The Los Osos measure to support purchasing a school property with a parcel tax was losing, according to the early vote counts from the SLO County Clerk-Recorder’s Office.
The counts released at 1 a.m. on June 3 show 1,197 no votes and 1,097 yes votes.
The proposed parcel tax would support the Los Osos Community Services District (CSD) acquiring Sunnyside School to build a community park by charging $185 per parcel annually for 15 years, before dropping to $100 per year. The tax would decrease sooner if the CSD pays off the full purchase price of the property earlier.
The money would help the CSD purchase Sunnyside School from the San Luis Coastal Unified School District, which closed the school in 2001 and has since leased it out for various purposes.
Los Osos resident Jeff Edwards said that the measure was ill conceived.
“It failed to recognize the existing taxpayer obligations in Los Osos,” Edwards said. We’re heavily taxed for a variety of purposes, and in Los Osos, we have two compelling needs that are confronting us. They are both fire protection and water resource development.”
But resident Gary J. Freiberg finds value in a park paid for by the tax.
“I care very much about our community, and I feel very strongly that for today and the future we need to provide open space and recreation for the community,” Freiberg said. “A park is free and the services would be to many aspects of the community.”
Pandora Nash-Karner, who served 34 years as a county park commissioner before retiring, supported the measure. She said it was too bad that the measure was trailing in early vote counts, adding that “it is tragic to lose this opportunity.”
“Parks are a basic need in a healthy society, not only for recreation, but for mental health, exercise, and socialization,” Nash-Karner said. ∆
This article appears in Pride 2026.
