Lake Oswego School District's $4 million offer to buy the SouthLake Church property near Lakeridge High School has not been accepted, Superintendent Jennifer Schiele disclosed Friday, Sept. 18.

The offer included rent-free use of the building for SouthLake through June 2027. The church also declined the district's request for a standard property inspection, and all communication between the two sides now runs through SouthLake's legal counsel, Schiele wrote in an op-ed published in the Lake Oswego Review.

Talks have stalled.

The developments mark a significant escalation in a months-long standoff over 1271 Overlook Drive, a property directly across from Lakeridge High School that the district wants to convert into facilities funded by a voter-approved November 2025 bond.

How the dispute started

The property came on the market in March 2026 when its previous owner, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, listed it for sale. The district submitted what it called the highest bid at $3.4 million. The seller's out-of-state corporate office accepted SouthLake Church's $3.25 million offer instead, according to Schiele.

SouthLake, a West Linn congregation along Stafford Road, has said it invested $700,000 into the building since the spring purchase, the West Linn Tidings reported in August.

The Lake Oswego School Board voted unanimously Aug. 10 to declare the property a public necessity and authorize the path toward eminent domain if negotiations failed.

What the district wants to build

The district plans to use the site for a purpose-built facility for its Community Transition Program (CTP), which serves graduates ages 18–21 with moderate to severe developmental delays. CTP has operated in temporary, converted spaces for more than a decade, according to Schiele.

The site would also house STEM and career-technical education space requiring heavy industrial and robotics equipment, additional parking, gymnasium space and a replacement records vault. Schiele wrote that repurposing the existing building would save millions compared with new construction.

Oregon law restricts bond dollars to long-term physical assets voters authorized. Bond funds cannot pay rent or improve property the district does not own, Schiele noted.

SouthLake's position

SouthLake lead pastor Jonathan Simons has pushed back publicly. In a Tuesday, Sept. 15 op-ed in the Lake Oswego Review, Simons wrote that the church has served Lake Oswego for more than 40 years and that Lakeridge students already use SouthLake's parking lot free of charge. He said the church is open to sharing its building for district programs.

"A last resort should come last," Simons wrote in a Sunday, Sept. 13 letter published by The Oregonian, urging the district to explore collaborative alternatives before pursuing eminent domain.

What comes next

Schiele wrote that the district still prefers a negotiated deal. "Our preference remains what it has been from the beginning: reaching a voluntary, fair agreement through open negotiation," she wrote. "Eminent domain remains a last resort."

The district has not filed a formal eminent domain claim but is working to obtain an appraisal of the property, a required step in the condemnation process, according to an editor's note accompanying Simons' Tuesday, Sept. 15 op-ed. No timeline for a next board action or legal filing has been announced.