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Parents and community members are accusing Prince George's County school system officials of dragging their feet over what they see as safety concerns with a new Upper Marlboro elementary school that broke ground Tuesday.

School system and county officials say the new school on Brooke Lane, currently known as Sub Region VI Elementary School, is important because it will serve students in the southern part of Prince George's County. The school is also on track to be the county's second school certified by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, a national standard for environmental friendliness, in addition to Vansville Elementary in Beltsville.

The school, scheduled to open in August 2009 next to Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School, is expected to hold 792 students and cost more than $25 million to build.

"This is a wonderful day for Prince George's County," said William Hite, Jr., the deputy superintendent for county schools, at the school's groundbreaking Tuesday. "Youth in Prince George's County, particularly in this Upper Marlboro community, are in need of this elementary school."

County Council Chairman Samuel Dean (D-Dist. 6) of Mitchellville and Board of Education Chair Verjeana Jacobs also attended the ceremony.

At a community meeting held at Wise on Monday, residents told school system representatives that the new elementary school doesn't have adequate safety provisions for its pupils, such as traffic lights on nearby roads or sidewalks that students need to walk to school.

Many residents said they were frustrated because school system representatives at the meeting referred all their concerns to the county Department of Public Works and Transportation. They said representatives from the school system's Capital Improvement Program office had told them the same thing at a May meeting about the new school.

"People came out and expected results, and we didn't get any," said Michelle Green, a board member for the homeowners' association of the nearby Fox Chase II community, after the meeting. "It's frustrating, it's very frustrating."

Many residents complained Monday that the school system's plans do not include sidewalks between the 83,000-square-foot school and the nearby Winterset community on Ritchie Marlboro Road.

"Our main concern is the children are being transported to school safely," said Derrick Sessions, a member of the Winterset homeowners association. "Children who may be required to walk to school [are] going to be a hazard for us."

The school system's CIP office is already building sidewalks from the new school to Brown Station Road, at the other end of Brooke Lane that will let children walk on sidewalks from the nearby Fox Chase II community.

Residents and schools in the county often find themselves at odds about sidewalks. For example, Bowie parents complained about the lack of sidewalks near High Bridge Elementary in 2001,

CIP officers said that unless the County Council approves more funds, there is no money in the school system's capital works budget for more sidewalks, which CIP officers would have to plan in cooperation with the DPWT.

"In terms of our budget, we are limited," said Rupert McCave, a CIP officer. "We're not short-changing the residents… We are doing everything we can within the capital budget."

McCave suggested residents request buses for students from the district's Transportation Office, which normally provides transportation to only students who are more than 1.5 miles away but can make exceptions.

Residents also said they were worried about traffic on nearby Ritchie Marlboro Road and Brown Station Road, and they called for the school system to put traffic lights on roads that intersect with Brooke Lane.

"With the budget cuts, things the [DPWT] isn't paying for we have trouble paying for," said Paul Taylor, the school system's director of planning and architectural services. "Traffic lights are expensive."

CIP officers said the school system and DPWT work together on adding sidewalks, traffic lights and other infrastructure that support public schools but said such projects are ultimately DPWT's responsibility.

Taylor said he would tell DPWT about residents' concerns. He said he tried to get someone from DPWT to attend the meeting but was not able to arrange it.

E-mail Greg Holzheimer at gholzheimer@gazette.net.