Horry County Board of Education OKs purchase of 30 acres for new Socastee school

The Horry County Board of Education approved purchasing land for another middle school in Socastee, donated almost half an acre to a historical foundation and approved financial support for school teams participating in school-sanctioned national competitions at their regular board meeting Monday.

The board unanimously approved the purchase of 30 acres of land off U.S. 707 and Big Block Road for another middle school in the Socastee area. The land – which will be purchased from Big Block Properties, LLC – cannot exceed an expense of $1,050,000, according to Daryl Brown, chief support services officer.

The land, situated near Socastee High School, is the ideal location for a second intermediate school in the south Strand, said Joe DeFeo, board chairman.

“The property is also accessible from more than one direction, which is ideal,” DeFeo said.

The district began discussing building several new schools more than two years ago, and the idea of another middle school in Socastee attendance lines prevailed.

“We’re just experiencing so much growth, especially in the South Strand,” said Rick Maxey, superintendent.

The purchase means Horry County Schools now has all the land needed for its five new schools, DeFeo said.

Next, the Requests for Qualifications Committee, which includes members from the board and district, will select a short-list of applicants to propose bids for the design and construction of the new schools. The committee must first interview all nine applicants that replied to the call for architects, DeFeo said.

Defeo had one word to describe the building process so far: “Excellent.”

The building project includes creating five new school buildings located in Myrtle Beach, Socastee, Carolina Forest and the St. James attendance areas, as well as renovations and additions to two other schools.

The district has budgeted $161.7 million to build five new schools, according to John Gardner, chief financial officer. The total cost of the project, including land and renovations, is $451.6 million.

The district released the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) a second time in February after tossing out original conceptual design plans in November. The board cited a need to request and review energy-positive designs for new schools, but kept its earlier plans for remodels and additions to two other schools.

Financial support of school-sanctioned competitions

The board discussed a current district policy that gives financial support to students and teachers participating in school-sanctioned national competitions, allotting up to $3,000 per school.

The Carolina Forest Robotics Team – or the Robo-Katz – won the Palmetto Regional FIRST Robotics Tournament in March and traveled to the national competition a few weeks ago. The team asked for an extra $2,823 to help pay for the traveling and registration expenses, which the board unanimously approved.

The money, which will come out of the general fund, is limited to $3,000 per school per national event. Each participant has a maximum of $300 allotted, and the total district allocation for national student competitive activities travel is $100,000.

“It’s important exposure for these students to head to these national competitions,” Maxey said. “It’s good to win locally and regionally, but to get to compete with your peers nationally, that’s important for them.”

Funding for national competitions is only available to first place state winners, and if the state gives out multiple first place winners, the Horry County school will not be eligible for funding.

For teams where the registration fee is greater than $10,000, funding requests will be presented to the board for special consideration, according to district policy. The board can fund up to 50 percent of registration fees if approved.

Land donated to heritage foundation

Also Monday the school board approved a donation of .4 acres of land to the Aynor-Galivants Ferry Cultural Heritage Foundation, which works to secure the history of western Horry County.

The donated building used to belong to the old campus of Aynor High School and was built in the 1940s. The group’s goal is to turn the building into a museum showcasing Aynor, Galivants Ferry and the surrounding communities’ histories.

“The donation of this property will allow the foundation to seek grants of funding in connection with its mission,” Brown said. “The property will be transferred as-is and the district will not make any improvements.”

If the nonprofit organization cannot retain ownership of a museum – when it’s completed and open – then ownership of the land will be reverted back to the district, Brown said.

This story was originally published April 27, 2015 at 9:33 PM with the headline "Horry County Board of Education OKs purchase of 30 acres for new Socastee school."