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Stafford supervisors approve new Hartwood elementary school; second school deferred to Aug. 20
Summary
The Stafford County Board of Supervisors approved a conditional use permit for Elementary School 18 near Truslow Road but deferred action on Elementary School 19 at Brookpoint until Aug. 20 after residents raised traffic concerns. School officials said both three‑story prototypes will serve about 1,070 students and are included in the county capital plan.
The Stafford County Board of Supervisors voted 6–0 (one absent) on June 18 to approve a conditional use permit that allows a new three‑story elementary school on Truslow Road to exceed the A‑1 zoning height limit. The approved design for Elementary School 18 is approximately 131,000 square feet with a design capacity of 1,070 students; the school will sit on about 35 acres of a larger 127‑acre parcel in the Hartwood District.
Planning staff and the applicant told the board the increase in building height responds to nonresidential ceiling and mechanical needs for a high‑occupancy school building and is a component of a three‑story prototype the school division is adopting for cost and operational efficiency. Evelyn, the planning presenter, explained that staff recommends limiting most building heights to 47 feet, with roof access stairwells allowed up to 57 feet, and requiring setbacks (200 feet from Truslow Road; 100 feet from Stafford Plaza Drive; 350 feet from nearby Cardinal Forest homes) and preserved vegetation buffers.
Jeff Harvey, representing Stafford County Public Schools, said the school sites are funded and under site‑plan and permit review. “Both would be three‑story buildings of 131,000 square feet with a design capacity for 1,070 students,” he told the board. Applicant representatives and planning staff said buffers, tree preservation and limits on building‑mounted light heights would be used to mitigate visual and neighborhood impacts.
Board members and several residents asked detailed questions about traffic impacts and VDOT review. Jason Towery, a schools representative, said the division is coordinating with VDOT and that proposed internal circulation changes — including a connecting loop and use of an underused interconnecting road behind Brookpoint — are expected to reduce some queueing and travel times when completed.
On Elementary School 19, which would be colocated with Brookpoint High School, residents and board members emphasized existing congestion on Blackhawk Drive and Courthouse Road. Residents described daily traffic, parking near driveways and overflow impacts. School staff said the project includes an internal connector road and that the division budgeted enabling costs (tennis‑court relocation, roadway connections) as part of the CIP. After debate the board considered a substitute motion to defer action; the board voted to defer action on Elementary School 19 to Aug. 20 (subsequent roll adjustments produced a final recorded vote of 5‑1 in favor of deferral, with one member absent).
School representatives warned the board that delaying the permit process could shift construction windows and risk summer work and critical enabling projects; they said a two‑month delay could ripple into later start dates and potentially higher costs. The board will revisit Elementary School 19 after the public notice and advertising requirements are met and additional traffic/VDOT coordination materials are provided.
The board’s action on Item 18 was memorialized in resolution R24‑165. The deferral of Item 19 was set by a separate motion and will be relisted for the Aug. 20 meeting with new advertisement as required by state notice rules.
