Orange County NC Website
N <br />I <br />3• <br />meetings of the Non - Binding School Task Force, it was decided that, although <br />sites within the CHCCS district would most likely be the most suitable, <br />potential sites near the district line, but in the OCS district, should not <br />be ruled out at this time. Consideration must be given to the fact that, <br />initially, the high school will be a part of the city school district but, <br />in the long run, might be one of three high schools serving students <br />throughout the county. <br />The Chapel Hill - Carrboro City Schools investigated possible high school <br />sites last year. Basically, there are three general areas where there are <br />a limited number of sites which are large enough to support a high school <br />facility and reasonably accessible to public utilities, but are not in the <br />watershed. These three areas can be defined as follows: <br />a. A Southern Corridor in the general vicinity of Culbreth Middle <br />School <br />b. A Northwestern Corridor along Homestead Road extending north to <br />Eubanks Road <br />C. A Northeastern Corridor bounded by Weaver Dairy Road and Whitfield <br />Road <br />In discussions with the Non - Binding School Task Force, it was agreed that <br />sites in the rural buffer to the north of the district boundary also might <br />provide possibilities if they are reasonably close to public utilities. <br />A site selection committee will be convened consisting of both <br />superintendents, a board member from each district, a representative from the <br />County Manager's staff, the Assistant Superintendent for Support Services for <br />CHCCS, and the Director of Facilities for CHCCS. This committee will be <br />charged with responsibility for recommending the purchase of one or more <br />sites to the Chapel Hill- Carrboro City School Board. The CHCCS Board of <br />Education will discuss the purchase in executive session. The chairs of the <br />County Board of Commissioners and the Orange County Board of Education will <br />be invited to attend and participate in this meeting. After the site is <br />selected the Board of County Commissioners will be requested to approve the <br />purchase. The issue of whether Orange County Government should own the land <br />until we have a unified school system in the County needs to be addressed by <br />the Non - Binding Task Force. <br />Before evaluating sites in the areas defined above, one major issue <br />needs to be resolved. It is understood that the third high school in the <br />county is being constructed in the CHCCS district because its population is <br />projected to increase substantially through the end of the decade while the <br />OCS high school population will remain relatively stable. It also is <br />understood that if and when the OCS high school facility becomes overcrowded, <br />relief is available as a result of the temporary excess high school capacity <br />in CHCCS due to the construction of the proposed school. The question that <br />needs to be addressed is whether or not the new facility must be conveniently <br />accessible to OCS or since Chapel Hill High School already is located in the <br />northern section of our district, could the present high school serve the <br />overflow from OCS. If this is agreeable, it opens up the possibility of <br />locating the new high school in the Southern Corridor. This location would <br />