This is how the campus will look in August.
About 50 people gathered to hear Corpus Christi Principal Paola Sessarego explain the plans for the elementary school to reopen in the fall of 2026.
As people gathered in the entrance foyer that leads to the main office (unburned) and to the parish hall (burned) on February 23, they could see construction workers in the yard and the classrooms.
Although the January 7, 2025, Palisades Fire destroyed the church, rectory and parish hall, the two-story classroom building was left intact, but smoke damaged.
Students and families were forced to find other schools to finish the school year and the 2025-2026 school year. Principal Sessarego kept up with her students by visiting these schools and at each school she was asked, “What do you do to these kids at Corpus? These kids are so well-behaved, so kind.”
Sessarego told those assembled that “this is the spirit we have at this campus.” She said community service was important because it took the focus away from “me, me, me.”
Now, plans are underway, not only to restore the campus but to make it better, the principal said.
Classrooms are being remediated and new windows installed.
The classrooms have been taken down to the studs, the windows will be replaced and equipped with Hepa filters and ozone modules and “we’re adding a STEM classroom,” Sessarego said. She noted the playground will be replaced and there will be grass, which is “more kid friendly.”
The conceptual site plan shows that classrooms will have a courtyard view with wider room for play.
The classrooms are the buildings in grey, which are still standing. The red building will be the new church. Across the street, a new rectory will be built and a new preschool. There will be a parking lot.
The area that served as a church parking lot, which was also utilized as a playground, will now be the location for the church – at the northernmost point of the property.
The Parish Hall (in blue) and Church administrative offices (yellow) will be north of the school and next to the church. The principal is hoping the Hall can easily be put up, so it could be used as a site for mass.
Across the street, at the site of two former homes, a rectory and a nunnery (both burned), a replacement rectory will be built. A new preschool building will be built next to the rectory. The remainder of the lot will serve as parking.
Sessarego said that “more than a school and church, the idea is to bring the community back.”
And “the new church will be a more traditional church,” she added.
A parent asked about construction at Ralphs, a large supermarket and parking lot on one side of the Corpus complex that had burned. Sessarego said they had been told the grocery story wasn’t starting construction for about five years.
The principal said that most of the teachers want to come back. She said teachers and administrators are hoping students, who might be settled in other locations, will return to their home school this fall.
“We want you to see the vision and go on this journey with us,” she said.
Monsignor Liam Kidney was in attendance and asked for a timeline. He said, “Our focus is getting school started.” The classrooms will be done by August.
Next, for construction will probably be the preschool and rectory. The overall timeline for everything to be completed is estimated to be five years, with the church the last structure finished.
“It’s a huge complex we are building,” Kidney said.
To apply for the 2026-2027 school year, visit: click here.
Monseigneur Liam Kidney welcomed parishioners to see the school plans.