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Dorchester 2 outlines Plan B as Yerby tract buildout, wetlands and road costs delay elementary
Summary
Superintendent Brian Dougherty told the board the Yerby tract site included in the referendum is encumbered by wetlands and access-cost issues that would likely delay a new elementary until about 2031, prompting staff to propose adding classrooms to nearby schools as a Plan B.
Superintendent Brian Dougherty told the board the Yerby tract originally included in the district's referendum faces substantial obstacles that would delay an elementary school well beyond the district's near-term needs. He said the planned site is a wetland that would require construction of an access road likely to cost "probably over a million dollars," and that, based on the developer's timeline, homebuilding would not begin in earnest until 2028 and a school would not be ready until about 2031.
The district presented a Plan B that would reallocate the elementary-school dollars set aside for the Yerby area into capacity additions at two existing schools: a 40-classroom addition at Knightsville (net +20 classrooms after demolition for a road easement) and roughly 12 to 15 new brick-and-mortar classrooms at William Reeves. The proposal would remove 30 existing trailers at Knightsville, expand its cafeteria and multipurpose space, and reconfigure the campus to address a planned Orangeburg Road five-lane expansion that affects the current bus loop.
Dougherty said the district still "wants that land there" and has told the developer it remains interested, but that the board must be prudent with referendum dollars and respond to growth that will materialize sooner than the Yerby build-out. Facilities staff noted the district expects about 1,400 homes in the Yerby development at final build-out but emphasized uncertainty in timing and the permitting, surveying and design that remain undone.
Board members framed the presentation as planning, not a final decision. Several members praised staff for the analysis and widespread input from facilities, planning and school leaders. Mr. Farnsworth and others said the Plan B was a thoughtful response to circumstances including the Orangeburg Road project, while Mr. Lee and other trustees asked staff to continue pursuing the Yerby site in parallel if the developer can accelerate delivery.
The district did not hold a formal vote on construction funding for Plan B at this meeting. Officials said the Knightsville and William Reeves additions would be funded from the referendum allocation for the Yerby-area elementary and that more detailed design, permitting and cost estimates would follow.
