Story Category: Local Schools »

St. Mary’s County Public Schools (SMCPS) has purchased a little over an acre of land next to Lettie Marshall Dent Elementary School in New Market. Purchase price of the Moeller property is $80,000. The property has an old house on it that will be demolished.

The 1.05-acre property is currently owned by the State of Maryland and was identified as available through the surplus property disposal process, Clements said. The property will be used for overflow parking at the school. Current parking space has been deemed inadequate. The lot initially will not be paved, according to Chief Operating Officer J. Bradley Clements.

The house, which was identified as being too expensive to renovate, contains lead paint and asbestos which will have to be disposed of, at a cost of $30-55 thousand.

In addition to providing more bus and car parking, the lot can be used for extra parking for the adjacent athletic fields being constructed next to the school by the county recreation and parks department.