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III . School /Government Coordination <br /> A . Subcommittee reviewed the facility use agreements of the Orange County <br /> School System and the Chapel Hill /Carrboro City School System . <br /> Both systems are similar in their agreements with the Recreation and <br /> Parks Departments and provide facility use for little or no fees charged . <br /> I . <br /> B . There are nine school sites available in the County School System and <br /> thirteen in the Chapel Hill /Carrboro School System that are existing <br /> or under construction . <br /> Co All three Recreation and Parks Departments rely greatly on the use of <br /> School facilities . Although the outdoor athletic facilities are the most <br /> demanded ; auditoriums , arts and music rooms , media centers , and <br /> gymnasiums are widely used . <br /> Number of school sites that are presently being used or have been used <br /> in the past are : <br /> Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation = Four ( 4 ) <br /> Carrboro Recreation and Parks = Seven ( 7 ) <br /> Orange County Recreation and Parks = Eight ( 8 ) <br /> D . Many of the existing school sites throughout Orange County were not <br /> developed for community use . Outdoor recreation areas were not considered <br /> at the time of construction . <br /> E . Surplus land exists at some of the school campuses around the County . <br /> State standards recommend that school districts purchase approximately <br /> 20 acres for elementary school and 35 acres for middle schools . An <br /> elementary school only needs & 9 acres for the actual school building <br /> and infrastructure . This leaves 11 - 1 2 acres for a community park . <br /> Building a community park on school property saves the tax payers <br /> money since purchased park land is not required . The school systems <br /> typically do not spend a lot of money on site amenities around school <br /> campuses for community recreational programs . <br /> F . Many of the existing schools were built at the center of the property <br /> site with entrance roads and parking areas accessible only to the main <br /> building . Had these schools been designed with community use in mind , <br /> the buildings could be located to the side or rear of the property , leaving <br /> a large portion of the land for park development . <br />