Windsor Creek School Site Negotiations End
Summary
The school district has declared the 11.5-acre Windsor Creek Elementary site surplus and is negotiating with a developer for employee/affordable housing — up to 368 units. The town's zoning currently only allows public/school uses, so any housing needs a general plan amendment, rezoning, and likely a full EIR. Residents are split between opposing housing and urging the town to buy it for parks or a sports complex.
At a glance
- Total mentions
- 9
- Last 30 days
- 1
Discussed at 1 meeting in the last 60 days; most recently Oct 20, 2026.
Impact analysis
Town purchase could cost $4.9 million, with full park build-out of $10–23 million plus $175,000–$200,000 a year in maintenance — a tough ask amid budget discussions.
Neighbors who value the open space and greenway if preserved; teachers and district staff if employee housing is built.
Either outcome has costs: residents fear traffic, parking and crowding from housing; taxpayers shoulder purchase and maintenance if the town buys.
Mentions & discussions (9)
Senior Citizen Advisory Commission - Oct 20, 2026
A 29-year resident blasted the school district's plan for a 99-year lease with Gallagher Companies for high-density apartments on the closed Windsor Creek Elementary site, and questioned the new Measure J school bond. He'd rather see the town buy the land for parks and sports.
Parks and Recreation Commission - Sep 9, 2026
Gallagher Custom Homes, partnering with the Windsor Unified School District, plans a 380-plus-unit, seven-building apartment complex on the former elementary school site. A resident is pushing for the land to become a community sports park instead, and a neighborhood meeting is set for September 15.
Parks and Recreation Commission - Aug 12, 2026
A resident is sounding the alarm about a school district/Gallagher application to build seven four-story buildings with 384 units on the Windsor Creek Elementary site, urging the town to keep the site's public zoning rather than change it to residential.
Special Joint Town Council and Planning Commission - Aug 11, 2026
Several residents urged the town to preserve the last public-use parcel near downtown — the old Windsor Creek Elementary School site — for a park, civic space, or mixed use, rather than high-density housing.
Town Council Meeting - Jul 15, 2026
The school district is aligning with a developer seeking 360+ units on the closed school site, and Oakfield neighbors are pushing back hard over traffic, parking, and wildfire evacuation on their one-road-in, one-road-out neighborhood. Expect a big fight when a rezoning application comes to the council.
Planning Commission - Jul 14, 2026
A preliminary residential application has landed for the former Windsor Creek Elementary site. Residents are worried about wildfire evacuation on a single-access road, traffic, water, and losing the neighborhood's only green space. The site is currently zoned public/institutional — any housing would need a general plan amendment and rezoning, and the town keeps final say.
Town Council Meeting - May 20, 2026
The school district announced it will keep negotiating with a housing developer instead of the town, ending the town's effort to acquire the property — despite an offer using fund balance, park fees, grants, and a property swap.
Town Council Meeting - Mar 18, 2026
Multiple residents urged the town to buy the closed school site at 8955 Condi Lane — possibly for a park or 'Town Green South' — instead of letting it become 368 units of subsidized housing. The council took the negotiation into closed session.
Town Council (Special) - Feb 9, 2026
The school district has declared the 11.5-acre Windsor Creek Elementary site surplus and is negotiating with a developer for employee/affordable housing — up to 368 units. The town's zoning currently only allows public/school uses, so any housing needs a general plan amendment, rezoning, and likely a full EIR. Residents are split between opposing housing and urging the town to buy it for parks or a sports complex.
Related development
Windsor Creek Elementary property redevelopment
Residents are organizing against the project, arguing the site should become a community sports park; the proposal will eventually go to the Planning Commission and Town Council.
Windsor Creek Elementary site redevelopment (Gallagher application)
Would add roughly 360+ households to a neighborhood with a single road in and out, raising serious wildfire evacuation and traffic concerns for Oakfield residents.
Former Windsor Creek Elementary site employee/affordable housing (proposed, up to 368 units)
If it advances, neighbors expect major traffic, parking, school, and water impacts — and the town would have public hearings and CEQA review before any approval.
Windsor Creek Elementary site residential proposal
If pursued, the proposal could add hundreds of units on a site with a single neighborhood access point, triggering EIR-level review and years of hearings — a major flashpoint for the Oakfield neighborhood.
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