Overflowing bathroom facilities and consistent mold problems are just a few of the issues making up Fairfax County Public Schools’ expansive maintenance backlog.
Maintenance and renovation needs were part of the Fairfax County School Board’s discussion of its latest draft Capital Improvement Program and a public hearing on Tuesday (Jan. 13).
The CIP, a six-year plan for capital projects, is approved on an annual basis, but funding is allocated only one year at a time. The plan covers fiscal year 2027, which starts July 1, through FY 2031.
A large portion of the program is driven by a renovation and maintenance backlog, which sits at $394.5 million. It’s expected to grow by $52.8 million next fiscal year and $237 million over the next five fiscal years.
Erik Gordon, chief of facilities services and capital programs for FCPS, said the school facilities are also being assessed by consulting firm AECOM for maintenance needs.
“I fully anticipate that that number will go up,” he said of the estimated maintenance needs.
About 60% of the current backlog is for updating heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, which also represent about 62% of the projected need over the next five years.
One of the specific issues raised at Tuesday’s public hearing was a lag in improvements for Centreville High School.
Kimberly Adams, who works at the school, said a renovation has been in the CIP since at least 2018, and staff was told construction would start last year. Now, it’s slated for 2028. In the meantime, the prospect of renovation has kept maintenance requests from moving forward.
“We are faced with a three-year further delay after over three years of being told that we shouldn’t be able to get anything replaced or remodeled because this renovation was coming,” she said.
Centreville High School was ranked 51st in FCPS’ current renovation queue, which was approved by the school board in 2008. Though the school system aims to renovate facilities every 20 to 25 years, the cycle has now stretched out to 43 years “based on current construction costs and future estimates,” according to the draft CIP.
More on the current state of the renovation queue from the CIP:
As of January 2026, 43 of the 63 schools in the queue have completed renovation. Two schools are in permitting, and eight schools are in construction. Nine schools have been bond approved and are awaiting funding. One school is not yet bond approved or funded for renovation. The current estimates based on construction costs, available funding, and projected capacity requirements, indicate that all schools within the 2008 renovation queue will have funding for either planning/design or construction by FY 2031.
With an end to the queue within sight, FCPS staff are developing a new list to guide future renovations based on updated criteria and an ongoing facility condition assessment.
“The notice to proceed was issued in December 2025, and we’re currently proceeding through the phase 2 part. The work includes the physical assessment of our facilities,” Gordon said when presenting to the school board at its work session on Tuesday. “The next milestone will be completing the assessments and having a framework to inform the renovation queue.”
Hunter Mill District Representative Melanie Meren said addressing the existing renovation and maintenance backlog needs to be a focus, even if it means shifting around funding.
“I think it’s a major priority that our school division has money for where people learn and work. I don’t see urgency around this in any way from the superintendent. We just keep getting reports that we’re backlogged,” she said. “We don’t need more reports. We need action steps.”
Centreville High is among 10 schools slated for planning and design work over the next five years and one of two expected to start construction.
Overall, changes to the CIP from last year include new construction cost estimates to factor in inflation, the acquisition of and planned work to renovate the western high school, and construction of new Dunn Loring and Silver Line elementary schools.
The total projects over the next five years will cost an estimated $1.1 billion, of which $505 million has already been approved through bond referendums. Over the next 10 years, FCPS will need about $1.6 billion to fund all planned projects, of which only $515 million has been approved.
At the work session, school board members commended FCPS for continuing to implement a five-phase project to add security vestibules at its schools. The school system is in the third phase, which Mason District Representative Ricardy Anderson applauded.
“I think that is a wonderful, wonderful plan,” she said.
The board is expected to vote on the proposal by Feb. 12, ahead of the Board of Supervisors releasing the county’s CIP later next month as part of County Executive Bryan Hill’s advertised fiscal year 2027 budget.
