Pinellas considers first school boundary changes in 14 years
Facing declining enrollment for years, the Pinellas County school district hasn’t had much need to redraw its attendance boundaries for more than a decade.
One of four planned new affordable apartment complexes coming to the county is about to change that trend.
The Allora Largo, expected to add 336 units to the community adjacent to Largo Middle School, brings the possibility of adding too many students to Southern Oak Elementary School when it opens in late 2025 or early 2026, district planner Marshall Touchton told the school board on Tuesday.
Southern Oak is scheduled to merge with neighboring Walsingham Elementary into a K-8 campus next year, to more effectively use the two under-capacity schools.
Touchton recommended redrawing the Southern Oak boundary so its two eastern-most neighborhood grids would attend Fuguitt Elementary instead. Fuguitt, built for about 750 students, sits around half full.
Largo Middle and Largo High have plenty of space to accommodate students who live in the apartments, Touchton said.
Superintendent Kevin Hendrick told the board that the rezoning would be the district’s first in 14 years. Because of population decreases, he said, the district has been able to absorb new developments into existing schools and even close and merge some campuses.
The district also has relied more heavily on magnet and other choice programs to generate enrollment shifts.
This change, which still must go through two board hearings before final consideration in January, will let the board practice using its recently unused policy as other new housing projects come to the county, Hendrick said.
Board member Caprice Edmond asked how often that is likely to occur. She pointed to several redevelopment projects coming to south Pinellas, the area she represents.
“Do you think capacity as it is will be able to absorb them?” Edmond asked.
Touchton said only one project caught his attention as possibly requiring a rezoning. It’s a complex set to rise near Azalea Elementary, Azalea Middle and Boca Ciega High schools.
Those zoned schools each have sufficient capacity to handle an influx of students, he said. “Easily.”
The elementary and middle school are slightly above 50% capacity, while the high school has been below 50%.
Jeffrey S. Solochek is an education reporter covering K-12 education policy and schools. Reach him at jsolochek@tampabay.com.
Pinellas considers first school boundary changes in 14 years