City of Citrus Heights finalizes purchase of 1.7-acre preschool property. What’s next?

By Sara Beth Williams–
The City of Citrus Heights has officially closed on a property on Old Auburn Road that was formerly home to Citrus Heights Preschool, although plans for the property’s future use remain vague.

City Manager Ash Feeney announced during the City Council meeting Wednesday that the city closed escrow on the preschool on Oct. 31. The Citrus Heights Preschool closed abruptly earlier this year after being in business for several decades.

The two parcels that make up the former childcare center total 1.74 acres, and the land has existing fencing, landscaping, and utilities, plus one 3,100-square-foot building and another 4,000-square-foot building, according to the city.

Feeney previously alluded to exploring the possibility of utilizing the property for local sheltering of lost pets, and mentioned such use again on Wednesday.

“The property presents some future opportunities for enhanced service delivery here within the city and also control of our own destiny relative to escalating costs that have occurred around contracting out on some of the animal services,” Feeney said Wednesday. Mayor Jayna Karpinski-Costa noted with a smile that small toilets at the facility were designed with preschoolers in mind, to which Feeney commented that “we definitely have some work to do with the restrooms.” He also offered to give tours of the property to city council members.

During a subsequent State of the City address on Thursday, the city manager also made brief reference to the property acquisition, where he credited efforts to increase the city’s reserves with enabling the city to purchase the property on Old Auburn Road. He did not share a specific future use for the property, other than to say it had potential to serve as a “community resource” and would enable the city to control costs and improve service delivery.

Previously the City Council voted unanimously to enter into a purchase agreement for the two parcels that made up the preschool in a special City Council meeting that convened directly following the July 10 regular City Council meeting, The acquisition price was listed as $1.2 million with a $25,000 deposit that would be refundable for up to 60 days.

The two parcels, located at 7555 Old Auburn Rd. and 7569 Old Auburn Rd., which make up the site of the former Citrus Heights Preschool, were listed for discussion in closed session at the beginning of the regular July 10 City Council meeting. Limited details were provided in the agenda packet. Following the closed session, then-mayor Bret Daniels said there was no information to report regarding closed session items.

The preschool’s abrupt closure left parents scrambling to find new childcare. The Sentinel previously reached out to former employees of Citrus Heights Preschool regarding the closure and staffing challenges. One former employee declined to comment, and others did not return a request for comment.