Overview
The Anita Ferrales Coy Facility, formerly known as the John T. Allan Facility, is situated on an almost 18-acre site in East Austin. Learn more about the history of the site.
It is primarily home to the district’s Alternative Learning Center (ALC), which provides additional support to students who need to attend for a variety of reasons, including social and discipline challenges. Some students attend after a community-based incident. The ALC team provides academic instruction, reading intervention programs and character education to help students modify inappropriate behavior, achieve academically, and develop social skills to succeed at their home schools and in their communities and families.
In addition, the facility houses long-time »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD partners such as AVANCE-Austin, VELA and Urban Roots. The site also features athletic fields and outdoor play areas.
Current Status
On November 16, 2023, the »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD Board of Trustees unanimously approved the district entering into an exclusive agreement with , the selected development partner for the Coy site. [Review the .]
By working with an experienced housing development partner for the Coy site and leveraging the value of district-owned land through a long-term ground lease, the district can achieve the following:
- Deliver high quality housing that is affordable for new and experienced teachers, district staff and families to support both attraction/retention of culturally proficient professionals and enrollment growth.
- Provide a modernized facility for the ALC that supports state of the art instruction, while addressing cultural identities and safety, to better serve our students.
The NRP Group is currently working through the design and permit approval process. Construction is scheduled to commence in December 2025. For more information and updates, please visit .
To make way for construction, ALC will move into swing space at the Mendez Middle School campus in July 2025.
Updated April 2025
FAQ
The cost of living in »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵhas risen dramatically over the past several years and as »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD employees continue to move further out, they experience growing transportation expenses. Additionally, as families are priced out of Austin, enrollment at our schools drops, which puts a strain on our school budgets.
The partnership with The NRP Group offers an opportunity to deliver high quality housing that is affordable for district staff and families.
This partnership supports our goal to attract and retain culturally proficient professionals and to maintain or increase enrollment. The ability to live within the »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵcity limits could allow district teachers and staff to be part of the same community as the students and families they serve.
In addition, the district will use revenue generated from the site to construct a new facility for the Alternative Learning Center.
No, »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD is committed to maintaining ownership of the land. The district will enter into a long-term ground lease with our development partner, The NRP Group.
A ground lease is an agreement in which a tenant (NRP), is permitted to develop a piece of property during the lease period, after which the land and all improvements are turned over to the property owner (»Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD).
There is no cost to »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD. The district will lease the land to our development partner, which gives them the right to build the housing onsite. Our development partner will be solely responsible for the cost of constructing, managing and operating the housing and associated amenities.
No. »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD values its employees and aims to set the standard in Central Texas with its comprehensive compensation and benefits package. All construction, management and operations of the planned housing will be funded by The NRP Group. It will not require use of »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD funds.
Over the past two years, »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD hosted a series of community meetings and various input opportunities. Community members and stakeholders shared their community needs and provided ideas for how the Coy site could best respond to those needs. »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD also conducted a survey of all staff to gather information about employees’ experience with housing in Austin. The community around Coy expressed broad support for building affordable housing on this site.
Community presentations and meeting notes can be found on the repurposing Events page and summary reports of the community engagement can be found on the Submit Your Ideas page.
Visit to learn more about the repurposing process.
On November 16, 2023, the »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD Board of Trustees unanimously approved the district enter into an exclusive development agreement for the Coy site with .
NRP has been the leader in public-private housing partnerships across the State of Texas. Working with local governments and nonprofits, they have delivered nearly 30,000 affordable, mixed income, and market rate units in Texas.
On March 23, 2023, the »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD Board of Trustees unanimously passed a resolution to direct the Interim Superintendent to identify a development partner for the Coy site.
In June 2023, the District sought proposals from qualified and experienced real estate developers to redevelop the Coy site into a new mixed-income residential community offering housing that is affordable for our teachers, staff and families, as well as the community at large. Click here to review the request for proposal (RFP).
Proposals were received from fourteen firms. The NRP Group was selected in November 2023.
No, »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD will not act as the landlord. The NRP Group will be responsible for the construction, operations and maintenance of the buildings and green spaces. NRP will serve as the landlord and property manager while »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD maintains ownership of the land.
No, the rental housing will be an option for »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD teachers and staff but will not be mandatory. It will simply be a housing option for employees to consider.
No, people do not need to be employed by »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD to rent one of the apartments. However, »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD teachers and staff will be given priority when the apartments become available to lease. Ultimately the housing will be open to the general public in full compliance with all state and federal fair housing laws.
No, a person’s employment status with »Æ¹ÏÊÓƵISD will not impact their apartment lease or monthly rent. Regardless of employment status, all renters must meet defined income requirements.
Based on a preliminary concept plan, The NRP Group expects to build approximately 674 apartments that will be split between two buildings. The number of units will be finalized as NRP completes its design work.
Based on the current concept plan, there will be approximately 371 one-bedroom