October 5, 2026
DCG Strategies served as the district’s exclusive real estate advisor on a sale that pays the district partly in cash and partly in Workforce Housing Units for its staff.
When Ventura Unified School District decided to sell its 24.88-acre Education Service Center at 255 W. Stanley Avenue, the obvious path was a straight sale: find the highest bidder and take the cash. The district chose a different structure, one that turns a single sale into a lasting source of housing for the teachers and staff who serve Ventura’s students.
On August 25, 2026, the VUSD Board of Education approved a $39 million sale of the property to an affiliate of MW Investment Group and HCD Investments LLC. DCG Strategies, VUSD’s exclusive real estate advisor, helped the district design and negotiate the deal.
A sale that pays in housing, not just cash
Under the agreement, the district receives:
- $21.5 million in cash, plus $1.75 million in non-refundable deposits released before closing
- About 50 finished workforce apartments, delivered at the builder’s cost of roughly $350,000 per unit. Building the same units on its own would likely cost the district an estimated $35 to $45 million.
- Full ownership and control of those units, including who lives in them and what rent they pay
- No new debt and no entitlement spending. The developer entitles, finances and builds the project, and posts security for 100% of the unit price. The district receives the unrestricted income stream from the units.
Closing is subject to entitlement approval from the City of Ventura.
Why land ownership is important to School Districts
Most educator housing programs rely on state and federal affordable housing subsidies. Those subsidies come with income limits that often exclude teachers, who earn too much to qualify but too little to afford Ventura’s market rents. Some districts rely on General Obligation Bonds; however, many districts don’t have the support or bonding capacity to use those as a funding mechanism. Other districts make use of affordable housing subsidies; however, that isn’t the primary mechanism. Each of those pathways presents its own challenges.
Because VUSD will own its units outright, it isn’t bound by those limits. It can give priority to employees with the greatest need, and it can also house the “missing middle”: staff who fall between subsidized housing and the open market.
The district has said the approach lets it address the housing shortage without asking voters to approve a bond or depending on government subsidies.
Part of a broader real estate strategy
The Stanley Avenue sale is one piece of a multi-year effort by VUSD to put its surplus land to work for its mission. DCG Strategies also advised on the strategy and sale of the following:
- Washington School site, 96 MacMillan Ave.
- The district is selling the property to City Ventures for $8.3 million, plus potential future payments.
- Jewett Estate.
- In September 2026, the board approved a 12-month exclusive negotiating agreement to explore about 155 affordable workforce units with Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation and Homes & Hope.
- Former Avenue School site.
- The district is currently in negotiations with Ventura Housing.
The district secured a State Board of Education waiver that allowed it to select buyers through a values-based request-for-proposals process rather than a conventional public auction. That flexibility made it possible to weigh housing outcomes alongside price.
DCG’s role
DCG Strategies represented Ventura Unified, not the developer, throughout the process. That included advising on the RFP, evaluating proposals, and structuring the revolutionary payment-in-housing terms the board approved.
What this means for other districts
Across California, school districts hold underused land while their employees struggle to afford to live in the communities they serve. Ventura’s deal shows that a surplus site can deliver both capital for facilities and housing the district controls, with the developer carrying the cost, debt and entitlement risk.
If your district or congregation has an underused parcel, DCG Strategies would be glad to model what this structure could yield for you. Please reach out to us at [email protected].
