OGDEN — Ogden Mayor Mike Caldwell is proposing acquisition of three surplus Ogden School District parcels, two of them for housing development and the third, the ex-Lynn Elementary site, to expand the city’s park offerings.

The city should waive its rights to acquire a fourth parcel, the ex-Grandview Elementary site, and instead let the private sector acquire and develop the property, the Caldwell administration is proposing.

The Ogden City Council has final say in the matter — focus of public discussion since last fall — and Angela Choberka, the council chairperson, said Monday that officials want more information before taking action. The topic came up at a City Council work session last week and that discussion is continuing, though a March 14 deadline looms.

Broadly speaking, Choberka stressed the import in balancing the needs and demands for green space and space for affordable housing. Limited affordable housing availability is an issue up and down the Wasatch Front.

Steve Van Wagoner, who leads Ogden Soccer, a local soccer club, has been lobbying the city at least since late last year to acquire the four surplus pieces of school district property, measuring around 18.2 acres, and use them all for park space. He said Monday that’s still his hope and that several other Northern Utah soccer clubs have joined him in his call, made through a new group he helped form, andParks.org.

Van Wagoner also thinks the city ought to acquire additional school district land for park space, when and if it’s declared surplus, including the plot where Taylor Canyon Elementary sat at 2130 Taylor Ave. before it was demolished late last year. School district officials have broached the notion of closing James Madison and Bonneville elementary schools as well, and if that happens, Van Wagoner thinks officials should convert the land where they sit to park space as well.

Ogden planning documents indicate a shortage of park space based on the growing population, 20 acres now plus an additional 32 acres in years to come as the city expands, Van Wagoner notes. He also emphasized the price of the school district property now versus the likely price of land in the future. “As Ogden continues to recognize success and growth, land in Ogden will be more expensive. The time to act is now,” he said in a statement on Monday.

Choberka said she too wants more information on the additional Ogden school properties that could potentially be declared surplus, like the Taylor Canyon Elementary property. Most city officials, though, have been more guarded in their discussion of the city’s potential role in the future of former school properties.

Per the Caldwell administration proposal discussed last week, the city would acquire the 5.9-acre ex-Lynn Elementary property at 625 Grant Ave. for park expansion. That land, now largely vacant and unused, abuts the 4th Street Ball Park baseball fields and Romrell Park, both managed by the city.

That parcel has an appraised value of $955,000 and surplus city funds would be used to buy the property.

City reps have put together “high-level” proposals outlining the possible use of the ex-Lynn Elementary property and they show portions of the land variously used for baseball or softball diamonds and soccer fields. Edd Bridge, Ogden’s recreation manager, said it’s logistically easier for parks officials to manage sites adjacent to existing parks, like the ex-Lynn site, as opposed to launching park development at brand new sites not near parks.

City officials are proposing acquisition of two abutting school-owned parcels in the 600 block of North Jackson Avenue for development into housing. The smaller plot, measuring about 0.6 acres, already contains a home while the larger 6.5-acre parcel, which officials have said could contain up to 30 homes, is largely vacant. Together they have an appraised value of $1.46 million and city officials propose tapping funds from the city’s Quality Neighbors Program, an initiative meant to stabilize and revitalize Ogden neighborhoods.

The Caldwell administration proposes waiving the right to buy the 5.2-acre ex-Grandview Elementary site at 3865 Jackson Ave., abutting the south side of the city-owned Grandview Park. Instead, the land would be put on the market and sold for housing development. City and school district officials have said that piece of property, relatively close to the Weber State University campus, has generated interested from developers.

Ogden school officials, per state law, are giving the City of Ogden first dibs on buying the surplus land. The city has until March 14 to provide the district with “earnest money” to secure the right to buy any of the properties. The Ogden City Council holds a joint meeting with the Ogden school board on Feb. 2 when the future of the land may come up for debate.

The other soccer clubs backing Van Wagoner in his call for more park apace are Utah Avalanche, Gremio FC Utah, La Roca Futbol Club, Summit Football Club and Wasatch Soccer Club, which are based outside of Ogden but sometimes use Ogden green space.

House Speaker Brad Wilson last week lauded Ogden’s efforts to encourage housing development, including through conversion of school district property, in the context of growing demand in the state for homes.

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