AISD to purchase two pieces of land in South Austin

The Austin Independent School District board of trustees announced Monday that it will move forward with purchasing two parcels of land, one in Southeast Austin and one in Southwest Austin. The board decided in March to set a deadline for a decision regarding the matter. According to then District 7 Trustee Robert Schneider, the district had discussed buying land for a South Austin high school since 2001, and residents of Southwest and Southeast Austin had lobbied strongly for the school. However, a few months after the board set the deadline, Schneider passed away from cancer. Out of respect, board members resumed the discussions only after Trustee Yasmin Wagner stepped into his place in October. Austin voters approved an $82 million bond in 2008, $32 million of which will be used to purchase the two parcels of land in South Austin. The locations will not be released until real estate negotiations are finalized. A brick-and-mortar school is still a long way away. Board President Gina Hinojosa said the board will continue to address overcrowding at South Austin’s Bowie High School – AISD’s most crowded high school – through transfer policies. Staff is still considering revamping programming to help with Southeast Austin’s under-enrolled schools.