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A meeting was held Jan. 18 that appears to be the jump start needed to move a step closer to construction of a new $35 million elementary school in the rapidly growing area of Daphne in Baldwin County, Ala., near the state's Gulf Coast.

At the Baldwin County School Board session, a resolution was passed awarding a $1.75 million contract for the architectural design of a school in Belforest to Robertsdale-based Adams Stewart Architects.

What is interesting about the project is the facility will be built only 2.5 mi. from another elementary school that was constructed just four years ago but is already nearing its capacity.

WPMI-TV in Mobile was at the Baldwin County School Board meeting in Loxley where it heard a school system trying its best to stay ahead of a population explosion.

The plan on the table currently is to build an additional elementary school close to Belforest Elementary, itself constructed in 2020 on County Road 64 at a cost of $19.8 million. Although it was designed to accommodate as many as 1,200 children, its enrollment in 2023-24 currently is approximately 1,072, according to the Alabama State Department of Education.

That number is quickly rising, WPMI reported, resulting in the utilization of portable classrooms at the school.

Large Parcel of Land Eventually Found for New School

John Wilson, the school system's chief financial officer, said to the news station that the county is not opposed to growth, but unmanaged growth has put a major strain on the county's schools — to the point that even finding available land to build a new facility has proved difficult.

"It's hard to find land," Wilson explained. "It's [also] hard to find land in there that is the size, scale and scope we need to build an elementary school that can accommodate up to 1,200 students."

He encourages county residents to address the issue with their local leaders and politicians.

"Unmanaged growth makes it difficult on [everything], from the schools to the hospitals to the roads to the sewer system — all those type things. So, I think a bigger discussion needs to happen county wide to make sure we're making smart decisions."

In the end, the school system purchased a 106-acre parcel of land for the newest Belforest school off Alabama Highway 181 and Corte Road in early 2023 for $3.1 million.

Although no date for beginning the construction effort has been determined, Wilson said, "With the growth Baldwin County is experiencing, construction would be sooner rather than later."

Additionally, in December, the school board approved a budget of $2 million to $3 million for a planned $15 million transportation facility along the eastern shore of Mobile Bay on the same parcel as the proposed Belforest school.

Wilson told WPMI-TV that no timeline for the construction has been determined but that doing the design work at the same time as the transportation facility makes fiscal sense.

Even as the Baldwin County School System is rolling out $300 million in new construction, he said the population growth in the Daphne area remains a major challenge, and they're trying to be proactive to stay ahead of it.

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