The Greenwich Planning and Zoning Commission postponed Alpha School's application to convert retail space at 20 E. Elm St. into an AI-driven K-8 campus. Tuition at the school runs $65,000 a year, according to the website for its Greenwich-Port Chester operation.
The Austin, Texas-based school network had applied to use roughly 9,220 square feet on the building's first floor, previously home to Urban Outfitters and a Saks Fifth Avenue women's shoe store. The reason for the postponement has not been made public.
Greenwich Time reported that Alpha School is now proposing to open a location called Alpha Greenwich Port Chester on King Street in Port Chester, N.Y., just across the state line. That campus is scheduled to open Tuesday, Sept. 8, according to the school's online calendar.
Alpha School did not respond to messages from Greenwich Time about the postponement.
What Alpha proposed for Greenwich
Alpha submitted a pre-application to the Planning and Zoning Commission in July. The application sought a change of use from retail to educational and required both a special permit and site-plan approval, according to Patch.
Attorney William Haslun, representing Alpha in the P&Z process, wrote in submitted documents that the school expected a maximum of 10 employees at full enrollment. Students would be dropped off, picked up, use public transit or walk, Haslun wrote, arguing parking demand would be less than the previous retail tenants generated.
The building at 20 E. Elm St. totals 17,669 square feet. The property, owned by Elm Street RSK LLC, carries a 68-employee cap from a 2009 P&Z approval, according to Greenwich Free Press. A medical office on the second floor currently employs 15 people.
How Alpha teaches
Alpha School was founded in 2014 by MacKenzie Price and tech billionaire Joe Liemandt. The network says students spend two hours a day on core academics using AI that adjusts each student's pace and content. The rest of the day focuses on workshops covering leadership, financial literacy and entrepreneurship, according to the school's website.
The AI-centered approach has drawn scrutiny. A review by the National Education Policy Center found that "administrators should be asking a lot of questions about the presence of AI in education," as Greenwich Time reported.
Cody Kittle, a Greenwich parent and former Board of Education member, has backed the school's local plans, according to the CT Examiner.
What's unclear
No new hearing date has been set. Whether Alpha still intends to pursue the Elm Street location or will focus on its Port Chester campus remains an open question. The school's own website now lists the campus as "Alpha Greenwich Port Chester" with a Port Chester, N.Y., address.
