Bay Area art school closures continue as Contra Costa School of Performing Arts takes its curtain call

WALNUT CREEK The Contra Costa School of Performing Arts will take its last curtain call in June after administrators announced rising facility costs and declining enrollment proved financially unsustainable for the - th grade professional-track arts curriculum For nearly a decade the nonprofit charter school offered a free project-based learning atmosphere for young artists to explore courses in dance instrumental and vocal music theater production and design Its closure comes roughly eight years after the charter established its campus and one year before its greater part latest charter authorization was originally set to expire The in recent times renovated -square-foot building at Mitchell Dr is now for sale opening up prime property in the heart of the the Shadelands a burgeoning business and recreation district in Walnut Creek Physical Guidance class students exercise at the Contra Costa School of Performing Arts on a up-to-date afternoon Photo by Diego Sinisterra Contra Costa School of Performing Arts The site is right now permitted for up to students but was constructed in as laboratory and office space Commercial real estate brokers have started courting buyers to join the growing cluster of healthcare biomed and retail organizations in the Shadelands In addition to a push for more tech development developers are also planning to build dense mixed-use housing projects near the school s -acre property designed to attract families and seniors looking to work live and play in Walnut Creek Heather Vega chair of the school s governing board commented the decision to shutter was made in January approved independently of the transformation being dreamed up next door Unfortunately just like so plenty of others we were hit very hard after COVID for a variety of things and we just weren t in a position to make it work financially anymore Vega reported in an interview this week Compared to other campuses operated within a larger school district system she mentioned single-site schools often have more difficulty weathering structural deficits and academic challenges Our enrollment has struggled and we ve had a lot of leadership shifts We ve been fighting for a very long time to try but it just wasn t in our cards Vega reported These issues aren t unique to arts educators in the East Bay A small charter in San Jose s Alum Rock neighborhood closed last summer after executives broadcasted that not enough students were enrolled to stay afloat amid million-dollar deficits Facing a million shortfall in a Sunnyvale charter was shut down by its parent company Summit Constituents Schools which had closed its other location in San Jose four years prior The same company voted in March to close a third charter located in Redwood City In Walnut Creek after learning about the school s fate Vega explained specific families made plans to transfer out early but other youth doubled down on their dedication to final performances or even expedited coursework in order to receive their diplomas It s bittersweet but our students have had a lot of opportunity to process and think about how they want to end the year and they ve been an evolving part in all of it Vega explained The school just wrapped a production of Into the Woods the musical they were forced to abandon during the pandemic A dance showcase and other performances are also scheduled in the coming weeks The Contra Costa School of Performing Arts will close its Shadelands campus in June Following years of underperforming pupil enrollment and growing financial deficits the charter put its Walnut Creek property up for sale We needed to give our families and society enough time to not only figure out next initiatives Vega commented but also celebrate being here empowering our students to take a final bow At its peak the Walnut Creek arts school had students in the - school year according to content published by the California Department of Development Despite attracting a diverse cohort from across Contra Costa County since its fall opening enrollment has steadily declined in modern years dropping to during - just shy of half quota Vega acknowledged that it was complicated for the school to offer programs that adequately served the th graders transitioning out of elementary school seniors about to graduate and all ages in between juggling different state testing requirements and individual learning requirements Related Articles Letters Kamala Harris and others will be judged by courage Jewish students faced discrimination in two South Bay school districts state leaders find Bay Area students and faculty join national protest of Trump s crackdown on higher learning White House proposes eliminating Head Start funding as part of sweeping budget cuts Bill would make California schools safe havens from immigration enforcement I think we were a little too young in our building our foundation and here in the locality when COVID hit so we just didn t have enough runway Vega announced Providing a platform for creativity and beauty for our students it s going to be sad to see that go But I m also just really proud that we were here Mark Nimon Walnut Creek s economic advancement manager disclosed SPA s current drops in enrollment reflect similar regional transportation and traffic patterns that have negatively impacted other local businesses While saying the city has appreciated and benefited from having a performance arts school within its boundaries he acknowledged that the upcoming sale of the school s property will be consistent with his staff s long term vision for regional development The area s redevelopment presents a huge opportunity to improve the balance of jobs and housing in the city among other positives for local households We regret watching any Walnut Creek business close but we ll try to create opportunities for other businesses to backfill the space and offset a few of the economic impacts that we re losing out on Nimon announced Shadelands has historically been an economic engine so the hope is that this school site supports tenants that offer other higher paying jobs Nimon reported since the SPA purchased its building on Mitchell Drive with bonds earmarked for educational purposes they can t hold on to the building I m not sure what kind of offers they re getting Nimon mentioned but certainly given the level of interest and overall activity in the area we ll just have to see