St. Mary's County Public Schools presents 10-year facilities master plan emphasizing HVAC, roofs and water systems

St. Mary's County Public Schools officials outlined a 10-year educational facilities master plan on Aug. 11 that prioritizes systemic infrastructure projects — primarily HVAC, roofs and water/sewer systems — as the first step toward state school construction funding.

Kim Howe, director of the Department of Capital Planning for St. Mary's County Public Schools, told the Planning Commission that the master plan is “the first step in our process to obtaining school construction funding for projects.” She described the document as an “identification of needs” that feeds the state and local capital improvement programs and supports grant requests.

The plan, developed from maintenance records, state assessments and 10-year enrollment projections, emphasizes life-cycle replacement work. Howe said the county is focused on replacing short‑lived components first — for example, chillers and rooftop units — while pursuing opportunities to secure state grants and other funding. She noted the Interagency Commission on…