In Upscale Fairfield, New Houses Mean New Schools
By Eleanor Charles
New York Times Real Estate Section
Aug 13, 2000
Abstract:
By 2010, an estimated $825 million will have been poured into school construction in Fairfield County's upscale towns of
Darien, Fairfield, Greenwich, New Canaan, Ridgefield, Stamford, Weston, Westport and Wilton.
Since the early 90's a boom in school building has trailed a housing boom
that has brought 15,000 new residents to the county, most of them settling
in the affluent towns.
In Darien, a new $73 million high school is scheduled to open in 2004, and a
$27 million renovation to Middlesex Middle School is nearing completion. In
the past decade Darien's enrollment has grown by 38 percent, or more than
1,000 students, to a total of 3,662, compared with 2,686 in 1990. By 2010,
the enrollment is expected to reach 5,665.
WESTPORT -- In Westport, a new $38 million North Avenue Middle School is
part of a $150 million program of school construction and improvements. It
includes $36 million in renovations and additions to Greens Farms and Coleytown
Elementary Schools; $17.2 million for renovations and additions to Bedford and Coleytown Middle Schools; and roof replacement at Kings Highway
Elementary School. Preliminary plans for a major renovation Staples High
School have produced estimates of $54 million to $65 million.
Full Text:
By 2010, an estimated $825 million will have been poured into school construction in Fairfield County's upscale towns of Darien, Fairfield,
Greenwich, New Canaan, Ridgefield, Stamford, Weston, Westport and Wilton.
Since the early 90's a boom in school building has trailed a housing boom
that has brought 15,000 new residents to the county, most of them settling
in the affluent towns.
The stream of construction projects has been generated by increasing enrollments fed by the influx of new residents but also by a rising
birthrate. And new technology has made older schools obsolete, adding further impetus to build.
Thomas W. Murphy, a spokesman for the Connecticut Department of Education,
said: ''Schools in Fairfield County are very highly regarded. They serve as
a magnet for families to whom education is very important.'' Land that is
still available for development in the county's northern towns will continue
to fuel the demand for housing, he said, which in turn will continue to swell school enrollments.
Andrew Lashley, a broker in the Wilton office of William Pitt Real Estate,
said that while schools play a role in the sale of homes at all price levels, they are a critical factor in the wealthy towns. ''Ninety-eight
percent of high school graduates here go on to college,'' he said. ''People
come for the schools, and they support the schools.''
During the 1980's when enrollments declined, many schools were warehoused or
put to other uses. Now they are being reclaimed, and many are undergoing
renovation.
DARIEN -- In Darien, a new $73 million high school is scheduled to open in
2004, and a $27 million renovation to Middlesex Middle School is nearing
completion. In the past decade Darien's enrollment has grown by 38 percent,
or more than 1,000 students, to a total of 3,662, compared with 2,686 in
1990. By 2010, the enrollment is expected to reach 5,665.
TOWN OF FAIRFIELD -- Fairfield anticipates spending $99 million to $150 million on school construction, said Dr. Carol Harrington, the school
superintendent. The high figure is a worst-case scenario, she said.
One goal in Fairfield is to eliminate the 25 portable classrooms that are in
use at town's 10 elementary schools, 3 middle schools and 1 high school.
The town has already approved the construction of a new elementary school.
''There is a piece of town property suitable for an elementary school,'' Dr.
Harrington said, ''but a number of sites could be looked at.''
Fairfield's current school population of 7,839 is expected to reach 8,750 in
2010.
GREENWICH -- Greenwich is the only Fairfield town that has a pay-as-you-go
fiscal policy, so it is financing its $75 million worth of school improvements out of pocket. Enrollments there have grown from 6,458 in 1990
to 8,313 now, and by 2010, they are projected at 9,886.
Greenwich renovated Parkway Elementary School in 1994, and Dundee Elementary
School, which had been leased to a private school, is undergoing a $2.1 million renovation, to be completed in September. Western Middle School will
be renovated to create 10 new classrooms, and Greenwich High School has been
expanded by 88,000 square feet, with a a new Science and Technology Building, locker rooms and special-education classrooms, for a total of
450,000 square feet.
NEW CANAAN -- In New Canaan, a $64.8 million school construction program was
completed last year. It included a $26.2 million restoration and expansion
of Saxe Middle School, which added 92,000 square feet to an existing 127,000-square-foot building. Expansion of three elementary schools by
33,000 square feet each cost a total of $27.1 million, and renovations and a
new roof at the high school accounted for an additional $11.5 million.
New Canaan's enrollment was 3,549 last year, and 2,560 in 1990. By 2004, it
is projected to reach 4,220.
RIDGEFIELD -- Ridgefield is now considering bids of $34 million to $38 million that have been submitted for a new middle school, and an estimated
$5 million will be spent renovating East Ridge Middle School.
A major expansion of Ridgefield High School is the most pressing problem,
said Dr. Ralph Wallace, the superintendent of schools. It will need a $38
million addition to accommodate an anticipated spike in enrollments of 400
students by 2004, he said. Plans call for an expansion of the cafeteria, a
new science laboratory and general renovation of the 28-year-old building.
As for the five elementary schools, he said, ''they are all overcrowded, and
we are reeling from sticker shock at the cost of construction.'' The town
has approved a $10 million addition and renovation of Ridgebury Elementary
School, and now it must decide whether to renovate and add to the four other elementary schools or build a new one.
Enrollments have swelled from 3,299 in 1990 to 4,820 last year, and they are
expected to reach 5,846 by 2008.
STAMFORD -- Stamford has embarked on a school construction plan, estimated
at $125 million, which is to be completed in 2005. A new middle school will
be built, the Middle Magnet School will be moved to the former Stamford branch of the University of Connecticut, and Rippowam High School, which had
been the home of the magnet school, will become a high school again.
With 12 elementary schools, 4 middle schools and 2 high schools, Stamford
has an enrollment of 14,684 students, the second-largest in the county after
Bridgeport, which has 22,321 students.
The Stamford construction plan also includes renovations at Stamford High
School, Dolan Middle School, Turn of River Middle School and Northeast Elementary School and general systemwide repairs to roofs, paving,
playgrounds, boilers and athletic fields.
Elayne Jassey, a broker in the Stamford office of Prudential Connecticut
Realty, said: ''There are people who move here wanting to use our public
schools. They find the heterogeneity a plus and are uncomfortable with the
single dimension of some of the surrounding towns. Others are attracted to
our highly rated Catholic and Jewish schools or secular private schools in
the area.'' Minority students account for slightly more than half of Stamford's public school enrollment.
WESTON -- The Town of Weston has been making do for the past two years with
10 portable classrooms accommodating 20 students each, and in the next few
years it expects to require more portables to meet increasing enrollments,
said Ray Hill, the town administrator. The school population of 2,267 has
grown from 1,623 in 1995, and projections for 2009 are for an increase to
3,182.
The single elementary school, middle school and high school are on a 100-acre campus with a septic system that the Connecticut Department of
Environmental Protection has asked the town to upgrade. If an engineering
study determines that a potential for leaking effluent can be corrected and
the property has additional leaching fields, a new elementary school for
third, fourth and fifth graders or one for kindergarten through the third
grade might be built on the campus, Mr. Hill said, and a second-story addition of up to
20 classrooms would be an option at the high school.
''Or,'' Mr. Hill said, ''the town just acquired 32 acres where it planned to
install a park and playing fields, but it could include a new K-3 school.''
This fall an architect will be hired to draw up plans for construction, tentatively estimated to cost $70 million.
Unlike the other towns, Weston's tax base is 99 percent residential, Mr.
Hill said. ''We hope that by the time we start construction the school building boom will have slowed down,'' he added. ''Contracting prices and
architect's fees have risen sharply in response to the high demand.''
WESTPORT -- In Westport, a new $38 million North Avenue Middle School is
part of a $150 million program of school construction and improvements. It
includes $36 million in renovations and additions to Greens Farms and Coleytown Elementary Schools; $17.2 million for renovations and additions to
Bedford and Coleytown Middle Schools; and roof replacement at Kings Highway
Elementary School. Preliminary plans for a major renovation Staples High
School have produced estimates of $54 million to $65 million.
Westport's enrollment has grown from 3,436 in 1994 to 4,593 this year, and
it is projected to reach 6,872 in 2010.
WILTON -- Wilton is at the end of a five-year expansion program. It has completed a $21.5 million renovation and addition at the Cider Mill School,
which has the third through the fifth grades. Two dozen new classrooms, a
new cafeteria and library have been built.
Middlebrook Middle School, for grades six through eight, was expanded two
years ago. It gained a new gymnasium, science room, library, classrooms,
enlarged cafeteria and art rooms at a cost of $16 million.
The $19.5 million expansion of the high school currently under way is expected to be completed by September 2001. Wilton's school population of
2,641 in 1990 had grown to 3,891 last year. In 2010, its projected enrollment will be 4,580.
Article contained these photos:
- Captioned as: A rendering of the new $38 million North Avenue Middle School
in Westport. (Jeter, Cook & Jepson Architects)
- Captioned as: Map of Connecticut highlighting Fairfield.
Copyright New York Times Company Aug 13, 2000 |