A consulting company has identified properties that the Vancouver board of education can either lease out or sell.

A staff report to the board indicates that Urban Systems has classified the sites that can be monetized over three timelines: one to three years, three to five years, and five to 10 years.

The report prepared by J. David Green, secretary-treasurer, Lisa Landry, assistant secretary-treasurer, and Jim Meschino, director of facilities, did not name the locations.

They noted that the timeline of one to three years is “within the purview of the current Board”.

The board was elected in 2018, and its term ends in 2022.

“In considering the opportunity, timing, and implementation process related to each of the candidate locations, it is important to note that none of the short term opportunities in the 1 to 3 year timeframe involve non-enrolling spaces,” the managers wrote.

They continued to state that there would be “no impact on students, and none of the short term opportunities involve a consolidation of school communities”.

According to its long range facilities plan, the district owns around 600 acres or 242.8 hectares of land.

Its portfolio includes 125 physical buildings.

All in all, school district lands and buildings have an estimated value of $7.6 billion, based on 2018 B.C. Assessment numbers.

According to the district’s inventory, 108 out of its 125 buildings are used to provide educational services to Kindergarten up to Grade 12 students.

Board policy prohibits the disposition of entire sites, but permits the disposition of portions of sites.

According to its policy, this does not preclude land swaps or the sale of portions of school sites as long as educational services could still be provided.

As recalled in the long range facilities plan, the district in the past has had discussions over a number of sites.

One involves Kingsgate Mall, currently leased by mall operator Beedie Industrial.

Another is Carleton Elementary, which was previously considered for partial disposition to allow condo development.

A third one is John Oliver Secondary, also considered in the past for partial disposition for condo development.

The report by Green, Landry, and Meschino is included in the agenda Monday (June 15) of the board’s facilities planning committee.

According to the staff report, Urban Systems has indicated that the sites within the one to three years timeline “require little work to add value and can be quickly leased or sold”.

“The short term priority sites will require considerable attention over the next 12-18 months to ensure VSB can move forward with disposition (either lease or sale) and secure new revenues,” the managers wrote.

Also included in the board agenda on June 15 is a motion by education trustee Jennifer Reddy.

Reddy’s motion seeks consultation and cooperation with First Nations in the development of district lands.

According to Reddy, this will ensure that plans by the board are “informed by and not in conflict” with Indigenous “interests and land use plans”.