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District unveils Educational Facilities Master Plan, highlights five large capital projects and enrollment projections
Summary
Washington County Public Schools staff presented the annual EFMP showing facility condition and enrollment projections, proposed five major capital projects (Downsville Pike completion, Jonathan Hager addition, Clear Spring feasibility study, two elementary replacements) and outlined near-term systemic renovation requests and a strategy to keep projections within state tolerance to maximize funding.
Washington County Public Schools staff presented the district's annual Educational Facilities Master Plan (EFMP), summarizing building conditions, enrollment projections and a 10-year list of major facility needs.
Chief Operating Officer Mr. Pru introduced the presentation and described the EFMP as the district's roadmap for capital needs. "We are entrusted to maintain nearly 1,100 acres of property and nearly 3.5 million square foot of building under roof," he told the board, framing the scale of the district's facility responsibilities.
Staff said the EFMP documents five major projects: the Downsville Pike Elementary School (under construction; staff reported the project came in about $5 million under prior budget estimates), a Jonathan Hager Elementary phase-two addition (about 32,000 square feet to add roughly 394 seats, currently estimated at approximately $26 million and scheduled to open in fall 2028), a Clear Spring Middle/High School project (staff recommended commissioning a feasibility study to evaluate renovation vs. new-construction scenarios and to develop educational specifications), and two elementary-school replacement/consolidation projects sited where growth is occurring (each replacement concept discussed at about 83,000 square feet, housing roughly 688 students, with construction phases projected in the 2033 and 2035 timeframe). Staff attributed long lead times and cost uncertainty to those later projects and said the feasibility study will provide schematic plans, cost estimates and timelines.
On enrollment, staff described the cohort-survivorship projection method, noting the district keeps projections within the Maryland Department of Planning's tolerance (within 5%) to maximize eligibility for state construction funding. Staff also called attention to recent demographic trends, including a modest county population gain of about 3,000 people in the last five years and a small decline in birth rates that will need monitoring.
Board members questioned why Clear Spring was prioritized rather than Smithsburg or other campuses. Staff said Clear Spring has a sizable property that gives flexibility for building while keeping existing operations running, cited low facility-condition scores at Clear Spring Middle, and noted constraints at Smithsburg (limited developable land, utilities and floodplain issues). Staff added that constructing a third city high school would likely be ineligible for state participation and therefore would require the county to fund 100% of costs, a factor in the district's planning.
Staff listed near-term systemic renovation requests that will be included in the capital-improvement schedule: partial HVAC replacement at North High, a chilled-water system for South High, multiple roof and HVAC projects, two boiler/chiller replacements and an emergency generator installation. The EFMP will inform the district's five-year capital improvement plan to be presented in September.
No formal board votes occurred during the presentation; staff will return with design documents and recommended funding requests on the district calendar.
