Beloved Baywood Elementary School to receive demolition permit

October 5, 2026

OPINION by JULIE TACKER

In 2022, the voters of San Luis Coastal Unified School District passed ballot measure C-22 for $349 million to improve or modernize several of its school sites, including Baywood Elementary in Los Osos.

Built 50 years ago, Baywood School was billed as a state-of-the-art facility, with its open concept classrooms reminiscent of the “one-room schoolhouse” of the 20th century. In its early years, families marveled at the learning model, as teachers remained stationary in their classroom and students moved through the “pod” (four classes in one room) to learn another subject from a different teacher.

In essence, a single student could learn from several teachers and a resource specialist throughout each day. The school received honors for innovation and those lucky enough to attend were then and remain part of the Baywood Bear family.

Today, the school has been remodeled several times, most recently in the mid-1990’s, with millions of dollars invested in adding at least one pod, separating the pods with partitions, adding a multipurpose room/gymnasium and blacktop/basketball/handball courts. Local sports teams use the play fields for soccer, softball and little league baseball.

Families enjoy the grassy area and play equipment on weekends. Situated in the middle of Baywood Park, the school is a focal point for the community.

On Oct. 8, the San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission will hear the proposal to demolish the original school buildings, removing 44 mature trees (including 20 coast live oaks), relocating the school entrance to El Moro Avenue with a driveway to newly constructed school buildings nestled up against the 11th Street fence line.

The project’s proposed drop-off and pick-up access will clog intersections and become congested while kids are walking in crosswalks.

With school in session over several years, the campus is slated for a complete overhaul. New classrooms and administrative building will be built on the portion of the property where the current playfield and basketball courts are sited, with only the multi-purpose room and 9th Street parking lot to remain.

The proposed design attempts to level out the topography by bringing in over 7,000 cubic yards of fill dirt. This, combined with the demolition debris leaving the site, will result in weeks and weeks of dump truck traffic in a residential neighborhood.

Once the new structures are completed, and teachers and students begin to utilize them, the current building will be demolished and that area will in turn be replaced with playfields, blacktop and playground equipment.

Just last month, a local newspaper headline announced the recent filing of a lawsuit against the school district’s contractor for the wrongful death of a Morro Bay High School teacher. Judy Vanfleet, fell ill and later died from construction dust that poisoned her as she continued to teach classes. Will the students and staff at Baywood Elementary experience the same health impacts that faced Mrs. Vanfleet?

What dust mitigation will be used in this project? Will they use drinking water from the Los Osos water basin? We must demand that only non-potable water be used for dust control.

A school district official suggests that the students can continue learning in the current facility while demolition and construction occur on the campus. When asked about P.E. classes, that same official suggested the kids would walk to the Los Osos Middle School playfields, ¾ of a mile away, to play and exercise and walk back to resume instruction. Really?

A particularly unique feature at Baywood Elementary is its art legacy projects. Each graduating class has left an art project to be enjoyed into the future. I have asked that murals be recreated, and sculptures, tiles and handprints be saved and incorporated into the new facility.

The retention or duplication has been met with a chilly response from district officials. Their suggestion was that I be part of a committee (yet to be formed) to make recommendations of which art pieces could be retained, punctuated by a disinterested explanation that the new structures would be stucco and only the murals in the multipurpose room/gymnasium (also a stucco building) could stay.

The school district has slated $58 million for the razing and rebuilding of Baywood Elementary. The construction cost estimate was part of a KSBY News piece early this year.

We’re in an inflationary environment today, with spikes in construction costs, fuel and building materials. Building this project at this time and staying on budget appears unlikely.

Let the community help shape a smaller scale, less disruptive and less expensive modernization project. One that includes celebrating the school’s rich history, minimally impacts the neighborhood and the continued excellent learning experience of generations to come.

Please consider sending your concerns to dchavez@co.slo.ca.us, or attending the SLO County Planning Commission meeting on Oct. 8 at 9 a.m. at the county building on Monterey Street, in SLO. There is no remote participation available.

Julie Tacker is a former Baywood PTA vice president, member of the School Site Council, one of the Baywood Elementary mural artists and the daughter of Jean Lindemans, the creator of the Baywood Bear mascot.