New FCPS middle school delayed due to rising costs

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - The empty field along Polo Club Blvd. in Hamburg will stay as such for now. Plans to build a middle school have hit a multimillion-dollar roadblock.

The Fayette County Board of Education voted Monday to table the new building that’s already well over budget, thanks to inflated costs in materials.

“Inflation may continue to rise. It does seem to appear like that, but in the long term, it will level out,” FCPS board member Cristy Morris said. “I think as far as being good stewards of our taxpayers’ money, that we should wait because the markets are just terribly unstable.”

During a meeting last week, the board learned costs were nearly $23 million more than what was initially planned.

The school has been in the works since 2013 and is set to open in fall 2023. That opening date is now fluid.

“To be honest with the volatility that exists right now, we don’t know that even if we had moved forward tonight, if fall 2023 would even be on the table given some of the issues facing us globally,” FCPS board chair Tyler Murphy said.

The decision to table the project, while district leaders look at other bids and financing, was not unanimous. Two board members voted against it, saying the district has a plan for this project and others. They said it is needed as the other middle schools are getting overcrowded.

“I know that our middle schools are really tight. They don’t have capacity. They’re struggling as is, and this is something that our community has been planning for some time, and I think that we need to move forward,” FCPS board member Stephanie Spires said.

There’s no timeline of when the project will come up for discussion again.

The board was told delaying this project will not have any impact on renovations or projects at other schools in the district.

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