Pima Community College to lease elementary school building

CREATED Nov. 28, 2011

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Web Producer: Marissa Pasquet

TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - Pima Community College plans to lease the building that housed Roberts Elementary School. Roberts Elementary School is one of the four schools that Tucson Unified School District’s Governing Board was forced to close.

"This decision is a win for everyone involved," said PCC Chancellor Roy Flores. "It makes economic sense for the College, for TUSD and for the taxpayers of our community."

TUSD’s governing board unanimously approved a five-year lease of Robert Elementary to PCC; the college will use the 43,000 square foot property for its Adult Education division and the Public Safety and Emergency Services Institute, according to PCC spokesperson Paul Schwalbach.

The annual lease rate for Roberts Elementary School’s property will be $70,000, with a minimum $300,000 capital investment for parking and other improvements required at the facility, Schwalbach wrote in a release to the press.

“The savings to taxpayers will be significant,” said Flores. “But the benefits of this lease go beyond dollars and cents. The surrounding neighborhood will benefit because the school no longer will be vacant. Roberts was built as a place of learning and the College is very pleased that we are able to make sure it stays that way.”

Located at 4355 E. Calle Aurora, Roberts Elementary opened in 1961 and was named after Clara Fish Roberts, a teacher and the first woman trustee in TUSD. Roberts merged last year with the nearby Naylor Middle School.

The first term of the lease ends June 30, 2016. PCC will have the option to renew the lease for three additional five-year terms.

(Story Courtesy: Information taken from a news release from The Vice Chancellor for Public Information and Government Relations)