Lenoir approves SUP for private school

Lenoir is on track to get a new private school, with planners setting their eyes on utilizing a schoolbuilding that’s been empty for more than four years.

During its meeting on Aug. 4, the Lenoir City Council approved a special use permit for Waterlife Church in Lenoir, which wants to open a K-12 private school within the halls of the former West Lenoir Elementary School on Maple Drive NW.

“This got handed to us really quickly,” said Waterlife Pastor Todd Braswell, explaining that the church was so early in the process that he was still hesitant to discuss the details. “We’re just trying to get our ducks in a row. … We’re trying to get everything done with the building and get it signed over. It was contingent on these hurdles.”

The former elementary school closed its doors in May 2022 when Caldwell County Schools determined that Valmead Elementary and West Lenoir Elementary were operating at 50% capacity, and that they would be consolidated into the Valmead campus, according to reporting at the time.

The property is currently owned by HASO Holdings LLC, but due to its historic nature, there are caveats in the special use permit:

• The brick exterior cannot be painted, stuccoed, or obscured — including the decorative brick patterns on the front of the school.
• All concrete accents and the stones around the entrance cannot be altered.
• No additions will be attached to the existing building, unless they are accessibility ramps, which must be added to the side or rear.
• Existing windows and door openings must be retained. If they have to be replaced, the replacement must fit the existing openings without resizing or filling.

The school is only one of several historic buildings in the Fairfield Park area.

“There’s nothing binding these properties to remain historic at this time,” Lenoir Planning Director Hannah Williams said to the board during her presentation. “However, should the city pursue getting the neighborhood on the national register in the future, we would want to preserve those historic elements.”

Although the city council added a note to the special use permit that allows for the addition of a Pre-K in the future, should the church decide, many of the plans are still not set in stone.

Braswell said that many of the plans are still in their early stages, and that as more decisions are ironed out, he would release more information.