The building on eBay Avenue in Draper, once home to the online resale marketplace’s regional office, is about to become a specialized high school.
Canyons School District’s Board of Directors voted Tuesday night to approve buying the building for $50 million in order to turn it into the Canyons Center of Innovation, a 36-acre high school aimed at “training students for the 21st century workplace,” according to an announcement from the district.
The school will focus on career and technical education (CTE) and offer classes in such subjects as robotics, engineering and business.
“The vision is to elevate all the programs that are preparing students for the workforce pipeline,” Canyons Superintendent Dr. Rick Robins said in a public announcement Tuesday. “We see this center as the ultimate experience for students and to lift our mission of ensuring our students are truly ready for the demands of college and careers when they walk across the graduation stage.”
The new-to-Canyons facility will replace the district’s Technical Education Center, which officials say the district has outgrown. Buying eBay’s campus, with its already built modern office building and room on which to build more, will cost half as much as building a new campus, according to district Business Administrator Leon Wilcox — $230 per square foot, compared to $500.
The building will come fully furnished and equipped with “cutting-edge technology,” a gym and a commercial kitchen, according to a presentation given to the school board.
Demand for career and technical education programming is increasing, according to the district; enrollment at the current campus has increased 54% since 2021 and one-third of the classes have a waitlist. Moving into eBay’s old office, district officials said, is a way to carry on the company’s tech legacy and help build a workforce in the heart of Silicon Slopes.
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Canyons School District announced it will purchase the former eBbay offices and campus, shown here in Draper on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024.
“The timing of the availability of the property coincides seamlessly with the region’s economic trends and the district’s long-range and strategic plans,” said Board of Education President Amber Shill.
The campus is also within walking distance of a Frontrunner station and will be a neighbor to The Point Innovation District, on the former state prison site.
Canyons School District has rebuilt or renovated 23 schools since it was created in 2009.
eBay put its former office on the market in May this year. In a statement sent to Utah media Tuesday night, the company said it is still “committed to Salt Lake City” and is still looking for a new home in Utah. It also celebrated the sale and the buyer.
“As a global commerce leader, who continues to innovate for our community of buyers and sellers, we’re excited that the Draper site could become a hub of learning, designed to cultivate the tech leaders of the future,” eBay’s statement said.
Colliers broker Brandon Fugal told Building Salt Lake in May that eBay was “simply going to right-size and transition to space that is more appropriate for their current size and footprint.”
Fugal no longer represents eBay, a company spokesperson said in an email to The Salt Lake Tribune Friday. The eBay office in Utah currently has 1,030 employees and 380 contractors, the spokesperson said.
In 2011, eBay employed about 1,400 Utahns and state economic officials approved a tax incentive of up to $38.2 million for the company’s expansion in Draper, which opened in 2013. At that point, eBay employed about 1,800 workers in Draper, providing customer service, technology development for software tools, and operations that included human resources, legal and finance services.
In exchange for the state’s support, eBay promised to create 2,200 jobs by 2031. While that contract is still active, state records show eBay has collected between zero and 25 percent of the incentive.
In January, the San Jose, Calif.-based company announced it was shedding 1,000 jobs, or about 9% of its workforce, amid a “challenging macroeconomic environment.”
Board member Holly Neibaur was the sole opposing vote to the property purchase Tuesday night. She said the district should have pursued a general obligation bond, which have allowed for public input and required voter approval.
Instead, the district is paying for the campus with a mix of capital funds, proceeds from the sales of district-owned properties, and lease revenue bonds, for which Utah law mandates only that districts hold a public hearing and give notice of that hearing.
But Neibaur said she will “move forward with energy” to make the new campus “as innovative and progressive as it can be.”
CSD tentatively plans to begin the process of issuing the bonds in September and hold a public hearing in October. The bonds are expected to be issued in November with a closing on the purchase in December.
District officials said the campus may also house a “vocational program for adults with disabilities, an employee health and wellness clinic, and a child-care center for CSD employees.”
The district said it is aiming for a fall 2026 grand opening. Until then, Board Vice President Amanda Oakes said there will be “plenty of opportunity for public input on programming at the center and other public uses.”
Correction • 2:15 p.m. Aug. 23, 2024: A previous version of this story included an incorrect number of current eBay employees.
Shannon Sollitt is a Report for America corps member covering business accountability and sustainability for The Salt Lake Tribune. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by clicking here.