LAND O’LAKES – Citing academic and financial benefits, the Pasco County School Board voted unanimously Tuesday to close three shrinking schools in New Port Richey and consolidate them into a single K-8 campus for the next school year.

The plan is to close Calusa Elementary, Chasco Elementary and Chasco Middle and consolidate them onto the Chasco campus.

“I see this as an opportunity for us to bring a K-8 school to West Pasco, an area where we probably don’t have to expect to build a new school,” said board member Cynthia Armstrong.

She said the plan is consistent with the district’s mission to provide comprehensive educational opportunities for all children.

Board member Al Hernandez agreed, adding that the proposal aims to use the district’s financial resources as efficiently as possible.

“Closing a school is never fun. Nobody likes it,” Hernandez said. “This is not goodbye. It enriches the community.”

Three residents told the school board they opposed the merger.

Wyatt Grinage, whose daughter attends Calusa, said he was concerned that the school buildings in Chasco would not have enough space to accommodate all the Calusa children. He raised concerns about traffic in Chasco, which is located on busy Ridge Road, and noted that many Calusa families live too close to the school to take the bus, so they would likely drive to campus.

Board members stressed the importance of providing school crossing guards and teaching children how to cross the street properly. Assistant Superintendent Betsy Kuhn said the district intends to expand the Chasco stop to accommodate additional cars and told the board that the campus has enough space to accommodate the projected 1,620 students once some modifications are made.

Most importantly, Grinage said, many parents are upset at the idea of ​​losing the school in their neighborhood.

“We have grown fond of the staff at Calusa,” he said, noting that many of them may not move to Chasco with the students. “It breaks my heart to think about that. Because this school is the foundation of our community.”

District officials said most teachers would move with the students and other employees would be transferred but would not lose their jobs.

Former district commissioner Christina Fitzpatrick accused the board of a lack of transparency in implementing the concept.

“The parents I spoke to today still didn’t know about the change and the staff were told the matter was a done deal,” Fitzpatrick said.

The proposal first became public on August 29, when the district sent text messages and emails to families and held meetings with staff at the three schools.

It came as a surprise to most in the community, but the concept had been floating around in the background for months as county officials discussed various options to address declining enrollment in the West Pasco area.

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Calusa Elementary is currently at 65% capacity, while Chasco Middle is at about 73%. Chasco Elementary is at about 95% capacity.

The superintendent’s leadership team told board members that the district could save money with a consolidated school by eliminating redundant positions such as cafeteria workers, secretaries and assistant principals. Because the three schools are only a mile apart and Calusa students attend Chasco Middle School for sixth grade, a transition to a single school from kindergarten through eighth grade on the Chasco campus should be relatively smooth, they argued.

Although some families agreed with the change, the concept annoyed others, including those who are unhappy with the district’s decision to close Ridgewood High, adjacent to Calusa, six years ago and convert it into a technical high school.

This latest proposal is one of many the board has considered to deal with declining enrollment in the outlying areas while the population in the central part of the county Boom.

Two years ago, the district closed Mittye P. Locke Elementary School due to low enrollment and converted it into an early education center.

Four years ago, Hudson Elementary School was closed and merged with Northwest Elementary, which was renamed and reconfigured with the middle and high schools on the Cobra Way campus.

Six years ago, school administrators asked the board to close Lacoochee Elementary as well, but the board refused, citing the school’s importance as a center for the isolated rural community it serves.