It’s official: Napa has struck a $25 million deal to buy the 26.6-acre property that once housed Harvest Middle School, closing a painful chapter of school closures for the Napa Valley Unified School District and opening a rare opportunity for the city to reshape a large swath of land in the heart of town.
At recent meetings, the school board and city council separately approved a purchase and sale agreement for the Old Sonoma Road campus. The deal will be finalized after a 90-day due diligence period, giving the city ownership of the campus’ fields, gymnasium and swimming pool.
“The strategic opportunity for us to shape 26 acres in the heart of Napa is extraordinarily rare,” Vice Mayor Mary Luros said at the City Council meeting Tuesday. “I don’t think of this just as a land purchase but a once-in-a-lifetime investment in our community.”
To pay for the acquisition, the city will draw $12.5 million from park acquisition funds, $5.5 million from facility reserves and $4 million from Measure G, a voter-approved sales tax expected to raise about $22 million a year. Assistant City Manager Liz Habkirk said Measure G revenue not only made the deal possible but will help sustain the property in years to come.
Looking ahead
Since Harvest shut down in 2022, city leaders and residents have eyed the campus as a potential site for new housing and recreational amenities.
In addition to Playground Fantastico park, the campus’ facilities align with the city’s Parks Master Plan and 2040 General Plan, which call for more gym space, synthetic turf fields and a community pool. But the existing facilities need work — the gym was last renovated in 2013, the pool in 2009 and the field in 2011.
Once the sale closes, the city plans to tap into resident excitement with a community engagement effort, including a “next chapter” event where people can help envision the site’s future, Habkirk said.
Ideas are already flowing. A NextDoor thread floated proposals for a community center, pickleball courts and even a roller rink.
“That part of town definitely needs a sports complex,” longtime resident Harold Leggett told The Press Democrat. “I would also like to see housing for low-income people.”
The district, meanwhile, will use proceeds from the sale for facilities improvements, building on projects already underway with funding from November’s $230 million Measure B bond. In the past, Napa Valley Unified has directed similar land-sale revenue into upgrades, including $11 million from the former Yountville Elementary campus and $1.6 million from the Carneros Elementary site.
A 75-year legacy
The Harvest property has been in district hands since 1951, when Louis and Anna Wurz deeded it to the Napa Union High School District, later reorganized as Napa Valley Unified.
It housed Ridgeview Junior High from 1954 to 1982, then the Ridgeview Community Education Center. After major renovations, it reopened in 2003 as Harvest Middle School, home to a dual-language immersion and International Baccalaureate program funded partly by a $1 million federal grant.
But facing declining enrollment and financial strain, the district voted in 2021 to close Harvest and River middle schools, consolidate programs at a new English-Spanish immersion academy called Unidos, and shutter Yountville and Mt. George elementary schools. Families protested the decisions, but trustees were unanimous in prioritizing fiscal stability.
Ahead of the closure, Napa Valley Unified hosted public meetings where residents urged that the site be reused for housing while keeping the athletic facilities open. Since then, neighbors have continued to use the fields, gym and pool.
City staff formally studied Harvest’s potential last year, presenting a concept that split the land into 18 acres for recreation and eight for housing. In March, the council directed staff to negotiate with Napa Valley Unified, citing the property’s ability to address both community space and housing needs.
What’s next
With the sale nearly complete, the city expects no immediate disruption to the recreational facilities now in use. Officials said any interruptions will be addressed as future plans take shape.
“It’s time to get to work,” Mayor Scott Sedgley said as the council wrapped up Tuesday’s vote.