The MINA Charter School, set to open to Lee County students in 2020, will break ground on the refurbishment and renovation of the structure at 9 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 12.

The groundbreaking ceremony at 2732 Industrial Drive will feature speakers including Lee County Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Amy Dalrymple, Sanford Mayor Chet Mann, and Dave Machado, director of the North Carolina Office of Charter Schools. Members of the MINA – which stands for “more is now achievable” – organization will also speak.

The organization announced back in January that school would open in July 2020 and offer a STREAM curriculum (science, technology, reading, engineering, arts and math) to K-5 students. Ascend Leadership Academy, another charter school, currently serves children in grades 6 through 9, and will eventually serve grades 6 through 12.

In September, the organization closed on the buildings in the southernmost lot at Kendale, which has stood vacant for several years. The school released a drawing at the time of a proposed floor plan.

The effort could be part of an overall revitalization for the old shopping center. The two northernmost lots on the property sold in August to a Moore County development company which has yet to make any public announcements about plans for the property.

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