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Beaufort County Schools seeks city land for new Washington Elementary after $42 million grant
Summary
Superintendent Matthew Cheeseman told the council the district received a $42 million grant to build a consolidated Washington Elementary for roughly 900 students but discovered four acres the district believed it owned are city property; the city manager and attorney said deed restrictions and more than 20 heirs complicate any transfer.
Beaufort County Schools Superintendent Matthew Cheeseman told the City Council the school board has secured a $42 million grant to construct a new Washington Elementary that would consolidate Eastern Elementary and John Cotton Tayloe into a Pre-K through third-grade campus expected to serve about 900 students.
Cheeseman said the board believed it owned a four-acre parcel needed for the project but learned the parcel is owned by the City of Washington. He said the board has looked at Kugler Field as a possible land swap, considered purchasing the four acres, seeking an easement or requesting a donation, and requested a joint meeting of the Board of Education and City Council on Dec. 16 at 5:30 p.m.
City Manager Jonathan Russell told council staff is working with Kugler family members and that the timeline for the school construction has compressed with urgency to begin work. City Attorney Franz Holscher reviewed a 1923 deed from the Kugler family to Washington City Schools that includes restrictive covenants limiting the property to benefit Washington City Schools and to remain open and available as an athletic field to the general public. Holscher said ownership of Kugler Field passed to Beaufort County Schools in the 1970s when county and city school systems merged and that more than twenty heirs will need to be contacted to consider amending the restrictive covenants.
Russell said staff will explore options including a construction easement to allow the school project to move forward while longer-term title and covenant issues are resolved. No final decision was made; Cheeseman sought the joint meeting to pursue a path forward.
Next steps: The school superintendent requested the joint Board of Education and City Council meeting on Dec. 16 at 5:30 p.m. so the parties can discuss possible land-swap or easement options and the process for addressing deed restrictions and heir consent.
