Topsail Middle School Project Moves Forward - What Parents Should Know

Pender County Schools has taken another step toward the planned repurposing of the Topsail Middle School campus, selecting a design-build team for a project tied directly to school growth in the Hampstead and Topsail area.

Quick Takeaways

The Pender County Board of Education voted unanimously to approve Bordeaux Construction and Moseley as the design team for the Topsail Middle School project.
The project is tied to the larger school growth plan for eastern Pender County, including the new J.H. Lea K-8 campus under construction in Hampstead.
The former Topsail Middle School campus is expected to be repurposed into part of a Topsail High School upper and lower campus model.
The goal is to help relieve pressure on Topsail High School as residential growth continues across the Hampstead, Surf City, and greater Topsail area.
Key details still remain open, including final design, construction timing, traffic planning, student transitions, and the ultimate project cost.

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What Happened?

During a special meeting on June 3, 2026, the Pender County Board of Education voted unanimously to approve Bordeaux Construction and Moseley as the team for the Topsail Middle School design project, according to Pender County Schools.

The district said the decision followed a review process involving multiple proposals. Board member Beth Burns made the motion to approve the team, citing the group’s work with Pender County Schools, including its involvement with the J.H. Lea school campus project.

While this latest vote does not mean construction begins immediately, it does move the project into a more concrete planning phase. For local families, the bigger story is what this project is expected to become and how it fits into the fast-changing school landscape in eastern Pender County.

What Is the Topsail Middle School Project?

The project centers on the repurposing of the former Topsail Middle School campus for high school use. The state procurement listing for the project describes it as design-build services for “repurposing of the former Topsail Middle School into the Topsail High Upper and Lower Campus.”

That language matters. This is not simply a renovation for cosmetic upgrades. The project is part of a larger plan to create more functional space for Topsail-area students as enrollment pressure continues to build.

WECT also reported that the board selected Bordeaux Construction and Moseley for the Topsail Middle School design project, noting that the team is currently leading construction for the J.H. Lea Schools campus.

Why Is This Happening?

The short version: growth.

The Topsail and Hampstead area has seen steady residential development, and school capacity has been one of the clearest pressure points. As more families move into eastern Pender County, the district has had to plan for both current overcrowding and future enrollment demand.

The Topsail Middle School renovation was included in the county’s larger school bond planning. Pender County Schools previously listed the Topsail Middle School renovation at $22.6 million as part of a broader package of school facility projects, including the new K-8 school campus in Hampstead.

The North Carolina Department of State Treasurer also described Pender County as one of the state’s fastest-growing counties when reviewing the county’s school bond request in 2023. That same release said the bond package included Topsail Middle School renovations intended to help address overcrowding at Topsail High School.

How Does J.H. Lea Fit Into This?

The Topsail Middle School project is closely connected to the new J.H. Lea K-8 campus under construction off N.C. Highway 210 in Hampstead.

Pender County Schools has said the J.H. Lea campus is scheduled to open in August 2027. The district has described it as a major investment intended to serve a growing community and provide a modern learning environment for K-8 students.

Once that new campus opens, it creates an opportunity to shift how existing school buildings are used. That is where the Topsail Middle School campus conversion becomes especially important.

What Could Change at the Campus?

Final designs have not been announced, but previous public reporting on the project has pointed to a wide range of possible improvements.

Port City Daily reported that proposed concepts discussed during the selection process included upgrades such as science classrooms, career and technical education spaces, a media center, dining commons, student loading areas, added parking, improved queuing, pedestrian safety improvements, HVAC work, accessibility upgrades, roofing, electrical, plumbing, and fire sprinkler improvements.

Those details should still be treated as part of the planning and proposal process, not a final construction checklist. The approved design team will now help shape what the finished project actually includes.

What Does This Mean for Topsail High School?

The intended direction appears to be a high school upper and lower campus model, using the former Topsail Middle School property as part of the broader Topsail High School footprint.

For families, that raises several practical questions:

Which grades would use each campus?
How would students move between campuses, if needed?
Would start times or traffic patterns change?
How would buses, student drivers, and parent drop-off be handled?
Would athletic, arts, and extracurricular schedules be affected?

Those answers have not been fully laid out yet. That is why the next phase of planning will matter so much for parents, students, teachers, and nearby residents.

What We Still Don’t Know

Several important questions remain unanswered, or at least not finalized publicly:

Final design: The district has selected a team, but the final design and full scope still need to be developed.
Construction timeline: A detailed construction schedule has not been publicly finalized.
Student transition plan: Families will want to know when students may be affected and how any transition would work.
Traffic impacts: Any high school campus expansion in Hampstead will likely raise questions about drop-off, pickup, buses, student drivers, and nearby roads.
Final cost: The bond planning figure for the Topsail Middle School renovation was about $22.6 million, but the final cost may depend on the final scope and construction planning.

Why Local Families Should Pay Attention

This project is about more than one building. It is part of the larger reshaping of public school capacity in one of Pender County’s fastest-growing areas.

For current Topsail Middle families, the immediate question is what happens as the new J.H. Lea K-8 campus moves toward opening. For Topsail High families, the bigger question is whether a two-campus model will reduce overcrowding and improve the student experience. For nearby residents, traffic and construction impacts will likely be top of mind.

And for the broader Topsail area, this is another example of how residential growth is forcing major infrastructure decisions across schools, roads, water, sewer, and public services.

What Happens Next?

The approval of Bordeaux Construction and Moseley gives the district a team to begin moving the Topsail Middle School project forward in more detail. The next major steps should include design development, construction planning, cost refinement, and more public information about how the campus transition would work.

Families should watch for future Pender County Board of Education meetings, district updates, and project-specific announcements from Pender County Schools.

For now, the key takeaway is simple: the Topsail Middle School campus conversion is moving forward, but many of the details families care about most are still ahead.

Topsail Middle School Project Moves Forward – What Parents Should Know