New Hanover High School is historically significant and beloved by many alumni, but it's falling into disrepair. It also lacks the same facilities and features — in terms of academics, athletics, and campus safety — as other high schools like Ashley, Hoggard, and Laney.
Despite nearly $10 million already committed to upgrading the beloved and historic downtown Wilmington school, the real cost of maintaining — or, alternatively, replacing — the school is likely to be much higher.
A design team contracted by New Hanover County Schools looked a range of options, focusing of five key issues: safety (including securing NHHS' notoriously porous perimeter, which has 50 access points), cost, educational outcomes (including getting improving facilities), operational impact, and community asset (which is to say, the cherished historic structure itself).
Here are the options, with costs based on inflation adjusted across the project timeline:
- $137 million for a renovation that would still leave several key shortcomings unaddressed, including educational outcomes and operational impact issues
- $280 million for a brand new, 70-acre school at a new location (including $30 million for new property); this option would not preserve the existing NHHS campus
- $230 million hybrid option, which would add new facilities and upgrade existing ones in four phases over 10 to 12 years.
Board member David Perry asked if the limited footprint could be brought up to the standard of other schools.
"With the 15 acres that we have, or about, there at New Hanover, can it actually be as good as Laney and Hoggard and Ashley, that have 60 acres," he asked.
The design team said that an "urban school" did have limitations, but also offered opportunities — and they noted that preserving the community asset was a key advantage of rehabbing over replacing.
Board member Tim Merrick asked what would happen if future officials stopped supporting the rehab before it was finished.
"If, God forbid, we weren't able to carry on right away, would the school be fully functional as is, or would we have kids in trailers for years on end," Merrick asked, noting that the community might also not support funding the project down the line.
The design team assured Merrick the school would remain functional throughout the four-phase rehab.
The presentation was strictly informational, and the board made no decision. But one thing is clear: with budget cuts on nearly all fronts, the school district is unlikely to be able to afford any significant work on New Hanover High School without a bond. County commissioners would have to approve putting one on the ballot, with 2026 being the next opportunity.
Below: Presentation on options for NHHS, shared during the Tuesday, July 8 school board meeting.
