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Community Left Out Of School Project

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By ELIZABETH LEE BROWN

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 7, 2008

CARROLLWOOD - Hillsborough County leaders who shepherded a planned $1 million expansion of recreation facilities at Carrollwood Elementary School struck a conciliatory tone on Monday, admitting they skirted community input before approving the project.

Hillsborough County commission chairman Ken Hagan and county parks and recreation director Mark Thornton told members of the Carrollwood Civic Association at its monthly meeting that the facilities were pushed through without community meetings.

"There's no question communication about the project was poor, and I will take responsibility for that," said Hagan, who grew up in the Original Carrollwood neighborhood and whose son will attend kindergarten at the school in the fall.

The project would have two 2,000-square-feet multipurpose buildings at the school on McFarland Road, adjacent to the existing 8,000-square-foot covered courtyard. The new facilities would allow the county to expand the after-school program.

The county is providing the $1 million- money the county had set aside for the Citrus Park civic center before the project was frozen due to budget cuts.

The construction project is a joint venture between the county and school district.

The district owns the land and will be responsible for construction and daily upkeep. During the day, the rooms will be used for physical education classes.

The county will expand the county-run after-school program and handle preventive maintenance and major replacement costs.

The additional space would accommodate twice as many after-schoolers and up to 175 students in the summer camp. There are 75 students in the after-school program and another 75 students on the waiting list.

Detractors said they feared the expanded program would attract more traffic onto the county roads, bring more outsiders into their neighborhood and potentially put kids in danger.

Board members said the threat of an influx of cars and the "invasion" of kids from outside Original Carrollwood was ridiculous, because the children who will be using the expanded after-school program already attend the school and are on the waiting list.

Thornton said that although the county program technically is open to all county residents, it is unlikely students from other schools will enroll in the after-school program because the district doesn't bus students between schools.

Hagan said the purpose of the expansion was to enhance the educational program, and it never occurred to him that residents might object to that.

The recreational buildings were placed in the county budget two years ago and weren't slated for construction next year with plenty of time for community meetings, Hagan said.

But the district was able to fast-track the construction and hoped to get it done by September or October, he said.

"I'll be the first one to say communication on the project should have been better," Hagan said.

Thornton said in light of more budget cuts parents should be prepared for changes in the after-school program, which is now free. That could mean user fees, tapping naming rights or handing the operations over to a third-party, such as the YMCA, he said.

Thornton said recreational facilities at Carrollwood Elementary are going to be a proto-type for future partnerships with the district at other schools.

"It happened very quickly. It seems like everything happens slowly in the county, and this was a moment to shine," he said.

Reporter Elizabeth Lee Brown can be reached at (813) 865-1502 or ebrown@tampatrib.com.

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