When work will start is still to be determined — but First Preparatory Christian Academy’s plans for expansion have met the city of Hinesville’s approval.
City council members agreed with the design review board’s recommendation for approval on the plans for a new building on the FPCA campus. Two buildings have been cleared and the site is being leveled.
On the way for FPCA is a new lower school building that will house 216 students in its pre-kindergarten through fifth grade.
“We are excited,” said Leah Gumataotao, the head of school at FPCA. “We can’t wait to see the finished product.”
The building, about 16,900 square feet, will sit on 5.65 acres of land behind the current FPCA school building, facing Memorial Drive and Bradwell Street. A dropoff area for parents will be constructed parallel to Memorial Drive and accessible from Bradwell Street.
Three old homes the school purchased were leveled and new dirt has been brought in for the foundation of the new building.
FPCA is about to undertake a capital campaign drive. The school’s expansion will be done in phases, Gumataotao said.
While the lower school is expected to move into the new building, the upper school will remain in the current building on East Court Street.
“Right now, in this building, every room is used, wall to wall,” Gumataotao said. “As we build the new building and we make that space and build that infrastructure out, that will free up room for new students.”
Gumataotao and lower school principal Jennifer Coppock consulted with the architects on designing the new building, and they were floored when they were shown 3-D and digital versions of the building.
“There are a lot of really cool features they designed into the new building,” Gumataotao said. “The plans are beautiful. It’s neat trying to fit a school into this little block. You have to get creative with the design.”
Among the amenities to the building are a state-of-the-art culinary arts kitchen, and a cheer and tumbling gymnastics room. There also will be a playground, along with an outdoor eating and meeting flex area.
“These are just some innovative things to keep kids engaged and some unique things we can offer our families and students,” Gumataotao said.
Expansion plans were on the drawing board before Gumataotao arrived at FPCA about a year ago. But they also are coming at the right time. Two of the grades are at maximum capacity and there is a waiting list to get into the school.
“It’s definitely needed,” Gumataotao said of the expansion. “It shows us the demand for it.”
FPCA teachers are coming up with ideas but there isn’t the room currently to make those come to life, Gumataotao said.
“To know that in the future we will be able to accommodate more students and more families, and grow the vision and grow the mission of the school, that is important to us being the only faithbased academy in Liberty County,” she said.
The school also is thinking about adding a cafeteria and a gymnasium in the future.
“It’s challenging, because we’re not in a big open field area where schools are traditionally built,” Gumataotao said.