The Chapel Hill Town Council approved plans for a new pre-K and high school campus on South Merritt Mill Road at the site of the historic Lincoln Center on March 13.
The site will feature a two-story building housing all pre-K classes on the first floor and new district offices on the second floor, said Jeff Nash, a spokesperson for Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. Nash said the project has a total price tag of $25 million.
“That, we think, is going to be a wonderful way to provide a better service to all of our pre-K students,” Nash said. “Instead of having various people — physical therapist, occupational therapist, social workers, etcetera — going from school to school, we are going to be able to serve the kids in one spot.”
Nash said by consolidating all pre-K classes into one location, more space will be freed up in elementary schools. The increased capacity will prevent the need to build a new elementary school in the near future.
In addition to the new pre-K building, Phoenix Academy, the district’s alternative school, will also have a new building able to hold more than 100 students. Thirty-five to 40 students currently attend Phoenix Academy.
The current building on the site, the historic Lincoln Center, will be torn down. Lincoln High School served as Chapel Hill’s high school for black students until the integrated Chapel Hill High School opened in 1966.
The district has worked with Lincoln High School alumni throughout the process. Nash said they have been supportive of the plans and hope the space will once again be used as a center for learning.
“When we told them the plans for the pre-K, they were just delighted,” he said. “They just loved that.”
Nash said the historic gym will remain and will be refurbished. Part of the new pre-K building that also houses administrative offices will feature a museum dedicated to black education in Orange County.
