Mold problem leads this Midlands school district to look for a new headquarters

Lexington-Richland 5 school district is looking for a new headquarters after a mold problem forced some of its employees to move out of the main district office.

The school board voted Monday to request proposals for construction of a new district office as well as an appraisal for their current location at 1020 Dutch Fork Road, Irmo.

Superintendent Akil Ross said staffers in the district’s accountability office had moved to temporary space at CrossRoads Intermediate School because of an outbreak of mold in the office’s section of the building.

“We had a group come in to clean, but after cleaning, we just made it upset. It came back with a vengeance,” Ross said.

Ross noted that a 2019 study by M.B. Kahn Construction had rated the district office as being in “poor condition” and recommended finding the district a new permanent home.

District officials have estimated that Lexington-Richland 5 could spend up to $16 million on a new facility that would put all of its staff back in one place and provide new space that can be used for both school board meetings and staff training.

Ross said the district is looking at an adjoining plot of land to the district office currently used as a baseball field. He estimates the whole process will take two years.

While some board members thought using the same Dutch Fork Road site would be the quickest way to solve the district’s space issues, others said the district should consider selling its current building and looking for space elsewhere.

“They could say it’s worth $5 to $10 million, and then we could find more land for less money,” said board member Catherine Huddle.

Ross said plans for the new district office would not interfere with the plans for multi-million dollar renovations at area schools announced last October, highlighted by nearly $50 million to replace the east wing of Irmo High School that dates to 1964.