The rebuilding of Beach Elementary School has been on the list of schools needing replacement or renovation in Calvert County for several years, and for one of the oldest elementary schools in the county, it’s finally time for an upgrade.
Construction on the original part of the school finished in 1953. There have been several additions in the years since, including major additions in 1971 and 1981. However, the main hallway from the original building is still used today. Construction on the new building has been projected by county officials to finish in late 2023.
The site of the new school is directly adjacent to the current facility and will sit on the site of the playground and baseball fields of the old school, according to county documents. The new structure will be three stories tall whereas the current building is just one floor. The new plan will also feature new, separate traffic loops for parents and buses.
The new school aims to use its location, less than a mile from the Chesapeake Bay, to its advantage with outdoor classrooms included in the plans, as well as the building being three floors to allow for views of the bay from its third floor. Trails into the woods behind the new building leading to nearby Fishing Creek are in the plans as another outdoor classroom.
Traffic at the current Beach Elementary is a major issue as there is no current flow of traffic for parents picking up children.
“Traffic can get backed up in the mornings and evenings. Alleviating this will make things safer and easier for all residents living and driving through the area,” Diane Goshen, the school’s Parent Teacher Organization president, said.
With a building that opened 68 years ago, degradation is one of the major concerns for school officials. According to the county’s Educational Facilities Master Plan, the building is beyond its life cycle and the internal systems are outdated.
“As the way students learn evolves, the buildings and tools we provide them must also change,” said Goshen.
The current building also contains asbestos that crews will remove in the demolished building, according to a plan presented by Shuchita Warner, the school system’s director of school construction, at a recent school board meeting.
The size of the old Beach Elementary has been a problem for the county for several years as redistricting was necessary in 2016 to relieve the school’s overcrowding. Some students were sent from Beach to Windy Hill Elementary, according to county documents.
Currently, the school is at 86.7% of its student capacity, but the county projects it would soon be over capacity without the new facility. The current student count for Beach is 483, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, and the projected capacity for the new school is 578 students, according to the board of education.
Many, including school superintendent Andrae Townsel, project the town of Chesapeake Beach will grow adding to the schools population. “It is an attractive area for families because of its location for commuting to job centers and the abundant family attractions in the area. There are future housing developments projected in the town and building a larger Beach Elementary will allow us to plan for future growth,” Townsel said.
The replacement of Beach Elementary follows a recent trend in the county that is home to many old schools that have needed replacement. Calvert High School had to be rebuilt and the new school opened in 2014. Similarly, Northern High School was rebuilt and welcomed students to its new site in 2020.
Future plans in the works
According to county plans, Northern Middle School and Mt. Harmony Elementary School will both need either major renovation or replacement by 2028. If both schools need a replacement, that would bring the total of schools that have needed replacement to five since 2010.
While there are many reasons for a school to have to be rebuilt, a major issue is age. Beach Elementary was built in 1953, and it’s not the oldest elementary school in Calvert as Appeal Elementary was built in 1949. Eight of the county’s current schools were built before 1975 and the county is moving to replace them.
“These are older buildings that have issues similar to Beach, in that they are outdated, have systemic issues and don’t offer the types of spaces that best support today’s learners,” Townsel said.
With the county taking on several major construction projects in the past decade, the funding for Beach Elementary was a source of debate. The county has estimated the project will cost just over $37 million with another $1.6 million for new equipment.
The state will cover 53% of the costs with Calvert County supporting the rest, according to county documents.
Funding will be an issue debated even past the completion of Beach Elementary as the next project on the county’s schedule, Northern Middle School, is projected to cost just over $52 million, according to county finance documents. This is on top of other major projects slated to take place in the next two years, such as HVAC replacements at several middle schools.
Despite the large cost of projects such as Beach, Goshen said it’s a necessary change. “As a parent I am excited to see my son learn in an environment built for the needs of his generation. … As the PTO president, I am thrilled to know we will have space to provide more educational resources and family friendly events at the school.”
