UH Community Rallies Behind AVRP Plan for Brucker Site Redevelopment

On April 28, between 150 and 175 residents attended the SDUSD listening session at Birney School Auditorium to discuss the redevelopment of the Brucker Education Center and share community expectations.

Thanks to the organizing efforts of the Community Coalition of University Heights (CCUH), the overwhelming majority of attendees wore red and carried posters supporting the AVRP Site Plan. This “community consensus plan” was created by the District’s architect, AVRP/Skyport, and represents over 7 years of community engagement, debate, and refinement.

At the end of the session, 100 individually signed posters supporting the AVRP Site Plan were submitted to SDUSD. This represents 2/3 of those in attendance. Also present was Jennifer LeSar, the consultant hired by the district to advise on this project, along with representatives from various developers. Interested developers must submit their proposals to SDUSD for redevelopment of the Brucker site by August 26. District staff will then review proposals and prepare recommendations for the full Board of Trustees for a vote scheduled in December. Construction is projected to start in late 2026 or early 2027.

Session Agenda

Lee Dulgeroff, Senior Director of Facilities, Planning, and Construction, started the meeting by describing District plans to redevelop 5 parcels throughout San Diego Unified School District into affordable housing for District employees. The Brucker site encompasses 13 acres, is identified as the largest parcel and regarded as “the crown jewel” for redevelopment. Dulgeroff and staff then reviewed the AVRP Site Plan and split attendees into about a dozen small groups with Post-it notes and site photos to brainstorm ideas for redeveloping the Brucker site. Many attendees stood at the back of the room during the small group sessions holding signs in support of the AVRP Site Plan. As one community member stated, “Why are we doing this again? We did this seven years ago.” Another had similar sentiments, “Stop starting from scratch. Modify the RFP to match the District’s architect’s site plan (AVRP site plan).”

After the small groups finished brainstorming, representatives from each group presented their concepts to the larger group, with many referencing the AVRP Site Plan as the preferred option. Several groups emphasized the importance of preserving the heritage trees on the property, which was met with applause from attendees.

An open discussion followed and a group of about 10 people affiliated with Vibrant Uptown – most from outside of the UH neighborhood – expressed interest in increasing the density on the site while reducing or eliminating parking altogether.

Others expressed a strong desire to maximize the amount of affordable housing on the site, particularly for teachers and staff, while addressing the impacts on the surrounding lower density neighborhood. More than one speaker was interested in architecture “that fits the historic neighborhood” with a “scale matches the neighborhood.”

Numerous comments highlighted concerns about the inadequacy of existing infrastructure to support the current level of development in the vicinity, emphasizing the importance of maximizing green space and the need for additional parks, including a larger dog park. The majority of feedback indicated that the current AVRP Site Plan serves as a solid foundation for further development.

CCUH members provided packets to the developers in attendance describing our community’s extensive engagement with SDUSD in the redevelopment process for the Brucker site.

Local media was also at this event and provided coverage, including interviews with UHCA President Marc Johnson and UH Historical Society President Kristin Harms and Marc also wrote an op-ed summarizing the situation.

Next Steps

Prospective bidders on the Brucker site will have a meeting with District staff in June and then formulate their proposals which are due August 26. In the coming weeks, CCUH will contact each Board of Trustees member to explain why the vast majority of the UH community supports the AVRP Site Plan. We will also have printed, addressed postcards available at our next UHCA meeting on June 4 for residents to sign and mail to Board of Education members in support of the AVRP Site Plan.

CCUH will be monitoring this closely and will report on any activities or changes as they happen. In addition to coverage in UH News, this page on our website will serve as a central clearing-house of background information and news coverage.

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