Austin ISD moves to sell two closed elementary schools and lease Bedichek land. Where City Hall stands on closed campuses

The Austin ISD board voted Thursday, Oct. 29, to let Superintendent Matias Segura pursue deals for three closed campuses, according to the district and KVUE. Sunset Valley and Dawson elementary schools move into a formal sale process after finalists submitted bids. About 14 acres of excess land at the former Bedichek Middle School could be sold or leased long term. The Bedichek building itself stays with the district as land-banked property.

Trustees also declared two more campuses, Winn and Barrington elementary schools, surplus. The district says it aims to close all three transactions by June 15, 2027.

For neighbors, the question is what replaces a school. The buyer, and what the city's zoning allows, will shape whether a site becomes housing, a private school, fields or something else.

Who wants the land

KVUE reported that, according to public records, interested parties include housing developers and real estate companies, two private schools and a youth soccer club. The City of Sunset Valley has said it is interested in buying the former Sunset Valley Elementary campus. The district has not named bidders or released bid amounts. District staff will negotiate and pick the buyer that offers "the best value to the district," according to its announcement. The three campuses are among 11 the district closed to address a budget deficit.

What our records add

A split vote on a city role. On March 26, the council adopted a resolution directing the city manager to explore partnerships with school districts to repurpose closed campuses, write a land policy to keep public sites in community-benefiting uses, identify funding and list priority properties. It passed 6-2. Mayor Kirk Watson asked to be shown voting no, and so did Council Member José Velásquez. Mayor Pro Tem José "Chito" Vela and Council Member Krista Laine abstained; Laine said she had not had enough time to evaluate it. Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison was absent for the vote.

Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, the lead sponsor, said the goal was to keep public land in use for community good, such as affordable housing, child care, health care and food access. She pointed to a closing elementary school in Dove Springs. Council Member Mike Siegel said he understood why AISD needs to make the most of its land, but that the resolution invites more formal planning with the city and affected neighbors when surplus school property is redeveloped.

Parkland and joint use. The same day, the council voted 9-0, with Vela abstaining and Harper-Madison absent, for a resolution seeking procedural protections for city parkland facing condemnation and directing staff to start any needed changes to joint use agreements with AISD. On Aug. 27, it adopted an ordinance setting a process for condemnations of city parkland, 11-0.

Two closed AISD sites already rezoned.

• July 23: The council rezoned the former Brooke Elementary at 3100 E. Fourth St. for mixed use, along with a land use map change, 10-0 with Fuentes absent. AISD was the applicant.
• Sept. 24: The council approved AISD's request to rezone 2117 W. 49th St. and 4709 Rosedale Ave. from single-family to MF-6, the highest-density multifamily category, with conditions. It passed 10-1, with Council Member Marc Duchen voting no. Neighbors had filed a valid petition against it.

None of the three campuses in Thursday's vote has come before the council for rezoning, according to our records.

What's next

Any buyer that wants to build something other than what current zoning allows would need a rezoning, which goes to a city commission and then to the council. Our earlier story on the Webb and Burnet petitions covers the city's role in the separate state takeover fight.