The City of Prince George and an unnamed applicant are reaching out to Haldi Road homeowners to get their feedback on a proposal for the school.
The city stressed that no application has been made but an area resident has said they've received notice that someone is interested in purchasing the building.
"We have suggested that the applicant and the planning staff will meet with two or three key individuals in the Haldi Road area," said Ian Wells, city general manager of planning and development.
That could require a rezoning request with the city.
"We're working with them to see ... if they have any concerns with the proposed land use," said Wells, in order to "gather their input for the proposal to see if they can address any concerns prior to proceeding with a rezoning application."
Wells said it was too early to comment on when a proposal would be submitted to the city or what type of rezoning would be required.
"We're nowhere close to that yet."
Haldi Road school became a contentious site in early 2013 when it won city council approval to house the Northern Supportive Recovery Centre for Women.
In order to proceed with the 30-bed facility, council had to vote in favour of an amendment to the official community plan and rezoning bylaw to facilitate the creation of the centre in the rural residential neighbourhood.
The proposal weathered two separate legal challenges but area homeowners remained strongly opposed to the concept.
In May 2015, the centre's board said it had ceased efforts to convert the school on the Leslie Road property into a recovery centre.
But the site's reputation didn't necessarily inform the decision to consult with residents.
These sorts of conversations are the norm for the city, Wells said.
"When we're looking at something that's a change, I think it's just good governance to follow this model. We've done that with other recent amendments.
"We've done two rezonings and things like that (where) we've gone to the neighbourhoods," he said.
"We do this quite a bit."
Wells wasn't sure when the planning department had set up a meeting, but an email Saturday from area resident Laura Jagodnik said she and two others had a "tentative meeting" on Wednesday.
"I have been contacted by the city planning department that there is a potential buyer who wants to purchase the school but not for Community Care Facility Therapeutic," said Jagodnik, who was the spokeswoman for the neighbours opposed to the 2013 bylaw changes.
"We have no idea what the proposal is."
Jagodnik did not respond to an email request for comment Wednesday.
-- with files from Mark Nielsen
