When Will Palisades Students Return to Burned-Down Campuses?
This article was originally published March 26, 2025 on laist.com.
Debris removal is underway at three public schools burned in the Palisades Fire. Whether students can return to campuses in August depends on the outcomes of further environmental testing.
“ A lot of that will depend on the amount of repairs to the site-wide infrastructure and how long it will take to make those repairs,” said Chief Facilities Executive Krisztina Tokes in a presentation to an LAUSD board committee last week.
The January fire damaged two Los Angeles Unified elementary schools and an independent charter high school on district property. Tokes said the district will know by May whether students can return to all three campuses in temporary classrooms by the start of the next school year.
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The timeline to permanently rebuild the campuses is expected to take up to five years, but each campus is unique in its level of damage and student population.
For example, the enrollment at Marquez Charter Elementary has dropped 37% in the past five years.
“That school has been in that community for generations,” Tokes said. “We now have the opportunity to reimagine what that school will be like for generations to come.”
Superintendent Alberto Carvalho previously committed $725 million to rebuild the three schools, which range from partially to totally destroyed. The district anticipates presenting preliminary rebuild proposals to the Bond Oversight Committee and the Board of Education for approval this spring.
The district plans to use money from the $9 billion bond voters approved in November to help pay for the rebuild, but also anticipates some reimbursement from its insurer and FEMA.
“None of these funds are given to us upfront to spend down,” Tokes said. “We have to spend the money and then seek reimbursement.”
Here’s what we know about each campus:
Marquez Charter Elementary
What’s the damage? The campus is a “total loss.” More than three dozen classrooms, administration buildings, the school’s auditorium and playground burned down.
Where are the students? About 300 students have been relocated to Nora Sterry Elementary in West Los Angeles.
What’s happening now? Fire debris clean-up was completed in mid-March.
What’s next? Assessment of the remaining structures and utilities. LAUSD will decide by May whether students will return to the campus in portable classrooms in August 2025.
Palisades Charter Elementary
What’s the damage? About 70% of the campus was destroyed, including 17 classrooms, the multipurpose room and play equipment.
Where are the students? About 400 students have been relocated to Brentwood Science Magnet.
What’s happening now? Fire debris clean-up was completed in mid-March.
What’s next? Assessment of the remaining structures and utilities. LAUSD will decide by May whether students will return to the campus in portable classrooms in August 2025.
Palisades Charter High School
What’s the damage? About 30% of the campus was destroyed, including 21 classrooms, storage facilities and the track and field.
Where are the students? About 2,400 are in virtual classes — about 450 students have left the school since the fire.
What’s happening now? Fire debris clean-up is complete. The school plans to temporarily relocate students to the old Sears building in downtown Santa Monica by mid-April. “It's been the determination that we can all come back together here and have a sense of normalcy… curtailing learning loss as well as mental distress that people are experiencing on Zoom,” said Joe Lin, the school’s chief business officer. Lin said insurance will pay for $10 million of the estimated $11 million it will cost to renovate the former department store.
What’s next? Assessment of the remaining structures and utilities. LAUSD plans to notify the school by May whether the campus will be ready for students to return to campus in portable classrooms for the new school year. The school could also extend its time in the Sears building.
