Board considers designs for new consortium

Cape officials say plans for a new consortium building may be too small to include everything the program should offer.

“If we are going to build it the way to be most effective, it has to be bigger than what we originally planned,” said Brian Bassett, director of administrative services for Cape Henlopen School District.

Cape officials are eyeing a 20-acre parcel of land off Sweetbriar Road between Route 9 and Cave Neck Road to build a school that will house the county's autism and special needs education program. In 2016, the state agreed to pay $1.8 million for the property and another $22 million to build a 67,000-square-foot main building. Because of state budget constraints, Bassett said, asking for more money may be a challenge.

During the design of the new building, Bassett said, architects Fearn-Clendaniel of Wilmington realized that nontraditional classroom space such as stairwells and the auditorium stage in the existing building, the Lewes School, were being used to educate students, and more classrooms were needed. Teachers also weighed in on the project and asked for more space, he said.

“All of a sudden, other places started popping up,” Bassett said. “When they added the extra space, the plan grew.”

The architects were hired last summer after the state gave the consortium a certificate of necessity – their promise to pay for the project. Bassett said Cape officials estimated the size as best as possible, considering there is no state formula that determines the amount of space for a special needs school. Up to now, the Sussex Consortium has always adapted to existing space in the district, he said.

“The new building is unique in that it is being designed from the ground up, based on what spaces would be most beneficial to the students,” he said.

Schools throughout the Cape Henlopen School District also provide space for consortium students. Six classrooms have been added to both Mariner and Beacon middle schools to allow consortium students to assimilate to a traditional classroom with their peers. Cape High has five classrooms for consortium use while Milton and Shields elementaries each have four.

Students who cannot handle the traditional school setting are educated at the main Sussex Consortium campus.

Each county in Delaware has a special needs school, a total of three in the state. Additionally, some school districts offer specialized programs for students with orthopedic challenges or who are deaf. Cape Henlopen administers the Sussex Consortium for the county, and, Bassett said, officials estimated the building's size based on the current program. There are about 270 students enrolled in the consortium, Bassett said, and he expects the number to continue to grow.

In light of a recent shortfall projected in state revenue, Bassett said, the architect has designed a building that can be built within the approved $22 million budget, with add-ons that could be built later, providing an extra 25,000 square feet.

Add-ons could include a second gym for younger students, a therapy pool and about six classrooms, Bassett said.

“It is extremely important for these students to learn how to swim and be safe around water given the region we live in,” he said. “It is also beneficial for special needs therapy for many students.”

Vivian Bush, principal of the consortium, said students go to the YMCA to swim once a week when school is in session. “The YMCA has always been gracious in this offering, but due to their growth we have limited access and limited lane use during those times,” she said.

Students often spend too much time standing in line waiting to get into the pool, instead of learning to swim, Bush said. A consortium pool would provide students swim lessons on a regular basis and also teach them social skills such as showering, changing clothes and locker room etiquette.

Travel time spent to the YMCA would also be saved, she said, giving students more learning time.

The consortium has no pool now because the program has never occupied a building constructed to meet their needs, Bassett said. Special needs schools in Kent and New Castle counties offer therapy pools for their students, he said.

The total for all additions would be about $9 million, based on an estimate of $280 per square foot.

Bassett said Cape officials notified state officials in November of the additions to the original design, but he expects no decision until spring, when state money for construction projects is set.

In a separate state funding decision that has implications for the Sussex Consortium's price tag, Bassett said, the state increased its square foot allocation – by about $100 a square foot – only three months after Cape received permission to build a new consortium. Cape was approved for about $280 a square foot, but the new amount takes into consideration increased construction market costs, he said. More money per square foot could mean another $6.7 million for the consortium project.

“We got stuck with an old price per foot,” Bassett said. “We've asked to be grandfathered in to the new costs. That would be helpful.”

The consortium plans were on the agenda of the Cape Henlopen school board meeting Jan. 12, when plans were expected to be reviewed and possibly approved. The board meeting was held after the Cape Gazette's press time.