How Should Harrisonburg and Rockingham County Think About The School Impact Of Previously Approved, Unstarted, Residential Developments?


How Should Harrisonburg and Rockingham County Think About The School Impact Of Previously Approved, Unstarted, Residential Developments?
By Scott Rogers • October 23, 2023
In reviewing a recently proposed rezoning request for a new residential development, I found this insightful comment from Rockingham County Public Schools... "This property is located in the Spotswood High School District. RCPS estimates this would generate an additional 25 students at Cub Run Elementary, 13 students at Montevideo Middle School, and 16 students at Spotswood High School. With proposed redistricting in the next year, each school will have the capacity to handle this increase in enrollment. However, it should be noted, that we estimate the cumulative effect of this development and others approved in the last 3 years once all are 100% built out would bring Cub Run near capacity." The last part is interesting and I don't know how the County plans to handle this situation... "However, it should be noted, that we estimate the cumulative effect of this development and others approved in the last 3 years once all are 100% built out would bring Cub Run near capacity." I believe this dynamic exists in both the City and County at the moment. If most or all residential developments that have been approved are built in the next few years then quite a few schools would likely be at or over capacity. I'm not sure how the County (or the City) should factor that dynamic into decisions about whether to approve additional proposed developments. Should the County and City assume that all approved developments will be built soon, and hesitate to approve more based on the theoretical potential cumulative impact of the developments that have not begun? Should the County and City ignore the potential cumulative impact of developments that have not begun and evaluate each new rezoning proposal based solely on the direct impact on schools for that one development? Perhaps they need to be somewhere in between these two extremes? Most new developments -- on their own -- won't cause a school or schools to be beyond capacity. If all approved and proposed new developments are built within the next few years it seems likely that some or many schools would be at or beyond capacity. But many (most?) approved developments have not been started... it is unclear if or when many of them will be developed. Receive Updates by Email Recent Articles: There Are Plenty Of Types Of Houses That Exist That Just Are Not Available To Purchase Home Sales By Price Range In The City Of Harrisonburg Are You Compromising On Aspects Of Your Next Home That You Can Or Cannot Change Later? How Much Slower Are The Winter Months In Our Local Housing Market? Rockingham County and New Home Sales Drive Surge in Area Housing Market Find The Balance Between Optimistic And Realistic Home Pricing Room Size Is Difficult To Understand Solely From Real Estate Photos How Much Would You Value Not Having To Prepare Your Home For Showings? One Out Of Four Homes Is Taking Longer Than A Month To Sell Consider The Cost Of Your Planned Renovations When Planning Your Offer
Have any questions? Contact Scott Rogers at 540-578-0102 or scott@funkhousergroup.com
Based on information from the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Association of REALTORS® or its MLS, for the period Jan 1, 2000 through Nov 21, 2024 (unless otherwise noted).
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