Residents within the Saugus Union School District made it clear on Wednesday what they do and don’t want to see done with the property formerly known as Santa Clarita Elementary School.  At a joint meeting of the district’s governing board and asset management advisory committee — tasked with recommending to the governing board what should be done with the property — on Wednesday at Bridgeport Elementary, district officials explained the process of the committee before hearing about some of the different ideas that residents had.  One of the main concerns for residents, many of whom said they either went to Santa Clarita Elementary or had kids who went there, was that the district would sell the land to a developer, and then it would be turned into housing or another business that they said would have negative effects on an already impacted area.  Nick Heinlein, assistant superintendent of business services, explains the roles of the committee at the Saugus Union School District asset management advisory committee meeting held at Bridgeport Elementary on Oct. 30, 2024. Tyler Wainfeld/The Signal. When presented with the idea of workforce housing, which would be for district employees to live in at less-than-market rate, some were agreeable, but many did not take to it.  A couple of the more popular ideas were to turn the property into a recreation center or expand the city’s adjacent Santa Clarita Park. Another idea that gained some traction was to build a parking lot to help with traffic congestion at nearby Arroyo Seco Junior High, which some said could be done in conjunction with the park expansion.  The consensus was that whatever happens, it should be something that benefits the community.  James Shea, chair of the Saugus Union School District asset management advisory committee, welcomes attendees to the meeting held at Bridgeport Elementary on Oct. 30, 2024. Tyler Wainfeld/The Signal. Attendees were asked to write down their ideas on slips of paper that were collected and will be prepared into a report, according to Superintendent Colleen Hawkins. Also collected were thoughts on the district turning the property into a revenue generator, which most attendees agreed would be good.  Hawkins said any revenue generated would be used to help upgrade facilities, for which there is typically no funding from the state.  Each of the committee members were also introduced to attendees, with each explaining which role they serve on the committee, which is typically referred to as a 7-11 committee due to it having between seven to 11 members.  The committee is being chaired by James Shea, who said he lives down the street from Santa Clarita Elementary. All of the committee members are residents of the district, with some having expertise in a certain field that would help in determining what to recommend to the governing board once the committee has completed its process.  Saugus Union School District governing board member Chris Trunkey leads a table discussion at the asset management advisory committee meeting held at Bridgeport Elementary on Oct. 30, 2024. Tyler Wainfeld/The Signal. “I’m a pretty private person, but I have actually enjoyed meeting the people after the last meeting and meeting people here today,” Shea said. “It’s great. I consider you all neighbors.”  Board President Matt Watson thanked the attendees for participating and invited them to continue to provide input throughout the process.  “This has been an extremely valuable evening,” Watson said. “We’ve received some terrific input from all of you, and I greatly appreciate it. I want to thank Mr. Shea and the rest of the asset management committee for agreeing to co-seat this meeting with us this evening. We appreciate all the work that you’re doing as volunteers to help guide the future of our community.”  Saugus Union School District Superintendent Colleen Hawkins answers a question from an attendee at the asset management advisory committee meeting held at Bridgeport Elementary on Oct. 30, 2024. Tyler Wainfeld/The Signal. Board member Anna Griese also reminded attendees that she was the only one on the board to vote against closing Santa Clarita Elementary, which was done due to high costs associated with retrofitting the campus to meet earthquake standards, according to district staff.  Once the school was officially closed, the governing board approved the formation of the committee in March and the members were appointed in June.  The committee is set to continue meeting until a final report can be drafted, likely in May or June, according to Hawkins. Before that report is delivered to the governing board, a public hearing will be held so that the community can weigh in.  Saugus Union School District governing board member Anna Griese leads a table discussion at the asset management advisory committee meeting held at Bridgeport Elementary on Oct. 30, 2024. Tyler Wainfeld/The Signal. Until then, the committee will meet roughly once a month and will be educated on some of the different options that other school districts have chosen.  Some of those meetings will be regular committee meetings for the members to discuss in public, as required by the Brown Act, California’s open-meeting law for government bodies, while there could be more community meetings such as the one that occurred on Wednesday.  All meetings will have an agenda posted at least 72 hours in advance, as required by the Brown Act, and the public can attend those meetings to listen in on the committee’s doings.  Jennifer Larson, a member of the Saugus Union School District asset management advisory committee, introduces herself to attendees at the meeting held at Bridgeport Elementary on Oct. 30, 2024. Tyler Wainfeld/The Signal. The post Saugus community weighs in on plans for Santa Clarita Elementary  appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.