Pine-Richland school board members are studying population projections to determine what size elementary school to build on property the district recently acquired in Richland.
"Our growth has been phenomenal," board member Judy Brant said.
The district's long-range facilities study committee last year issued a report recommending the district have a new school for fifth- and sixth-graders ready to open by 2007-08. The move is projected to swell the student population by 13.5 percent, from 3,772 in 2002 to 4,225 by 2008, according to the report.
A new school would need to accommodate about 800 fifth- and sixth-graders by 2008, the report said.
Results of the study will determine whether the new school will be built to house grades 4-6 or just 5 and 6, district spokeswoman Judy Boren said.
Boren said the school would be built on the Eden Hall Farms property along Bakerstown Road, across the street from Richland Elementary. The school board announced Oct. 19 that it had reached an agreement with the Eden Hall Foundation to buy the land. A purchase price has not been determined. Public hearings must be held before the sale becomes final. The district hopes to schedule the hearings in early March.
"Location is very important for a school," Boren said.
She said the new building is expected to open in the fall of 2007. The architect will be Eckles Architecture of New Castle, which worked on the high school and renovation projects in the district, she said.
