Old elementary eyed for day care location

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Committee hears request from church to use kindergarten building as possible site

By Alex Bridges -- abridges@nvdaily.com

WINCHESTER -- The former Gainesboro Elementary School may again see children in its classrooms.

Redland Preschool and Daycare has notified Frederick County officials of its desire to use the school's kindergarten building as a day-care center. The Board of Supervisors' public works committee heard the church's request at its meeting Tuesday.

The proposed use fits in with the site, said Assistant County Administrator Kris Tierney.

Redland representatives indicated their day care has run out of space and needs to expand, Tierney told the committee. Tierney said he and Gainesboro District Supervisor Gary Dove met recently with Redland representatives and walked through the former kindergarten area.

The 2,300-square-foot kindergarten section was constructed in the 1950s as an expansion on the original facility built in the mid-1930s, according to officials. The entire 5.4-acre site includes a playground, a parking lot and a sports field.

The former Gainesboro Elementary School closed when the new facility opened in 2007, and has remained vacant since then.

But the kindergarten annex needs some work before anyone can occupy it, Tierney said. The building needs a new heating/ventilation/air conditioning system, carpeting, minor accessibility modifications to meet requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and some new paint, Tierney said. An alarm system runs through the entire complex so some modifications are needed to separate the kindergarten area from the rest of the building. Additionally, officials said the annex has no water heater so one would need to be installed for this building.

The repairs and modifications could cost an estimated $22,550, Tierney said. Committee members said there could be ways to have the day care pay for the needed repairs through a lease agreement.

"From my perspective, having a tenant would be advantageous for us just for having eyes and ears, having the heat on in the building," Tierney said.

The committee agreed with Tierney's suggestion that the county advertise or at least notify the public about the church's proposal and seek input on other possible uses for the building addition. Any other ideas would be brought back to the panel, Tierney said.

The Handley Regional Library has eyed the main building of the former school for use as a new branch. Budget constraints have kept that initiative from moving forward. But panel member George Ludwig said the library is still interested in keeping the option open.

"I think that having a presence there on the site produces a little more comfort that the building is going to be preserved for that use," Ludwig said. "I know we can't proceed with that right now in the present economic climate, but I think at some point we're gonna want to, gonna want that building still viable when that time comes."

Also at the meeting:

* Members met for about 30 minutes in closed session to discuss an unsolicited bid by a private firm to build a new fire station in the county. The firm submitted its proposal under the Public-Private Educational Facilities & Infrastructure Act. The panel took no action on the matter.

* Members, addressing their Green Advisory Committee agenda, unanimously voted to recommend the Board of Supervisors approve an energy conservation plan for the county.