BRUNSWICK COUNTY — The Brunswick County School Board is crossing its T’s and dotting its I’s as it finalizes a land-purchase agreement to make way for a new elementary school in Leland.
READ MORE: Brunswick County secures land for future schools to keep up with growing enrollment
The facility, designed to accommodate 750 students, will help address growing capacity concerns in the northeastern wing of the district. It’s the second site secured in the last month for new schools planned in the region.
The county gave the school district 257 acres of land in Shallotte to build an educational complex. It will include an elementary, middle, and high school, but it isn’t set to be completed for another 15 to 20 years.
Leland’s elementary school is projected to be finished by the start of the 2028 school year. The board agreed Tuesday to pay Atkinson Trail Development Company $5.5 million to acquire the 64-acre property.
The site is adjacent to land where a minor league baseball team was pitched for the Town of Leland, but the plan was abandoned in January due to cost and significant resident pushback. It’s located off Highway 17, near Jackey’s Creek and Brunswick Forest Parkway, where the new school will be built.
The agreement, unanimously approved by the board, outlines the terms of the sale, including the seller’s obligations to construct a road to the property’s corner and provide utilities such as water, sewer, electricity, and utility lines within a year of the agreement going into effect.
However, Superintendent Dale Cole presented changes to the contract to improve the district’s financial protection and better secure its interests. This included a percentage of the purchase price to be put into escrow for the seller to use to build a road, according to Cole.
“I have no cause to think that they are trying to flim-flam us in any way, but we’re just trying to be the best stewards of tax dollars that we can be, and make sure that we cover all of the bases,” Cole said to the board.
Although this sale involves only 64 acres designated for the construction of the elementary school, the entire parcel spans 124 acres.
According to board member Steven Barger, the district has the option to acquire the remaining 56 acres of the parcel but has not indicated any plans to do so.
The contract states: “The Property is intended to be used for the operation of an Elementary School, Middle School, Junior High School, High School and related ancillary uses.”
Board member Steven Barger told Port City Daily Wednesday there have not been any site renderings or design aspects for the school.
New schools have been a focal point of discussion among residents and families within the district, especially given the county’s rapid growth — currently the 19th fastest-growing county in the nation.
“I don’t see Brunswick County talking enough about the infrastructure,” resident Nisey Sebak said recently at a community meeting with a developer for a 91-acre subdivision in Shallotte. “Doctors, teachers, schools, all that other stuff..”
According to a demographic study presented to the school board in April, elementary schools serving the Leland area are approaching full capacity. This school year Belville Elementary and Town Creek Elementary are both operating beyond their capacity, while Lincoln Elementary is at 95%.
“Building a school there is going to have a cascading effect,” Barger said. “We can pull students from other schools in the northeastern part of the district.”
BCS spokesperson Gordon Burnette said the demographic study predicts in the next 10 years, 17 out of the 20 schools will surpass full capacity, with all 20 schools expected to be at or above 90% capacity.
“With Brunswick County’s population continuing to grow, it is clear that our school district needs to build additional schools to accommodate this expanding demand,” Burnette said.
Board member Robin Moffitt highlighted at Tuesday’s school board meeting that in moving forward with this site, the district considered several factors, including roadways and bus safety, with particular concern about the challenges posed by curvy roads.
“We’ve been looking at property diligently as a board,” she said. “We’ve reviewed and we’ve hung over this a lot.”
Barger mentioned the board struggled to find large, developable parcels in Leland. He explained locating “dry land,” with access to utilities and roads proved to be a significant challenge.
“We’ve all walked through the woods and the mud and everything else,” he said regarding the area’s board’s search.
Once the seller approves, Barger said to get the ball rolling the district will soon issue a request for qualifications (RFQ) for construction managers at risk, expected within the next few weeks.
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