Dissatisfied with the options the school board provided, the James City County Board of Supervisors offered alternatives to using the James Blair site for a fourth middle school.
With four school board members — Ruth Larson (Berkeley), Jim Kelly (Jamestown), James Nickols (Stonehouse) and Heather Cordasco (Roberts) — in the audience at the supervisors’ Tuesday meeting, Supervisors Michael Hipple (Powhatan) and Kevin Onizuk (Jamestown) suggested two different options for Williamsburg-James City County Schools to consider.
The supervisors told the school board it wanted to explore options other than the four proposed by the school board two weeks ago at a joint work session of the two boards and Williamsburg’s City Council. The county’s supervisors would not commit to any of the options — all of which used James Blair as the site for a fourth middle school to alleviate expected capacity issues — or guarantee WJCC would receive the necessary funding.
The school board on March 18 voted 7-0 to support Superintendent Stephen Constantino’s preliminary budget, which included about $52 million in placeholder funds for a brand new 950-student middle school on the James Blair site and a central office on land currently owned by the city and county.
On Tuesday, Hipple proposed WJCC build a new high school on a 45-acre property for sale on Jolly Pond Road. One of the three existing high schools — Lafayette, Jamestown or Warhill — could be used as a middle school. Hipple’s plan, borne from the land’s owner contacting him to express interest in selling, would not require the demolition of any buildings.
He estimates his plan would cost about $10 million more than building a new middle school on the James Blair site, but saves the division from paying for a new central office space. Supervisor John McGlennon (Roberts) pointed out they would also have to take into account the cost of buying property and constructing the proper infrastructure on land not currently prepped for a building.
Onizuk said he supported Hipple’s plan but also advocated for an expansion at Hornsby Middle School to add 400 to 500 more students to the school’s capacity for about $13 million, which was explored before James Blair was proposed as the site for a new school.
With the state of the economy, Onizuk said adding on to an existing school made better economic sense even though some citizens may not like the idea of a large middle school.
“A building is a thing, but the education is the important thing,” Onizuk said, quoting a statement he and a friend came up with to describe how the majority of money for schools need to be put in the classroom rather than in a building.
Onizuk also said real estate agents have told him WJCC is not returning their calls regarding existing buildings that could be repurposed. The school board has said at recent meetings that leasing a building would take money from its operating budget – which funds teacher salaries, educational programming and other day-to-day operations within the school system – whereas construction projects are funded through its capital improvements program – a five-year budget plan for high-dollar projects.
Supervisor Mary Jones (Berkeley) said she applauded Hipple and Onizuk for thinking outside the box and appreciated their long-term approach to accommodating the growing school population.
Supervisor Jim Kennedy (Stonehouse) said the board needed to keep in mind other high-dollar projects the county would face in future capital improvement plans.
“No matter what you do here, there are going to be other situations coming before us,” Kennedy said. “We’re leaving ourselves very vulnerable. We’re using that credit card and we’re right at the limit.”
Kennedy also pointed out the school board will have the right to decide what to do with funding when it’s received; supervisors can only make recommendations.
McGlennon appreciated supervisors looking for innovative solutions, but said he was having a hard time understanding the conversation. He asked for a clear explanation of what the board wanted from the schools.
In the end, a majority of the supervisors said they supported keeping James Blair as a central office. Hipple asked the school board to address his plan to build a high school instead of a middle school to save money in the long run.
Related Coverage:
- WJCC School Board OKs Preliminary Budget with Placeholders for Middle School, Central Office
- JCC Supes to Wait Two Weeks Before Offering Opinion on Fourth Middle School, Central Office
- James Blair Still Recommended as Site for Fourth WJCC Middle School
- WJCC Superintendent’s Proposed Budget Gives Raise to Employees, Hires 16 Teachers
- WJCC to Wait on Population Projections Before Creating New Plan for Fourth Middle School
- JCC Committee Includes Fourth Middle School in List of Priority Projects
- WJCC Schools Plan to Keep James Blair as Office Space – For Now
- WJCC Board Asked to Delay Decision on Fourth Middle School for Further Planning
- City, JCC Outline Growth Areas to Help Determine Fourth Middle School Location
- WJCC Schools Seeking Public Input on Fourth Middle School
- WJCC Superintendent: Fourth Middle School Likely on James Blair Site
- WJCC Committee Has Started Researching Middle School Options
