Kindergartners enter Jenkins Elementary despite fire safety concerns, no permit

County officials are fuming after children, teachers, and staff of the new John D. Jenkins Elementary School entered the building before Prince William County inspectors issued a full occupancy permit, and despite concerns about a fire suppression system that may not work properly.

Kindergarten students were allowed inside the building for orientation at 10 a.m. Thursday, August 22. A the same time, County Building Official Eric Mays was concerned that the hangers used to secure pipes for the fire suppression system were not strong enough to “support the weight of the pipe, the water, plus an additional 250-pound load,” according to emails obtained by Potomac Local.

At the time of the kindergarten orientation, May’s had not issued a full occupancy permit. He had given a shelf-stocking permit, which allowed teachers inside the building only so they could set up their classrooms ahead of the official Monday, August 26 opening.

The August 22 orientation was abruptly canceled and orders were issued to evacuate the school building.  The next afternoon, Mays issued the full occupancy permit for the school, said county executive Christopher Martino.

In an email describing his meeting with a building official from the the Prince William County School System, Mays expressed the dismay. “I also indicated that 25 years of trust had just been destroyed, and I excused myself from the meeting.”

Prince William County Building Services Director Wade Hugh, Mays’ boss, said this could be a criminal matter. “I wanted to let you know that in the course of working through the Building Code violation (occupying a building without a Certificate of Occupancy), we are considering the issuance of a Criminal Complaint through the Magistrates Office,” Hugh penned in an email to Martino.

Some say there was a breakdown of communication that led to the error. “We want everyone to be safe, and that’s why we need to do a better job with communication between the county folks and the school folks,” said Prince William Neabsco District Supervisor Victor Angry.

Occoquan District Supervisor Ruth Anderson, who doesn’t buy the excuse, said she’s spoken with county officials in charge of the permitting process. “Communications should not have been misconstrued in any way,” she said. The school sits in the Magisterial District she represents.

Prince William School Board Chairman At-large Babur Lateef said a facilities manager with the county school division was “disciplined” following the incident.

It’s not uncommon for an occupancy permit to be issued for a building very close to a planned move-in date, adds Grant. The county’s Development Services Office did work with the school division to expedite the school’s permitting process, he adds.

At a ribbon-cutting ceremony held on Wednesday, August 28, county schools superintendent Dr. Steven Walts said, “this school opened on time. We made it by a hair, but we did it.”  A groundbreaking for the school was held just 10 months ago, said Senator Scott Surovell.

Angry replaced the school’s namesake, John D. Jenkins on the Prince William Board of County Supervisors after an April Special Election, following Jenkins’ death in February. Jenkins was the longest-serving member of the Board of County Supervisors, from 1982 to 2019.

John D. Jenkins Elementary School is located at 4060 Prince William Parkway in Woodbridge, near the Chinn Aquatics and Fitness Center.