Hooksett may not need a high school right now, but – just in case – the School Board already has its sights set on a spot.

An 80-acre parcel off Route 3 just south of Head’s Pond has been offered by Manchester Sand and Gravel as a site for a potential school. The area has been deemed ideal because state law mandates that a high school needs a minimum of 60 acres to accommodate the buildings and surrounding facilities.

“Manchester Sand and Gravel has been great to work with,” said School Board Chairman Maura Ouelette. “We have looked at many sites and think this is our best option. But we don’t want people to panic and automatically assume we’re moving forward with a new school.”

In fact, the board hasn’t even begun to debate whether a high school is necessary. Currently, the district buses about 500 Hooksett high school students per day to high schools in Manchester.

A high school exploratory committee will convene its first meeting later this month to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of building a new school in town.

“(The new site) is taking care of our future needs,” said Superintendent Charles “Phil” Littlefield.

He emphasized that even though a site parcel has been selected and that the new high school committee is meeting this month, the two events are not necessarily related.

“I want to be very clear,” he said, “these things are very independent of each other.”

Representatives from Manchester Sand and Gravel were on hand at a Hooksett Conservation Commission meeting on Oct. 1 to lay out the site plans for the potential school and to request – if the School Board decides to move forward with plans – a change to one of the town’s environmental easements.

Attorney David Campbell told commission members the school district would need to run an access road through one of the town’s current designated open spaces, but that in exchange for that access, Manchester Sand and Gravel is willing to donate an extra 30 acres of green area strictly for land conservation purposes.

“We’re not asking to put condominiums up here,” Campbell said. “We’re offering a school, which has an obvious public benefit.”

The conservation commission voted unanimously to support the plans.

The Hooksett High School Exploratory Committee will hold its first meeting at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 20, at Cawley Middle School.