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Wendell annexes 35 acres for future Wake County elementary school
Summary
The board approved annexation and rezoning of roughly 35.44 acres at 2621 NC Highway 97 to a Town Neighborhood Center district; Wake County Public Schools said the site will accommodate a future elementary school with capacity for roughly 800 students and that traffic studies are underway.
Wendell — The Wendell Town Board voted Wednesday to annex and rezone about 35.44 acres at 2621 North Carolina Highway 97 to accommodate a future Wake County elementary school.
Planning staff and Wake County Public Schools representatives told the board the district already owns the site and intends to build an elementary school with capacity for approximately 800 students; an entitlement lead from McAdams presented conceptual site plans showing access from Marshburn Road with a secondary emergency access to NC 97. Staff noted municipalities have limits on what off-site improvements they can require for a public school and that Wake County would pursue necessary traffic mitigation and coordination with NCDOT.
The site sits largely wooded and contains wetlands in places; staff said the parcel is large enough to pull buildings away from adjacent homes and to provide on-site bus and carpool queuing. Commissioners and residents who live adjacent to the proposed site focused questions on keeping traffic off neighborhood roads and ensuring adequate queuing and circulation on site. A nearby homeowner thanked the board for pursuing a school site rather than other types of development but urged careful attention to traffic impacts.
Staff and the planning board recommended approval; the board voted to annex and rezone the property by voice vote. The transcript records planning staff and Wake County representatives saying additional design work, traffic impact analysis and permitting will follow. Wake County officials said the school could open in 2030 if approvals and design proceed on schedule.
What happens next: Wake County and its consultants will complete the traffic impact analysis and site design; the town will process annexation and zoning steps and coordinate with NCDOT and county agencies on access and required off-site improvements.
