Public Schools Code Update

SDCI and the Department of Neighborhoods are proposing updates to the Land Use Code for new public school construction projects. The amendments are intended to change development standards to help support current educational needs such as flexible classroom design, outdoor play areas, parking, and school bus loading. Changes are also proposed for the public school departure process that uses an advisory committee to consider flexibility in how standards are applied to school construction.

Updating the regulations can better accommodate modern schools to support student learning while maintaining compatibility with neighborhoods where schools are located. The goal of this update is to:

• Apply standards that better meet state and district education and school program requirements and maintain compatibility with surrounding neighborhoods
• Achieve better outcomes in the public school departure process by updating the process and reducing the extent and number of departures required to help build new school projects

Our timing for the public schools code update is no sooner than the first quarter of 2025. Sign up on our public schools code update listserv to receive updates about our progress.

If you have questions on this code update or have suggestions how we can improve the school construction process while helping school construction fit into the surrounding neighborhood, you can send your suggestions to Chanda Emery at [email protected].