Residents, council members raise concerns about potential sale of Delaine Elementary School

Councilman Carlton B. Washington presented community concerns at the March 14 meeting about a potential sale of Delaine Elementary School and urged that the Sumter School District consult local residents before moving forward.

Washington told Council that S.C. Budget Proviso 1.113 governs the transfer or sale of surplus school property and noted the building currently serves as a polling location for voter registration, is used by the Sumter Sheriff’s Office for training and provides refrigeration and storage for the Sumter School District. He said he had shared a letter to the school district and that Liberty STEAM Charter School, through counsel Turner Caudell, had expressed interest in purchasing the property. Washington said the Delaine community would prefer the county or community groups use the facility as a community center, citing the building’s commercial cafeteria, large gymnasium, walking area for seniors and playground.

"The school is being used for the following: 1. Voting Registration as a polling location. 2. Sumter Sheriff’s Office for training. 3. Sumter School District — refrigeration, storage," Washington said, summarizing current uses.

Public commenters reinforced those concerns. Former Councilman Roland Robinson said he attended Delaine School and asked Council to support keeping the facility in community use: "The community does not want this to happen." Elizabeth Kilgore gave historical context, saying members of the Black community donated land for the school during segregation and urged preservation. A community meeting on the matter was announced as planned within the next week; Washington said the School Board met on March 12 and took no action on the matter.

Other public commenters used the three-minute public-comment window to raise separate local concerns. Tasha Gardner, a member of the City-County Litter Advisory Board, promoted a March 25 litter kickoff and described recent shootings in her neighborhood, saying investigators collected over 25 shell casings and asking the county to help provide more deputies to high-crime areas. Kennedy Hastie asked the council to address paving for three unpaved roads in his Sumter-Pinewood area neighborhood, saying poor road conditions place hardship on students and families.

Council members noted that property owned by the school district falls under the district’s authority and that Sumter County Council has limited jurisdiction over school property decisions. Council received Washington’s materials as information; no formal county action was taken at the meeting.

Next steps noted in the meeting record: a community meeting was expected to occur within a week and the School Board had recently discussed the property (March 12) with no action reported at that time.