UPDATE: Several new schools on priority list for future Fayette projects; public can weigh in

Several new Fayette schools, including new buildings for George Washington Carver STEM Academy for Boys and SCAPA at Bluegrass, are on a priority list for future projects that will be discussed at a public hearing next week.

The Fayette County Board of Education’s Local Planning Committee will host a public forum Monday where people will have a chance to comment on the draft District Facility Plan that has been sent to the Kentucky Department of Education. A forum scheduled for Tuesday has been canceled.

The committee develops and oversees the District Facility Plan, which prioritizes such projects as school construction and renovation. Projects can remain on the priority list for years before coming to fruition.

The details on the 2025 draft plan are preliminary and nothing has been decided yet, but here are some of the projects that district officials see as a priority.

▪ A new 750-student elementary school on Polo Club Boulevard estimated at $28.7 million. It would be near the new Mary Britton Middle School, which is scheduled to open in the fall. The school board voted to buy the land for both schools in 2020. The Herald-Leader reported in 2020 the property owner, the Madden family, made a charitable gift to the district of $1.34 million, making the property cost to the district $12.9 million.

▪ A new 450-student George Washington Carver Elementary School for Boys estimated at $18.7 million. The district would have to acquire a site. The current school is in the former Johnson Elementary building on East Sixth Street.

▪ A new 750-student Maxwell Spanish Immersion Elementary School estimated at $28.7 million to replace the existing Maxwell Elementary School.

▪ A new 650-student School for the Creative and Performing Arts (SCAPA) at Bluegrass School, grades 4-8, estimated at $40.6 million to replace the existing school at 400 Lafayette Parkway.

▪ Major renovations at several Fayette County schools with Paul Laurence Dunbar and Lafayette high schools and Beaumont and Southern middle schools leading the list.

▪ The Eastside Technical Center building on Liberty Road, currently a vocational school, would become the district transportation administration building.

Future career and technical center students will attend the new building called The Hill. Two of the current Career Technical Education centers will merge at the renovated 100 Midland Avenue site (the former Lexington Herald-Leader building) in downtown Lexington. It is to be ready in August 2025, according to the district website.

Eastside and Southside technical centers have housed career and technical programs since the 1970s. The merger will give the district space to increase enrollment as it develops hybrid programs and a skilled workforce to meet industry demands.

▪ A middle school athletic complex and upgrades to existing middle school fields at an estimated $8.5 million. No location was on the plan.

▪ A new middle school in the Masterson Station area at an estimated $72 million.

▪ A new preschool center for 90 children in north Lexington that will have to be acquired or built, estimated at $6.7 million. No location was on the plan.

▪ A new 1,000 seat performing arts auditorium that would be constructed, estimated at $7.5 million. No location was on the plan.

▪ A new welcome and community education center for families, estimated at $7.3 million. No location was on the plan.

▪ A new district operations department building, estimated at $23 million. No location was on the plan.

A forum begins at 5:30 p.m. on March 31 at 128 Walton Avenue off East Main Street behind the former district administration building. It will be accessible online.

This story was originally published March 29, 2025 at 4:00 AM.