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# Inflation, deferred maintenance contribute to $850 million in needs, Chesterfield school officials say
- URL: https://www.richmonder.org/inflation-deferred-maintenance-contribute-to-850-million-in-needs-chesterfield-school-officials-say/
- Published: 2026-08-18T22:08:08.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-18T22:08:08.000Z
- Description: As Chesterfield voters prepare to weigh in this November on whether to raise the sales tax 1% to fund school construction, the county’s school system unveiled a study last week that said it needs an estimated $850 million over the next decade.
- Author: Eleanor Shaw
- Tags: Education, #the-bridge

As Chesterfield voters prepare to weigh in this November on whether to raise the sales tax 1% to fund school construction, the county’s school system unveiled a study last week that said it needs an estimated $850 million over the next decade to address maintenance across its campuses — but there’s currently only $130 million budgeted for the work.

The figure, identified through a facilities assessment completed in June, reflects years of deferred repairs and is driven largely by aging HVAC systems, roofs and other building infrastructure. School officials warned that continuing to postpone maintenance could make the problem even more expensive as routine repairs turn into emergency replacements.

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Read the full report [****here**](https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/chesterfield/Board.nsf/pfiles/DWUPQT65C634/$file/PRESENTATION%20-%20Capital%20Improvement%20Plan%20and%20Facility%20Condition%20Assessment%20Update.pdf).

The most in-need campuses, according to the report, are Carver Academy, Cosby High School, Bon Air Elementary School, Gordon Elementary School and Robious Middle School. 

One of the newer schools in this group is Cosby High, which opened in 2006\. Its biggest demand is over $25 million-worth of HVAC updates due in 2032 — specifically air handler replacement. By the time Cosby turns 30 in 2037, the building will also need a new roof, according to the report.

“This is not a Chesterfield-only kind of thing,” CCPS Chief Operations Officer Reid Wodicka said during the School Board’s regular August meeting. “This is a nationwide challenge in schools.”

The City of Richmond, which is also placing the sales tax increase on the ballot, says it is in a similar situation. [A third party service assessed](https://www.richmonder.org/richmond-schools-need-43-7-million-in-immediate-repairs-find-reports-on-building-conditions/) 50 Richmond school division facilities in 2024 and found they needed $43.7 million in immediate repairs.

Originally, Chesterfield’s building assessment was also planned to include strategizing about where this money would come from. But the passage of the state budget in June brought about the sales-tax option, which the county has dubbed 1 for Schools. 

If approved by voters in November, this referendum — [which would increase Chesterfield’s sales tax by 1%](https://www.richmonder.org/chesterfield-the-latest-locality-to-seek-1-sales-tax-increase-for-school-construction/), all proceeds going toward the school system — will contribute to “a dedicated capital maintenance fund to execute major HVAC, roof, and facility renewals across schools countywide on a pay-as-you-go basis,” according to a School Board-approved resolution.

For now, plans to find alternative funding are on pause until Election Day brings a decision on the tax increase.

“This is not a conversation that started in the last year,” Wodicka said. “For many years, this is something that we’ve been talking about as a community and will continue to talk about.”

### **Increased costs defer planned work**

This wouldn’t be the only project the sales tax would cover. It’s planned to construct two new elementary schools, rebuild Midlothian Middle School, renovate Matoaca Middle School and L.C. Bird High School, as well as expand Thomas Dale High School.

Some of these projects — specifically Midlothian Middle and Thomas Dale’s addition — were meant to be covered by the 2022 bond referendum. But actual costs were higher than estimations, leaving both projects in the metaphorical waiting room.

In Midlothian’s case, 2022’s referendum set aside $50 million to go toward the estimated $100 million construction project, though current estimates for the school place the cost closer to $120 million. As for Thomas Dale, its $22 million didn’t match the $30 million eventually needed. 

All other referendum-funded projects also saw increases — including the recently opened [Deep Creek](https://www.richmonder.org/chesterfield-cuts-the-ribbon-on-deep-creek-opening-its-41st-elementary-school/) and [Bensley](https://www.richmonder.org/chesterfield-celebrates-second-ribbon-cutting-in-one-week-at-bensley-elementary-school/) elementary schools. Both of these new schools are intended to relieve overcrowding. In Deep Creek’s case, it’ll siphon away the student body of its neighboring elementaries, while Bensley nearly doubled the capacity of its former building. 

Deep Creek and Bensley were estimated to need $43 and $42 million, respectively, but each ended up costing $52 million. Chesterfield says inflation led projections to miss the mark.

“Nationwide, we have seen in the last five or six years very significant increases in costs for construction,” Wodicka said, referring specifically to new school buildings.

Now, the county is hoping to make up the difference with the sales tax increase, part of which would be used to complete the remaining 2022 bond referendum projects.

*Contact Eleanor Shaw at* [*eshaw@richmonder.org*](mailto:eshaw@richmonder.org)*. She is a Report for America corps member.*