional properties. The evaluation comes as FWISD continues building a smarter and more efficient District to better serve our students, faculty, staff, and the taxpayers.
The Fort Worth office of JLL has worked with the District over the past 18 months to prepare a strategic real estate plan to identify and monetize these under-utilized District properties.
Details regarding the sale of additional properties are still being considered.