Prince George building new elementary school to replace one with mold issues

PRINCE GEORGE, Va. (WWBT) - Prince George County School Board has voted to build a new Walton Elementary after it was determined the building could not be salvaged.

Walton Elementary School has had on-going issues with mold and air quality. While the district has taken measures to correct it, they were not long-term fixes.

‘Moderate to heavy’ mold detected at elementary school in Prince George

“Phase 1 of a two- phase process designed by a Mechanical Engineer from Moseley Architects is currently underway. These measures are expected to extend the life of the HVAC system by up to 4 years. This means that it is imperative for us to move forward with the building of a new school as quickly as possible,” school officials said.

The determining factors of going forward with building a new school came down to the cost of repairs, technology infrastructure and lack of electrical capacity and lack of storage space, officials said. Other reasons included the safety and security of campus-style schools and the number of programs held in trailers.

While all school board members agreed that a new school was needed, not all of them were on board with building the facility at Middle Road.

“I am excited we are about to begin the construction of our new school. The students, teachers, faculty, and citizens of Prince George have waited a long time for this plan to come to fruition. I would have liked to have a couple of weeks to have a public forum so parents, teachers, and our citizens could have been heard on the two locations that were able to be considered by the BOS. The landscape will change with either location and I wanted their input. If they selected Middle Road and were happy with that location then I would be in full support. I support whatever decision the board makes but would like the community to respond prior to moving forward,” board member Sherry Taylor said.

On Feb. 11, the superintendent will present at the work session to request affirmation and the funds for the new 850 student elementary school.

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