Cities, Schools Turn to Joint Use Agreements To Maximize Space and Minimize Costs

The city of Tracy, a suburb of San Francisco with an estimated population of 56,929, recently broke ground on a $5 million swimming complex that will be operated by the school district during the winter and the city during the summer. The city’s total contribution to the project will come be approximately $1,559,833, nearly $230,000 less than originally projected.

This project is the result of a growing relationship between the city of Tracy and the Tracy Unified School District, which have met twice so far this year to discuss potential joint partnerships. As Mayor Brent Ives says, “There are so many areas where the city can benefit by working with the school district.”

The small city of Ralston also turned to a joint use agreement when deciding how to renovate the local high school. Voters approved a $25.7 million bond package, but the total did not include the $750,000 interior fitting of the high school’s future theater. The city stepped in by providing $60,000 a year, for five years, from local lottery funds.

As a result of the collaboration, the students and residents of Ralston now have a new, state-of-the-art performing arts center with 600 seats, a computerized lighting system, a full-fledged orchestra pit, and a system that allows scenery to be dropped from the ceiling. In addition to the high school’s theatrical productions, the 6,314 residents of the city use the theater for performances by the Ralson Community Theater group, music recitals, meetings, and seminars.

In another unique joint use agreement, Albuquerque, Central New Mexico Community College, and Albuquerque Public Schools have teamed up to bring three new soccer fields to the west side of the city. The college will give the school district eight acres of land for the fields in exchange for an older field next to the college’s campus, which the college will use to build new facilities with classrooms, computer labs, and a library.

The city (pop. 504,949) will contribute $1.5 million to develop the fields and will share maintenance responsibilities with the school district. All three groups will have use of the fields, which should be completed in 2009.
 
Fort Collins, a city with 130,000 residents, similarly operates 11 joint park/school sites as a result of an interagency agreement with the local school district. The two groups share maintenance of the parks as well as the costs for the irrigation water, delivery systems, pumphouses and ponds at seven sites.
 
Of particular importance is the increased availability of parking because of the agreements. The schools provide additional parking for events and recreational activities that would otherwise have to be provided by the city. In fact, the shared parking lots resulted in a construction savings of approximately $50,000 per site, leaving Fort Collins with more funds to enhance park facilities.
 
In a more extensive example of joint use agreements between cities and school districts, the City of Lincoln, and the Western Placer Unified School District have a collaborative program to jointly fund, build and operate several public facilities, including a public library, public schools, recreational areas and a City Hall/School District Administration Building, set to be completed in 2008.
 
The city and school board also jointly operate the Lincoln Volunteer Center, which runs the Zebra Housing Project. The project involves students building single family homes that are sold to families of limited financial means. Without the collaboration of the city and school district, this type of program may never have come about.

Lincoln’s joint city/school programs contributed to its naming as an All American City in 2006, and the Zebra Housing project was recognized as an outstanding program by the League of California Cities at its 2005 conference. Collaborative programs with the Western Placer School District were also recognized by a 2005 Partnership Award sponsored by the California Cities, Counties and Schools Partnership.

By collaborating with local school districts, the cities of Tracy, Ralston, Albuquerque, Fort Collins, and Lincoln have succeeded in maximizing the space and resources available to them, while at the same time minimizing costs. Although they are separate entities, local government and school districts have many of the same goals: to serve their communities by providing educational, recreational and cultural opportunities. Through partnerships to create facilities such as swimming pools, theaters, sports fields, parks, libraries, and even administrative buildings, cities and school districts are achieving their goals in ways that might not otherwise have been possible.

Details: For more information on joint use agreements, visit City Practices at www.nlc.org or contact the Municipal Reference Service at (202) 626-3130.