Onslow County Board of Education adopts capital improvement plan to address projected school overcrowding

The Onslow County Board of Education voted to adopt a capital improvement plan at a special-called meeting, directing staff to pursue funding and begin implementation of a multi-year program of new school construction, additions and support-facility projects to address projected enrollment growth, presenter Dr. Gardner said.

The plan, based on enrollment projections from the Operations Research and Education Laboratory at NC State and county planning data, identifies urgent needs in the Dixon, Richlands and White Oak areas and prioritizes a new elementary school in the Dixon/Sneads Ferry area, expansions at Richlands High and several middle- and elementary-school projects. The board approved the proposal by voice vote with no opposition.

Dr. Gardner told the board the district has historically grown about 1% a year and now expects growth to increase to roughly 1.5% annually. The district’s forecast projects roughly 1,500 additional elementary students by about 2034 (about two elementary schools’ worth), roughly 750–800 additional middle-school students and about 500 additional high-school students. “If you don’t have a plan, you’re planning to fail,” Dr. Gardner said, summarizing the rationale for adopting a formal capital plan now.

The presentation recommended first pursuing redistricting where feasible to use existing seats before building, but Dr. Gardner said redistricting will not resolve all capacity shortfalls because some neighboring schools are already at capacity. He identified Dixon Elementary, Dixon Middle and Dixon High School as among the district’s most urgent needs, saying Dixon High’s oldest occupied building dates to 1954 and that some noninstructional spaces — including a cafeteria and a roughly 250-seat auditorium — cannot accommodate current student volumes.

Planned or proposed projects listed in the presentation include a new elementary school serving the Dixon/Sneads Ferry area (presented as “Southern Elementary”), elementary- and middle-school construction in the White Oak/Piney Green area, middle- and high-school expansions in the Richlands area (driven by the Stateside development), and targeted classroom additions at Dixon Middle (a planned seven-classroom addition) and Southwest Middle School. The district also identified noninstructional capital priorities: a new bus garage and transportation support facility, a replacement or renovation of the child-nutrition and support center and a larger education support center to accommodate virtual-school and administrative growth.

Dr. Gardner provided cost context in 2024 dollars, showing an illustrative new elementary school price of about $49,500,000 and advising planners to assume an approximately 4% annual construction-cost inflation rate for multi-year budgeting. He also described operational pressures: “We have over 200 yellow buses that travel over 3,000,000 miles a year,” he said, noting the district’s current maintenance facilities lack adequate lifts, indoor bays and a fully wind-rated, ADA-compliant child-nutrition building.

Board members who spoke thanked staff for the presentation and noted the plan is a “living” document that can be updated as conditions change. A mover (recorded in the meeting transcript as an unnamed board member) made the motion to adopt the plan; Dr. Gardner seconded the motion. The board adopted the plan by voice vote with no opposition and directed staff to move forward in securing funding and implementing the priorities presented.

Next steps the presentation and board action established include continued coordination with Onslow County planning and the county commission on development and funding, further analysis and phasing for large projects (including phasing Dixon High School work to avoid program interruption), and continued use of NC State’s enrollment projections to refine timing. Funding sources and specific project timelines were not specified at the meeting.