Loomis Union School District takes steps to relocate Loomis Basin Charter School

With the Laird Road campus at capacity, school officials are preparing a new 12-acre home for Loomis Basin Charter School at Sierra College Blvd. and Bankhead Road. The Loomis Union School District Board of Trustees took action last month for required studies of the future campus. The school board unanimously voted Feb. 5 to hire Raney Planning & Mgt. for an $84,000 initial study of environmental impacts. Air quality, traffic, wildlife and noise will be looked at, among other issues. "Loomis Basin Charter School is a thriving program sharing a 13.8-acre site with Franklin Elementary School, which itself is reaching capacity," King Consulting said. The site is located west of the intersection of Bankhead Road and Sierra College Boulevard within the Loomis Town limits. The 12.1 acres are mostly undeveloped, with non-native grassland and oak woodland. The southeastern portion of the site was historically agricultural, and Antelope Creek is on the west side. The Town of Loomis General Plan designates the project site as rural-residential, one acre per dwelling unit, and the site is zoned as residential-agricultural, according to the report. First opened in 2008, Loomis Basin Charter School is at 5438 Laird Road on the 13-acre campus shared with Franklin. The K-8 student body is now housed entirely in portable buildings, including administration, staff, library and support services. Loomis Basin shares fields, playgrounds and the multi-purpose room with Franklin. "The District's long-range plan envisions the relocation of Loomis Basin Charter School to its own campus," staff said in the report. The new school is planned with expanded educational facilities, new fields and a gym. Staff said Basin Charter enrollment has swelled over the past 10 years, and the current 503 enrollment is at capacity, according to a 2024 study. The new school location would allow for an increase of up to 750 students, LUSD said. Total LUSD enrollment is projected to add 1,000 students to the current 2,900 in 10 years, King said. For example, the Hidden Grove and Bickford Ranch developments are expected to bring in well more than 300 new students to LUSD in the next decade, according the report. Raney officials said the environmental study process should be completed with a public hearing scheduled for September.