A $20.5 million expansion of Key Elementary School is part of the city’s five-year building plan, work projected to involve “complete rehabilitation of the existing school.”

Project planning is expected to begin “in earnest” in 2020, according to Jonathan M. Willingham, chief of staff for Ward 3 Councilmember Mary Cheh. He said Cheh sought inclusion of the money in the 2019-2024 Capital Improvements Plan, but the specific amount came from DC Public Schools.

The project description does not indicate the size of the addition or the enrollment to be accommodated. DC budget documents show a 2019 projection of 427, a steady increase from actual enrollment of 383 for 2015.

The Palisades school this summer underwent a $1 million replacement and expansion of its modular classroom complex to address rising attendance. (See, Key School Expansion Casts Sparks, As Palisades Grows Denser)

The school “received a full modernization in 2002” and the new project “will require complete rehabilitation of the existing school building,” according to the building plan.

Since 2008, the city’s a comprehensive schools modernization program has totaled more than $4 billion. The current capital improvements plan adds another $1 billion over the next six years, including funding for 26 elementary schools, two middle schools, and three high schools.