Folsom Cordova Unified buys medical office for 2nd Rancho high school

Instead of building a new high school in growing Rancho Cordova, the school district simply bought one last month. Saving up to $60 million to taxpayers, the Folsom-Cordova Unified School District moved forward last month to spend $76 million on an existing, modern office complex for the long-awaited second FCUSD high school in the city. The school board approved the roughly $8 million purchase of a vacant 102,000 square-foot building at 3215 Prospect Park Drive in Rancho's modern Capital Village neighborhood Sept. 19. Built in 1987 as part of Rancho Cordova's Capital Center, Dignity Health billing services previously occupied the building. Numerous restaurants and retail are nearby, where the city hosts community events at Village Green, including the annual Christmas Tree lighting. A Highway 50 onramp via Zinfandel Drive is less than two miles away. The brick facade office building will be retrofitted into a modest, 500-student campus focused on careers and flexible learning models, authorities said. FCUSD board member David Reid said the school will not have attendance boundaries, and eventually be open to students from the entire district, like others. The institution will first open for students from FCUSD facility district 3, which includes Folsom Ranch and the Rancho Cordova area south of U.S. 50 and east of Sunrise Blvd., Reid said. "Perhaps most importantly, it will offer students a high school option for those who are seeking a smaller environment," said the Trustee. "While FCUSD's large comprehensive high schools with thousands of students are great, they are not for everyone." District officials said the school is expected to open within two years, pending renovations and required approvals. Folsom Ranch also expects a new high school built from the ground up by 2029. "For less than the price FCUSD paid to purchase the land that Alder Creek Elementary School was built on, we will be purchasing a 102,000 square-foot building," said Reid on social media. "This innovative approach will cost approximately half the amount it would have if we had purchased a vacant lot and built the same facility from the ground up, potentially saving taxpayers upward of $60 million." The school will offer a mix of programs that includes advanced college prep courses, an early college program partnered with higher education, independent study and tech career opportunities. "Students have the opportunity to graduate with both a high school diploma and a college associate's degree," beamed Reid. The district will now conduct a facility feasibility study, cost analysis and program design plan before final plans go before the state, officials said. The total cost is estimated at $76.3 million or so, officials said. The price will be funded mostly through Measure M funds, other state funds and development fees. The cost included about $5.8 million for site development, $62.5 million for building renovations and $7.9 million for the property. The district said totals don't include a possible gym and multipurpose room. The purchase agreement allows 120 days for the district to complete required red tape, with two 30-day extension options. "Our goal is to be the number one school district in the state. We are on our way," said Reid. A half century later While riverside Rancho Cordova just west of Folsom broke ground as a county zip code in the early 1950s, the relatively new Stone Creek and Capital Village area off White Rock Road near Mather Airport emerged in the early 2000s along with cityhood in 2003. FCUSD originally planned a second high school in east Rancho Cordova across the street from Mitchell Middle School, way back during the Baby Boom of the mid-1960s. At the time, Folsom was relatively tiny with the Historic District and the Judah School neighborhood, while RC had a population of 30,000 by 1970. However, massive Aerojet layoffs in the mid-60s stalled eastward growth for a decade, and the second Rancho Cordova high school plan was abandoned. New Sunriver students later went to overloaded Cordova High in the late 1970s, and the former FCUSD territory of Gold River joined the San Juan School District. Carver High School of Arts & Sciences in west RC is in the Sacramento City Unified School District, one of only three public Waldorf schools in the nation. Students on the southeast side of the city otherwise attend nearby Rosemont High School, outside Rancho Cordova city limits. Rancho is also home to two very small alternate FCUSD high schools, Kinney and Walnutwood. Rancho students south of Douglas Road are in the Elk Grove Unified School District, waiting for a high school of their own. The EG district plans a new middle and high school in the city by 2030, officials said. Meanwhile, widely misunderstood and much-maligned Rancho Cordova is in the top five fastest-growing cities in California, along with Folsom, Lathrop, Chino and Menifee. The city also recently had about the same moderate per-capita crime rate as Roseville and Auburn, according to the FBI. City officials last month also revealed a proposal for a 7,500-seat indoor arena on nearby Kilgore Road. Searching for answers to budget problems, Folsom officials last year said Rancho Cordova has the highest city reserve fund in the region with $66 million in the bank for "rainy days." Rancho Cordova is "a very well-run city," said Folsom City Councilmember Mike Kozlowski.