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Newport News schools outline $371 million five-year CIP; $21 million state grant awarded for Huntington Middle
Summary
School division staff reviewed the master facilities plan, recent state grants and the capital improvement plan. The division reported $21 million from the state for Huntington Middle School (about 30% of that project), additional state grants for safety projects, city capital allocations and continuing needs for HVAC, roofs and bus replacements.
The Newport News School Division presented its adopted five‑year capital improvement plan and a recent string of state and local funding awards at a joint meeting with the City Council.
Division staff said the state School Construction Assistance Program awarded $21,000,000 to help fund construction of Huntington Middle School, which the presentation described as roughly 30% of that project’s cost. The division also reported a $2,100,000 state award for a safe-and-secure entrance at Yates Elementary School and $1,500,000 for safety and security upgrades at Richneck Elementary School. Division staff thanked city officials for assistance in submitting the state applications.
The school division’s master facilities plan (adopted August 2022) lists priorities including safe-and-secure entrances, deferred maintenance, renovations at Warwick and Denbigh High Schools and replacing portable classrooms. The board-approved FY2025–29 request listed $141,900,000 in prioritized needs for the first year; presenters said the city approved capital funding for FY25 that included $10,000,000 designated to several school projects and $2,000,000 for bus replacement. The city also provided $3,100,000 in additional cash capital: $2,000,000 for a 1-to-1 device initiative and $1,100,000 to support staff salaries and clear backpacks, the presentation said.
Major capital items discussed in the presentation included design and renovation at Warwick High School (design funding shown at $2,800,000 for FY25), an estimated $58,800,000 for Denbigh High School renovation and a $5,000,000 HVAC replacement budget listed for Booker T. Washington. Metro High School HVAC work was shown as approximately $16,000,000. Presenters said the five‑year request totals about $370,900,000.
Division staff said they maximized allowable uses of federal ESSR(A) funds for capital HVAC upgrades when permitted, reporting $31,800,000 used for HVAC replacements under those rules. The presentation detailed bus replacement costs and the division’s fleet: presenters cited a March 2024 price of about $163,000 for a 71‑passenger propane bus and said the division operates the largest propane bus fleet in the Commonwealth. The division noted that future purchased buses will include air conditioning and that the division has installed propane distribution at two lots to support the fleet.
Officials highlighted transparency tools available online — a master plan and a capital improvement dashboard that lists project age, funding source and status for each school — and said monthly updates on the Huntington Middle School project are archived publicly.
Council members asked whether the division had considered changing school capacity (for example expanding a high school to absorb declines at another). Division presenters said Heritage is the only high school with meaningful spare capacity and that most capacity needs are addressed by removing portables rather than adding permanent seats. Council and board members agreed to coordinate earlier in the budget/CIP cycle to align city and school timelines and to use council liaisons and committees to facilitate that work.
