Isle of Wight leaders press forward on Westside Elementary replacement as repairs mount

Isle of Wight County supervisors and the Isle of Wight County School Board on Oct. 7 discussed plans to replace Westside Elementary School after staff showed a video and outlined years of recurring water leaks, plumbing failures and a deteriorating roof.

The discussion moved quickly from the school’s immediate safety and maintenance problems to capacity planning and where a replacement would sit in the county-wide capital improvement plan (CIP). School staff asked the school board Thursday to allow architects to prepare initial design and cost estimates that the boards could use when seeking funding.

School staff and the principal described repeating leaks, damaged ceiling tiles, failing restroom plumbing and classrooms that sometimes must be relocated during storms. “When it rains at West Side … We have to put a lot of caution signs, a lot of buckets to collect water, and it really becomes a hazard for students and teachers and staff,” Matt Johnson, principal of Westside Elementary School, said in the video shown to both boards.

Dr. Coleman, a school division official who presented repair spending and estimates, told the joint meeting that repairs and upgrades over the past two to three years total “roughly about 800 to 900,000.” He said the division’s earlier roof estimate of $1.7 million has escalated to $4.5 million for a complete roof replacement, and that a full renovation to extend the current building another 20–30 years could cost in the roughly $40 million to $50 million range.

Why it matters: Westside’s condition affects student safety, day-to-day learning and district capacity. Board members said a replacement could also be used to rebalance enrollment at nearby schools that are at or nearing capacity.

What staff recommended and the next steps: School staff and their architect (RRMM, under contract) plan to prepare initial architectural design and cost estimates and a timeline. Dr. Kramer, a school official, said the process from design to opening typically runs about 24 to 30 months. The school board will consider authorizing the architect engagement at its Thursday meeting; staff said that authorization would be cost-free to the division because RRMM is under contract.

Capacity and zoning ties: Lynn Briggs, a school division planner, reviewed an updated capacity spreadsheet and a new division alignment regulation that defines elementary schools as pre-K through grade 5. Briggs emphasized that planned and under-construction housing will push utilization up at several schools. Under-construction development alone is projected to increase Westside’s utilization to about 88%, Briggs said; the regulation calls for formal planning when utilization reaches 85%.

Officials said a replacement Westside would be designed as a pre-K–5 elementary school and could be used to relieve pressure at nearby Carrollton and Hardy elementaries by reassigning zones. School staff noted that program-specific classroom needs — for example smaller special-education classrooms or CTE spaces with lower legal caps — affect how many students a building can actually serve.

Funding questions and the CIP: The school board’s 5–10 year CIP lists a replacement figure of $50 million for Westside; speakers acknowledged that escalation makes such estimates uncertain. Several supervisors and staff compared that figure to recent projects elsewhere (one example cited: a roughly $61 million elementary in a neighboring jurisdiction) and urged the schools to refine real numbers before the board of supervisors incorporates them into its budget and bonding plans. The county administrator said staff can begin more targeted site conversations once the boards give a “green light” to proceed.

Grants and other external funding: School staff recalled a recent state school construction grant program that initially proposed larger awards (cited figures ranged from about $2.8 million down to about $2.3–$2.4 million for that earlier program). Staff also mentioned a low-interest loan program that some jurisdictions had seen converted to grant funding and said they would investigate whether similar state assistance (sometimes labeled SCAP or school-construction programs) might be available.

Timeline and public process: Officials said even if funding arrived quickly, the project would require site selection, public hearings and multiple design phases. Staff indicated the Tishler Bice study — a consultant capacity/site analysis under way for both county and schools — is nearing completion for the school portion and should be finalized soon; the county version is being aligned to match the school study.

Votes at a glance: The meeting opened with a formal approval of the joint meeting agenda. The board recorded the vote as a roll-call approval of the open-session agenda; votes captured in the minutes show Colic, Cunningham, Perkins, Wooster and Marsh voting yes. The motion passed.

A note on immediate repairs: School staff listed multiple recent repair items and estimated costs: a drainage overhaul ($52,000), cafeteria repair ($70,000), chiller/boiler work ($38,000), gym HVAC work ($30,000 and $20,000), recurring sewer-line repairs and repeated mold testing (about $3,000 per clearance test). Staff warned that a major sewer pipe running under the campus has burst twice and that a future failure under the building’s floor could force a prolonged closure depending on health-department determinations.

What’s next: The school board is expected to consider asking staff to proceed with architect-led initial designs and cost estimates at its next meeting. If authorized, staff said they would return to both boards with more precise costings, a refined timeline and site recommendations from the consultant study.