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Consultants tell Pender board 63 new developments could add more than 12,000 units; outline redistricting engagement plan
Summary
ITRI consultants Thomas Dudley and Dr. Linden Thayer told the board they identified 63 residential developments that may yield more than 12,000 housing units, reviewed a 10-year enrollment forecast showing growth concentrated at elementary levels, and proposed a community-engagement roadmap and timeline toward draft boundary proposals.
Thomas Dudley, a school planner with the Institute for Transportation Research and Education (ITRI) at NC State, told the board the district's enrollment forecast anticipates growth across grade levels and that staff identified 63 residential developments that correspond to "over 12,000 additional units and lots coming online in the future." He described an out-of-capacity table the team uses to visualize which schools will be overcrowded in coming years and stressed the need to plan new schools and redrawn attendance lines accordingly.
Dr. Linden Thayer (School CAMP/ITRI) outlined a four-part engagement approach: an initial anonymous priorities assessment for the board, a community advisory board of roughly 20–30 representative stakeholders, outreach to school leadership and principals, and a set of broader community engagements both in-person and digitally. Thayer said the team aims to return initial boundary solutions to the board for a "first look" and provide a final report in January, with adjustments made after each engagement round.
