Leon County Schools may sell, consolidate administrative buildings
Tallahassee Democrat | By: Tarah Jean | August 12, 2026
Key Points
- Leon County Schools is considering selling four properties to consolidate all its units into one location.
- The move aims to avoid millions of dollars in future maintenance costs for aging buildings.
- Superintendent Rocky Hanna will present a financial analysis for the plan by the end of December.
The wheels are turning on plans for Leon County Schools to sell off its administrative buildings – with an ultimate goal of consolidating divisions and facilities under one roof.
During an Aug. 11 board meeting, members unanimously voted for LCS Superintendent Rocky Hanna to prepare a financial analysis by the end of December for the potential sale of four school district building properties. The report will also outline the consolidation of all personnel currently housed in the facilities either through a purchase or long-term lease agreement of an existing property.
The buildings that may hit the market include the school district’s Administration East and West complexes on West Pensacola Street, the Aquilina Howell Center – where board meetings are held every two weeks – which is also located on West Pensacola Street, and the historic Bloxham building, which was originally built on Calhoun Street in 1923 as the Caroline M. Brevard Elementary School.
“Our district is very frugal,” Hanna told board members during an Aug. 10 meeting ahead of the Tuesday vote. “We do not spend money on our facilities… and I think this is an opportune time for us to have this discussion.”
“Financially, if it makes sense,” he added, “then it’s absolutely something we need to look into.”
Leon County Schools Superintendent Rocky Hanna reviews data regarding enrollment throughout the county during the LCSB retreat on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026.
The possible sell-off comes as the board confronts a grim budget reality and looks for ways to cut back on future maintenance expenses that would need to be made to upkeep its current properties in the next few years – including $500,000 for roof repairs, $750,000 for HVAC replacements, $130,000 for flooring and $150,000 to replace elevators.
In addition to the four buildings, the school district’s Technology and Information Services department building at the corner of Appleyard and Pensacola Street needs HVAC and roof replacements “real badly,” the department’s director Justin Williamson told the board. The repairs would cost a total of $900,000.
The board also discussed possibly selling the TIS building, which is valued at about $2 million. Hanna says the current tenant of one of the buildings on the parcel – Disc Village – has already made a formal offer to buy it. To relocate the TIS department, the board is eyeing the old Black News Channel building on Killearn Center Boulevard, which would cost about $3 million.
LCS board member Laurie Lawson Cox said selling the TIS building is a “no brainer,” and board member Rosanne Wood agreed, saying she thinks the district should “move quickly” on the plan.
“The easy thing to do is nothing and to just stay where we are,” Hanna told the board. “But easy is not the best thing to do, so we need to see what financially makes sense.”
Commercial real estate advisor Ed Murray, who is also principal of NAI TALCOR − which monitors and tracks housing and business real estate in Tallahassee − spoke before the board during its Aug. 10 meeting to share insight on available spaces for future relocations.
For the next few months, Hanna will work with Murray through a professional service contract as well as architects to put together cost analysis data before an informed decision is made on purchasing plans. The board gave Hanna a Dec. 31 deadline to work on the plan of action.
