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Site Considerations <br />1) School Site and Minimum Acreage <br />Traditionally, minimum acreage refers to usable, or developable, acreage. <br />"Usable" or "developable" acreage refers to those portions of the site where a <br />school district can construct something — examples include parking, playfields, <br />buildings, retention ponds, and septic systems. Examples of areas that are not <br />"usable" or "developable" might include mandated buffers, setbacks, slopes too <br />steep to be effectively developed, rock outcroppings, wetlands or environmentally <br />sensitive areas. <br />School site sizes for non - traditional schools may be higher or lower than those <br />outlined in the State Guidelines - for example, acreage may deviate from State <br />Guidelines in order to : <br />• Accommodate community use of the facility and multiuse recreational <br />facilities such as soccer and softball fields. <br />• Account for areas that cannot be built upon, such as steep slopes, <br />wetlands, rights -of -way, easements, setbacks, buffers or poor soils <br />• Meet requirement imposed by local ordinances — i.e. restrictions governing <br />the ratio of land that can be disturbed within a development and the <br />permitted amount of impervious service will affect the ultimate size of the <br />site <br />• Allow for on -site or off -site parking for staff, students, buses and visitors <br />• Accommodate the expanding number of middle and high school athletic <br />teams either on -site or off -site -- i.e. an additional ten acres or more of <br />land may be necessary to allow for an athletic stadium and associated <br />spectator parking. <br />However, other areas to consider in siting a new school include areas of <br />population density, public transportation availability and walkability, natural <br />geographic enhancements or barriers, road patterns, and existing or non - existing <br />infrastructure such as water, sewer and roadways. School systems should <br />actively pursue partnering agreements with the Towns and County Parks and <br />Recreation Departments, private developers, and businesses in an effort to <br />maximize joint use of facilities. Future projects should also include: <br />• Xeriscaping and regulatory buffers <br />• Use of synthetic turf for athletic fields or installation of irrigation <br />systems. <br />11 <br />