CV’s Laurel Center For Sale or Lease
Photo by Michael Singer
Hayward Unified School District is taking purchase or lease proposals for its property on Virgil Court through the end of the month. The site is home to Hayward Twin Oaks Montessori School’s elementary grades. The school's contract expires in June 2024.
The fate of a former elementary school in Castro Valley is one step closer to being determined after Hayward Unified School District (HUSD) receives final proposals for the campus this Friday.
HUSD owns the 5.4-acre property on Vergil Court, but the campus has not been used as a public elementary school since the late 1990s. Various charter and parent-cooperative schools have been using the campus since. The School District declared the property “exempt surplus land” in June 2022, stipulating that the school site be sold or leased.
Friday is the last day for submitting a request for proposals (RFP). An evaluation committee within HUSD will then review the proposals for the Vergil Court property and make recommendations to the Board, which could decide by September 2023.
If the site is leased, HUSD estimates the building and site modernization costs at $1.86 million, including remodeling the gym, classrooms, library, and a new roof.
Hayward Twin Oaks Montessori School currently leases the property for its elementary grades: 1st through 6th. The school uses several classrooms and the general grounds, including playground equipment and fields that have been converted into learning gardens. According to the RFP, the school's lease on Virgil Court expires in June 2024.
Twin Oaks’ secondary school is located on Palisade Street near Mission Boulevard.
If the site is sold, it is possible that the new owner could convert the property into high-density housing as it is relatively close to Castro Valley BART and Interstate 580. DCG (Dutra Cerro Garden) Strategies out of Dublin is currently named as the real estate agent for the property. A spokesperson for the company declined to comment on the future plans for the Laurel Center.
The Vergil Court site is one of four school campuses that Hayward has eyed for sale or lease. The other three former elementary school sites include Cherryland Elementary on Willow Avenue, Tyrrell Elementary on Tyrrell Avenue, and Bowman Elementary on Jefferson Street.