November 18, 2025
Library and Community Services
DATE: November 18, 2025
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
LaShonda White, Deputy City Manager - Community
Services
Ranjana Maharaj, Deputy Director for Community
Services - Recreation
Tetteh Kisseh, Recreation Supervisor
SUBJECT:
Agreement with the West Contra Costa Unified School
District for use of Booker T. Anderson Community Center FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is an estimated General Fund impact of $686,492 in waived rental fee revenue for Fiscal Years(FY) 2024– 2025 ($391,261) and FY 2025-2026 ($295,231) (Account
String: 01253251-362801).
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
None.
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD)
contacted the City of Richmond to request the use of the Booker T. Anderson Community Center located at 960
South 47th Street to host the after-school program and
parent meetings as a result of the closing of Stege
Elementary School.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
APPROVE a land use agreement between the City of
Richmond and the West Contra Costa Unified School
District (WCCUSD), AUTHORIZE a fee waiver to use
Booker T. Anderson Community Center for Stege
Elementary School’s after school programs and parent
meetings for academic years 2024-2026, and RECEIVE
an update on the WCCUSD Facility Use Permitting
Process – Community Services Department (LaShonda
White/Ranjana Maharaj/Tetteh Kisseh 510 620-6919).
AGENDA
REPORT
November 18, 2025
DISCUSSION:
As Stege Elementary School enters a multi-year construction period, the City of Richmond and the West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD or District) continue to coordinate closely to minimize disruptions for students and families. The temporary closure of the Stege campus for the 2024–2025 Academic School Year required the District to identify nearby facilities that could support transportation needs and after-school programming.
This request builds on an ongoing partnership between the City and District to maintain youth services during periods of disruption. Following a 2020 fire that temporarily closed the Booker T. Anderson (BTA) Community Center, the City partnered with the District to host summer camps at Stege in 2022 and 2023, each operating for eight weeks at no cost to the City.
Ongoing collaboration is critical to ensuring continuity for Stege students throughout the construction period. Use of the BTA Community Center provides a stable hub for transportation, after-school activities, and parent engagement while the school remains offline.
WCCUSD’s 2024-2025 Request to Use BTA Community Center
On August 5, 2024, Mayor Eduardo Martinez and then-District Superintendent Chris Hurst convened City and District staff to discuss the District’s request to use the BTA Community Center for bus pick-up and drop-off for approximately 250 Stege Elementary students traveling to the temporary Lavonya Dejean Middle School campus, as well as for after-school programming. District staff explained that urgent construction at Stege Elementary would prevent the school from providing these services at the start of the August 19, 2024, academic year. The District sought permission to use City property under the terms of the 2024–2025 Agreement and acknowledged that the facilities would be accessed “as-is.” Due to the emergency nature of the request and the timing of the City Council recess, the agreement was executed and signed by the City Manager (Attachment 1).
District’s Current Request to Use BTA Community Center
On August 6, 2025, District staff reached out to City staff requesting to use BTA Community Center for the WCCUSD’s 2025-2026 academic year for their student drop off and pick up, after-school program, and parent meetings. Through close
November 18, 2025
collaboration, City and District staff developed the FY 2025–2026 Agreement to clearly define the District’s space and scheduling needs at BTA (Attachment 2). Stege students are currently using Lavonya Dejean Middle School for their afterschool program needs; however, they are awaiting approval of the 2025–2026 Agreement to resume programming at the BTA Community Center. As a neighborhood school, relocating the afterschool program and parent meetings closer to Stege provides a meaningful benefit to families by improving convenience and accessibility.
Per City policy and the City Council-approved Master Fee Schedule, Recreation charges fees for use of its community centers and parks. Based on the agreements from 2024-25 and 2025-26, the table below shows the rental costs for the use of BTA Community Center (Attachment 3 and 4).
WCCUSD Rental Costs for the use of Booker T. Anderson Community Center Timeframe of Use Permit numbers Rental Fees
2024-25 R2789, R2790, R2791 $391,261
2025-26 R3267, R3268 $295,231
TOTAL WAIVER AMOUNT $686,492
The City received a letter from the District requesting a waiver of the fees associated with use of the BTA Community Center for the Stege Afterschool program (Attachment 5). In the correspondence, it was noted that the District is addressing a structural deficit and working toward fiscal solvency, stating that the fees associated with public rental exceed what they can afford. The letter further explained that, due to this deficit, they are requesting that facility-use fees for the 2024–25 and 2025–26 school years be waived, and affirmed that the District is willing to provide in-kind facility-use permits for the City of Richmond as needed.
Both the agreement and associated fee waiver supports the immediate needs of Stege Elementary School students by ensuring continuity of services, stability for families, and access to safe, high-quality afterschool space for nearly 250 children—benefits that outweigh the temporary financial impact of the waived rental fees.
District Facility Use Permitting Process
Concerns regarding access to District fields by Richmond youth-serving sports teams has come up recently at City Council and in the local media. The District Facilities Use Permitting Policy was recently updated to provide a clear understanding of District procedures for facility rentals for community partners. The District Facilities Scheduling Office has the sole authority to grant use of the school facilities at each District school. If a conflict in scheduling should arise, the Facilities Scheduling Office shall have the authority to reschedule or cancel a requested use for any reason the office deems necessary. The priority for use of District facilities and grounds shall be according to the following:
1. District and District schools
2. City government requests within District boundaries
November 18, 2025
3. Nonprofit organizations, clubs, associations, and entities with official organization addresses within District boundaries, serving more than 50 percent (%) of WCCUSD residents
4. Other nonprofit organizations, clubs, associations, and entities
5. For profit outside entities
The District shared a list of Richmond-based organizations that received access to fields and spaces starting in 2024 (Attachment 6). City staff hopes that the change to this scheduling process, will increase the opportunity for Richmond youth-serving sports teams to have access to WCCUSD fields/courts (Attachment 7). It is also important to note that the West County PLAYS initiative, funded through Contra Costa County Health Services, is reducing District rental fees for youth sports programs by 75 percent making sports more accessible for our community. Currently, seventeen (17) youth sports teams receive subsidy through the PLAYS initiative (Attachment 8). In addition, sports teams have access to and/or have received City grants to support programming needs, as well as field use fees at WCCUSD and City facilities.
Next Steps
City Manager Shasa Curl, District Superintendent Cheryl Cotton, and City and WCCUSD staff met to discuss the lease agreement, the need for a fee waiver, facility usage at WCCUSD sites, and additional opportunities for strengthened partnership across both agencies. This meeting reflected a shared commitment to collaboration, and City and WCCUSD staff will continue to meet regularly to ensure coordinated support for Richmond youth and families. In addition, Superintendent Cotton is willing to present to the City Council in the first quarter of 2026.
By moving forward with this agreement and fee waiver, the City demonstrates its commitment not only to supporting WCCUSD during necessary facility upgrades but also to strengthening long-term interagency collaboration that benefits the entire Richmond community.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – FY 24-25 Agreement with WCCUSD for use of BTA Community Center Attachment 2 – FY 25-26 Agreement with WCCUSD for use of BTA Community Center (proposed)
Attachment 3 – Rental Permit for FY 25-26
Attachment 4 – Rental Permit for FY 24-25
Attachment 5 – WCCUSD Request for In-Kind/Waived Fees for BTA Community Center Attachment 6 – WCCUSD Processed Renters from January 2024 – Present for Richmond Applicants
Attachment 7 – WCCUSD Facility Use Permit Process Presentation Attachment 8 – West County PLAYS Initiative Subsidized Groups