College Park residents told Prince George’s County Councilmember Eric Olson (District 3) in March that they object to the building of a new Northern Adelphi Area High School just outside of the city.
The proposed 2,600-student school is slated for 9000 25th Ave., the site of the former Cherokee Lane Elementary School, about a quarter mile from the College Park Woods neighborhood.
“I don’t understand why they need another big high school so close and not too far from High Point [High School] when they’re saying all of our elementary schools are way past capacity,” Mayor Pro Tem Maria Mackie (District 4) said during the meeting. “And when you study the numbers on high schools, it just doesn’t seem that it’s needed.”
The project aims to relieve overcrowding at High Point and Parkdale high schools, but local leaders and neighbors said they are concerned about the project’s impact on traffic and the environment.
City Councilmember Denise Mitchell (District 4) highlighted the “one way in, one way out” nature of the College Park Woods community. She warned that the added school traffic could paralyze the neighborhood, especially in case of an accident.
The project will include the building of an access road to connect the new building to nearby schools, according to Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS).
“That’s very concerning because the road will definitely affect our stormwater issues,” Mackie said at the meeting. “But also, how close is that road going to be to Metzerott?”
The entrance to College Park Woods intersects with Metzerott Road.
Resident Suchitra Balachandran, president of the West College Park Citizens Association, challenged a preliminary traffic study for the property that was conducted during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I think that study should be repeated now when the [University of Maryland] campus is in session,” Balachandran told College Park Here & Now after the meeting. “Why was the traffic study done during COVID and has not been repeated?”
Prince George’s County Public Schools in March 2025 announced it would conduct a new traffic study and a pedestrian study to assess how the new school might affect the area.
Olson said he has worked to delay potential funding for the high school until 2030. Demolition of Cherokee Lane Elementary cannot occur until after fall 2027 because the building is temporarily housing Adelphi Elementary students until they can move to their permanent building in fall 2027.
Mitchell expressed frustration that the Board of Education appeared unconcerned with how College Park Woods residents feel about the project, which PGPCS has estimated will cost $250 million by the time it is completed in 2034.