AGENDA CORRESPONDENCE
RECEIVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL FOR
PUBLIC REVIEW PRIOR TO THE
MEETING
AGENDA NO: PC & 8d
MEETING DATE: March 10, 2026
AGENDA CORRESPONDENCE
RECEIVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL FOR
PUBLIC REVIEW PRIOR TO THE
MEETING
AGENDA NO: 6d
MEETING DATE: March 10, 2026
AGENDA CORRESPONDENCE
RECEIVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL FOR
PUBLIC REVIEW PRIOR TO THE
MEETING
AGENDA NO: 8b
MEETING DATE: March 10, 2026
2 Dear City Council,
This letter gives Los Osos a financial basis upon which to make a decision whether to ask for engagement with Morro Bay.
It does not state whether the City is willing to entertain an engagement. Would engagement be a different, or second conversation, not to be considered here? Just looking for clarity.
Sincerely,
Betty Winholtz
AGENDA CORRESPONDENCE
RECEIVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL FOR
PUBLIC REVIEW PRIOR TO THE
MEETING
AGENDA NO: 8c
MEETING DATE: March 10, 2026
AGENDA CORRESPONDENCE
RECEIVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL FOR
PUBLIC REVIEW PRIOR TO THE
MEETING
AGENDA NO: 8d
MEETING DATE: March 10, 2026
1 Heather Goodwin
From: Nancy Bast
Sent: Monday, March 9, 2026 6:38 PM
To: Council
Subject: Morro Elementary
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Dear Mayor Carla and Councilmembers Zara, Cyndee, Jeff and Bill, I want to THANK YOU for your vote to purchase Morro Elementary.
I believe you have heard and responded to the community to insure the preservaƟon of a beauƟful building and land that has been such a part of so many Morro Bay lives.
Hopefully it will have a historic new life as a unique and beauƟful Civic Center, the centerpiece of our City.
Thank You All!
Sincerely,
Nancy Bast
Sent from my iPad
March 9, 2026
Madam Mayor and Members of the City Council
City of Morro Bay
945 Harbor Drive
Morro Bay, CA. 93442
Re: Morro Elementary School Site
Madam Mayor and Members of the City Council,
We are pleased to see the item on this week’s agenda regarding the results of the negoƟaƟons for the City’s acquisiƟon of the elementary school property. The staff report was very helpful in outlining the process that you have collecƟvely undertaken to bring this important issue forward for public review and comment.
One thing to keep in mind is risk management. A private sector developer would not close escrow on this property without enƟtlements being in place. As you know, enƟtlements are those authorizaƟons, approvals and other formal acƟons taken by a city to allow a project to proceed. The lost opportunity cost of $5.3 million over the typical Ɵme period of up to two years, added to the cost of maintenance, property taxes, insurance and all the other costs and liabiliƟes of ownership, especially without any assurance of success or outcome, is just too much risk. Instead, the developer would make their offer subject to the enƟtlements being in place at the close of escrow. Otherwise, they will move on to another less risky opportunity.
The City has the same risk even though it may seem as though this City Council has control of the enƟtlements. There has been many a project proposed with City Council support that met opposiƟon, including lawsuits and other impediments from community groups and other opposiƟon that caused the project to fail or to increase the carrying costs because of the Ɵme required to overcome the opposiƟon.
And there is no reason for the city to take on that risk.
It is a good thing that you have negoƟated this deal and are ready to enter escrow and we applaud you for having taken it this far. You now have about six months to engage with the community and come to a consensus on how the property is to be developed, to esƟmate the cost of the consensus project and to judge whether that consensus use is worth the purchase price of the property. Assuming at the end of the due diligence period that the Council is saƟsfied that the purchase should proceed, then we would recommend that you renew your negoƟaƟons with the District and insist on the Ɵme needed to complete the enƟtlements before the close of escrow.
Again, this is all about risk management. You will have no compeƟƟon for the purchase of this property as a potenƟal private developer must also require enƟtlements be in place to close for the same reasons. Even if the District turns you down, which we see as unlikely, and goes forward with another purchaser, that purchaser must come to this Council for enƟtlements.
That’s a poison pill for any potenƟal compeƟtor.
In six months you will have a strong idea of what the community consensus is for the use of the property and can proceed accordingly. And with a Ɵme extension to complete the enƟtlements, you won’t have put the purchase price to the risk described earlier.
Our hope would be that some significant part of the property will be designated as housing and that at least a part of that designaƟon include the ‘missing middle’ housing that the Chamber of Commerce endorses. The sale of the housing porƟon will serve to offset the purchase price and with a bit of judicious Ɵming those sales escrows could close concurrently with the acquisiƟon escrow thereby limiƟng or maybe eliminaƟng the City funding the purchase price.
We look forward to working with you.
Sincerely,
Bob Fowler
Jim Gross
1 Heather Goodwin
From:
Sent: Tuesday, March 10, 2026 11:57 AM
To: Council
Subject: Morro Elementary
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Subject: Public Comment: City Council MeeƟng – Morro Elementary AcquisiƟon To the Honorable Mayor and City Council,
I wish the city the best of luck with the intended purchase of thes chool property. I am encouraged to see a detailed due diligence period included in the contract, as it is a criƟcal safeguard.
I speak from experience as someone who has been on the receiving endof a city property acquisiƟon that lacked a clear, executable plan.Years ago, I was in escrow to buy the building where my restaurant,DiStasio’s on Market St, was located. I had a plan to maintain the restaurant and wine bar while expanding to include a dinner theater and coffee shop. However, because the city held the original “paper”, they used a loophole to create a block on my purchase. AŌer 10 months in escrow I finally had to cancel the purchase. They then went ahead and took back ownership of that property. At that point they shared that they had plans to develop a conference center and hotel.
I moved my restaurant to a different property, and six years later, that original building sƟll sits underuƟlized.
I do not want to see the school property suffer the same fate. This land is a massive potenƟal asset, specifically for work force housing. We are losing teachers, fire, professionals of varied skills, and police personnel because they simply cannot find a place to live in Morro Bay.
I urge the Council to begin the serious planning process immediately. We must quickly eliminate frivolous or impossible ideas so that when the 10-month window closes, the city has a viable path forward rather than just a vacant lot.
Respecƞully,
Ken MacMillan
1 Heather Goodwin
From: Marlene Peter
Sent: Monday, March 9, 2026 7:38 PM
To: Council
Subject: Purchase of ME
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To our Council Members,
Thanks for your endeavors to purchase Morro Elementary. It’s imperaƟve that this iconic facility be preserved for generaƟons to come. As a former teacher there for nine years and a parent of two children who aƩended ME, it is near and dear to my heart.
With graƟtude,
Marlene Peter
Sent from my iPhone
Marlene Peter
2 Again, I applaud the City Council for stating economic vitality is one of its four major goals. I congratulate you on selecting Mr. Craig, who I’m inspired to believe is the right man in the right city at the right time.
And kudos to our maintenance staff for their quick action when major tree limbs tumbled into Founder’s Park this week. They were instantly out when called to take care of the safety of our neighborhood.
Sincerely,
Judy Salamacha
Judy Salamacha
Columnist, Estero Bay News
Advisor, Central Coast Writers Conference
Founding Member, MB Maritime Museum
BAC, MB Chamber of Commerce
2 Morro Bay business owner
Member of Morro Bay Chamber of Commerce and Business Advocacy Committee
1 Heather Goodwin
From: Shane Verplanck
Sent: Monday, March 9, 2026 11:49 AM
To: Council
Subject: Purchase of Morro Bay Elementary School Property [Some people who received this message don't oŌen get email from . Learn why this is important at hƩps://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdenƟficaƟon ] CAUTION: This is an external email. Please take care when clicking links or opening aƩachments.
I lived in Morro Bay when I was five and it was the first school I aƩended in Kindergarten and later for several years before going to high-school.
In later years my two children aƩended the school for a year when we lived in Morro Bay in the sevenƟes. My younger sister also spent her enƟre elementary school years
aƩending this school. We have a history with this building and the wonderful people who taught in it, as do many others in this community.
The main building itself is historic and should be on the NaƟonal Register because it is unique and irreplaceable.
I believe that we all would benefit from having this piece of history remain as a resource for our community and not be developed and perhaps even razed at the whim of some developer.
I do hope you will have the foresight to vote to purchase this property for all of us to conƟnue to use as we see fit in ways that will most benefit local people.
Sincerely, Shane Mize VerPlanck (Ms.)
2 Under Key Agreement Terms is "District Documents: the District will provide copies of leases, licenses, contracts, or other agreements with a term or effect that extends past the closing date, and will provide relevant due diligence materials in its possession for City review."
3.) I'm disappointed that under the Due Diligence Work Plan, also on page 157, that no mention is made of the soccer field or the Naylor Act.
"Planning and entitlement conceptual feasibility review, including zoning, General Plan consistency, Coastal Zone constraints and permit pathways, regarding potential future uses like city offices, housing or other community needs."
4.) I'm concerned whether the evacuated Shasta property and other City owned properties east to Piney Way will be part of the planning process that engages the community during the Due Diligence period. Morro Elementary and adjacent City properties should be seen as one project, not two in terms of meeting City goals. "proactive and robust community engagement regarding potential future uses of the Property will be critical to ensure any long-term plan for the Property succeeds and delivers greater community benefit."
5.) Holding any meeting in July is a poor time to expect robust public participation.
Better to wait until at least the end of August if not September. "Community meeting #2: July 2026"
6.) At what point in this process, or only after its conclusion, will the City decide how the current tenants fit into the City's plans for this property? Will this topic be part of the community meetings? Is the City planning on carrying over all current rental leases? If not, which ones will not be carried over and the reasoning?
7.) Under Escrow Provisions, there are two comments--one relating to the City leasing from the District, one regarding the District selling the property out from under the City- -are these standard contingency statements, or do they have substance? Since this is the first time the public has been notified of these negotiations, please answer or have answered the above questions.
Sincerely,
Betty Winholtz