Embracing yesterday, tomorrow

This is how these things happen.

I had such a blog planned for today. Arose early Tuesday, took a long walk on the state trail as the sun was rising, came home and started on my research.

See, the planned blog required about three hours of online reading. No heavy lifting, but necessary, nonetheless.

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The day moved well. Nice Cattle Dog chat in the morning with a friend about Buddy Bandanas and other assorted topics. 

The afternoon breezed along when I left World Headquarters around 3 p.m. for another Cattle Dog chat, followed by the School Board at 4. Figured I’d be home by 5 and would pound out 700 words of blogging bliss from the afternoon research.

Something happened at the School Board meeting that diverted my thoughts. 

Attended to see the last meeting for Sandra “Sam” Himmel and Ginger Bryant. They served together on the School Board before Sam was elected superintendent of schools, and now both retired on the same day.

The meeting was one of emotion and gratitude.

But I didn’t take notes on my phone of farewell speeches.

No. What got my interest was the talk about growth.

Many people have rightly wondered how Citrus County is undergoing tremendous growth. The county is approving thousands of new homes, and yet, we don’t need a new school.

Everyone says the schools are crowded. Parents say it. Kids say it. The district doesn’t disagree.

New schools are expensive, and the state will not give permission for the county to build a new one unless it utilizes all the space it has.

That means the district builds classrooms. Sometimes it’s a new wing on a school. Sometimes, it’s taking space being used for other purposes, such as storage or an employee break room, and remodeling it for classrooms.

The district is adding classrooms at Floral City Elementary and Lecanto Middle. It has plans down the road to expand the footprint at Rock Crusher Elementary School.

But no new school is planned for at least five years. Only one elementary school — near the YMCA in Pine Ridge — is considered in the next 10 years.

Chuck Dixon, the school district’s planning director (one of three people in this county I consider a land-use expert), made numerous observations when presenting the district’s draft work plan. From my phone notes:

— A new elementary school costs about $52 million. A high school could go for two- or three times that.

— Can’t plan new schools or expansions based on approved development. Let me explain. This is really simpler than it sounds. Developments are neighborhoods on paper until they’re actually built. The state won’t allow Citrus to expand student stations based on a PROMISE of growth.

Yes, the state and county use population projections. But they’re based on houses that exist or are in the process of being built.

I can’t really fault the state for that. While it seems hard to see these days, Citrus County in the past has approved developments for hundreds of houses that never left the planning stage. Betz Farm, for example, was approved for 1,500 homes. None were ever built.

That puts the district in a difficult position.

Citrus County commissioners have approved several big developments, including one right across the street from Rock Crusher Elementary School. The district may, for example, relocate the school entrance so that it lines up with the development for traffic signal purposes.

School administrators do all it can to accommodate growth. Some of it is out of their hands.

— Dixon noted the county has no plans to improve Rock Crusher Road despite approving hundreds of new homes in close proximity to the elementary school.

(Expect this subject in a future JWC blog…the county is approving large residential and commercial developments with little conversation about the cumulative effect on its road network.)

— It was a nice sendoff for Sam and Ginger. Their spouses were there, and board Chairman Thomas Kennedy had us all weeping with his emotional tribute.

Their successors — Scott Hebert and Ken Frink — take office next Tuesday.

That’s it from the School Zone. Have a great Wednesday, friends.

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