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Presenter outlines plan to build new school on Edgerly Field; questioner flags access and field trade-offs
Summary
Design presenters described an option to build a new school on Edgerly Field, placing the building at the site's highest, most remote point. Presenters said the option would avoid modular classrooms and allow a detached pool site, but it raises community access and loss-of-field trade-offs due to parking needs.
Presenter described an option to construct a completely new school on Edgerly Field, placing the building at the highest and most remote portion of the site. The presenter said the siting would make the school "a school on a hill," and emphasized trade-offs between visibility and community access.
The presentation emphasized that, unlike some other options, this configuration "does not require the use of modular classrooms," because the new structure would be built off the existing building footprint and therefore avoid impacting current classrooms during construction. The presenter also confirmed the plan shows a detached pool site near the building and said the district could consider building a new pool before demolishing the existing facility.
Meeting participants discussed circulation and access concerns raised by community advisory teams, with the presenter acknowledging that moving the building far back on the site could make it harder for members of the community to reach the school. The presenter framed the elevated siting as potentially "aspirational" but noted that there would be "a lot of great change to navigate" along routes from parking and drop-off areas up to the building.
The plan includes an at-grade parking option or a below-grade parking structure with a field or stadium above. The presenter warned that using some area for parking would reduce available field space: "We wouldn't be able to fit, say, a track in a football field, on that particular area if we're have to use some of that for surface parking," and recommended that a single multipurpose field could be prioritized instead.
No formal votes, motions, or decisions were recorded in the transcript regarding this option. The discussion focused on design trade-offs: avoiding temporary modular classrooms versus potential reduced accessibility for families and the loss or reconfiguration of athletic fields.
Next steps and any formal decisions were not specified in the record.
