Over 15,000 students attend Alexandria City Public Schools in Virginia and the system is expecting an influx of up to 2,000 more over the next decade. As a result, the school system has proposed rebuilding three of its schools and adding one more to meet the demand.
In a Wednesday release ACPS Superintendent Gregory Hutchings proposed a new decade long Capital Improvement Program budget that extends from 2023 to 2032 and sees the school spend $495,004,800 over that time period; $371,515,900 will go toward increasing capacity.
“It is vital that we plan ahead and ensure that the infrastructure of Alexandria City Public Schools meets our capacity needs and provides our students with learning environments that allow them to thrive in school,” Hutchings said in a new release.
Included in that budget is the replacing of two elementary schools: George Mason Elementary and Cora Kelly School for Technology and Math. The budgets showed construction beginning for George Mason in 2024. Cora Kelly will follow with a start date in 2027.
The Minnie Howard campus of Alexandria City High School will also see a completely new build. The idea was approved in 2019 and construction is slated to begin in the spring of 2022.
The budget plans to optimize the space to achieve the maximum capacity possible. It will also transition from a ninth grade facility to hold classes in all grade levels. It will add a new aquatic facility as well.
A newly purchased office building located at 1703 North Beauregard Street will be renovated. Once repurposed for the system, they will use the Beauregard facility as a swing space for students while the three schools are under construction.
It is expected to hold 600 students and, while not confirmed, the school system suggests using it as a new middle school in the future.
The School Board will hold a public hearing on the CIP Budget on Nov. 29 at 7 p.m. and is scheduled to adopt the final budget on Dec. 16.
