Glendale Unified extends negotiation period for potential property exchange
Both sides will have a bit more time to negotiate a possible property exchange of Glendale Unified’s administration building — which is in dire need of repairs — with another piece of property following unanimous approval by school officials on Tuesday to extend the negotiation period to Oct. 5.
District spokeswoman Kristine Nam said via email that the decision marked the first action taken by the school board since passing a resolution to enter into an exchange agreement with Carmel Partners for property located at 425 E. Colorado St. in Glendale during a special meeting on July 12.
“As of Tuesday, Sept. 19, the terms had not been negotiated; therefore, the extension to Oct. 5 [will] allow for additional time to negotiate,” she said.
Carmel Partners’ property — located half a mile south of the district’s administration offices — consists of 113,000 square feet and was built in 1984, according to the Los Angeles County Assessor.
It comes with 380 parking spaces — 224 more than the 156 available at Glendale Unified’s current administration building, which is 40,000 square feet. The exchange deal would also include an adjacent apartment complex owned by the district since 2010.
The property was initially presented to the board in June following discussion by school board members to relocate the administration offices.
If the exchange is approved, the administration building might be demolished and a new project could be built on the property.
Daily High School, which is located next to the administration building, would remain there even if the land is redeveloped, said Re/Max Realtor Sam Manoukian, who was hired by the district to negotiate the deal.
This is the second attempt by school officials to exchange properties to avoid costly repairs to the district’s administration building, located at 223 N. Jackson St.
District officials have said repairs to its floors, ceilings, electrical panel and roof could cost anywhere from $15 million to $20 million.
During the special board meeting, board members discussed the exchange process with Manoukian.
Asked for a timeline for the property exchange, he said if the property’s main elements, such as infrastructure documents, check out, the deal may be finalized in February.
“This isn’t going to close any time this year,” he said. “The deal is structured [so that] if you give the green light, we’ll close in February of next year but even then ... time is on our side.”
In 2015, Glendale Unified officials tried to swap properties with a Burbank developer, but the deal fell through after school officials announced they could not agree to the terms presented by Chandler Pratt & Partners. Officials did not clarify what terms they could not accept.
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