Plan would transform old campus into housing for school district employees

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) -- As the affordable housing crisis continues, trustees at the San Diego Unified School District are working on a solution by transforming another school campus into affordable housing units for their employees.

The initiative follows the state superintendent's recent plan to repurpose school land into new homes.

Plans are underway to convert the old Central Elementary School campus in City Heights into a 270-unit housing complex. The development will feature two, three and four-bedroom units, providing enough space for families of San Diego Unified School District employees.

"It's everybody from food service workers and bus drivers custodians to teachers," said Trustee Richard Barrera. He emphasized that the goal is to enable school employees to live in the communities where they work, which can be prohibitively expensive for their families.

"We've got an affordable housing crisis," Barrera said. "It's a particular challenge for schools because we need to attrac...