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PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — The Pasco County School Board voted unanimously Tuesday night to close Calusa Elementary School in New Port Richey to create a new K-8 school with Chasco Elementary and Middle Schools.
“Calusa Elementary, as mentioned, has 429 students, 65% of capacity, has been in declining enrollment, and what our proposal is is to combine the schools to a newer and more modern facility in a responsible way, a fiscally responsible way,” said Betsy Kuhn, Pasco County Schools’ assistant superintendent for support services, during a presentation to board members.
Under the plan, Calusa would close at the end of this school year, with its students rezoned to the Chasco campus in 2025-26.
Kuhn said a major construction project won’t be necessary to make that happen. Changes would include making the car loop bigger for the Chasco schools, which are on the same campus along Ridge Road. Kuhn said 278 seats are currently open at Chasco without any reconfiguring, but duplicate spaces, like offices, could also be converted into classrooms.
However, overcrowding is a concern for community members.
“I can’t understand how we’re going to put 400 kids in a place where there’s 275 vacancies and we’re not going to have overcrowded classrooms,” said Calusa parent Wyatt Grinage.
According to Kuhn’s presentation, the new K-8 would have comparable square footage for its student population to similar schools in the county. The current enrollment at all three schools impacted by the plan is 1,625 students, and the proposed Chasco K-8 would include 238,616 sq. ft. That’s larger than the Starkey Ranch, Kirkland Ranch and Skybrooke K-8 schools. At 220,964 sq. feet, Starkey Ranch has 2,104 students, Kirkland Ranch has 1,432 students in its 164,711 sq. feet and Skybrooke’s 1,620 students occupy 170,000 sq. ft.
Community members told the board that’s not the only reason they don’t want to see Calusa close.
“Calusa is not just a school, but the fabric of our community,” said Grinage.
“It’s a back gate school. That is huge. Parents from Chasco Middle and Elementary School don’t even want their kids crossing Ridge Road,” said longtime resident and former county commissioner Christina Fitzpatrick.
Fitzpatrick stood across from Calusa at dismissal, holding a sign with information about Tuesday’s board meeting. She said her children don’t attend the school but that it’s important to the neighborhood. She told Spectrum News she didn’t think many community members knew about the proposed closure.
“All my kids went to Calusa. She just graduated from Calusa,” said one driver who stopped to talk with Fitzpatrick, referring to her daughter in the passenger seat.
“See? It’s very devastating,” Fitzpatrick said.
Fitzpatrick and Grinage were two of three speakers who addressed the board during public comment. All were against closing Calusa.
“Calusa is about a half mile from our front door. Chasco is 1.9 miles,” said Grinage. “Obviously, this disqualifies us from the bus, and it’s unsafe for my daughter to walk on Ridge Road. So, that puts us in a position where we’re automatically going to be in the car loop, and a lot of parents fall into this same position. That puts constraints on our family, as far as work, to and from, having to find someone to get the kids everyday.”
“The schools are very close. They’re 1.4 miles apart, and they’re in the same community. The impact to transportation of this proposal is minimal,” said Kuhn. “The thought was that this would allow for us to make this proposal, do this combination, with as little disruption as possible.”
Kuhn said if the proposal passed, the district could talk with the sheriff’s office about moving a traffic control officer and crossing guard stationed at Calusa to join the five crossing guards currently assigned to Chasco, where appropriate. She said the district could also work on additional messaging for the school and surrounding communities about traffic safety.
When it comes to teachers, Kuhn said the plan was for them to follow students to the new K-8. Before the vote, a representative with United School Employees of Pasco told the board the union has already started meeting with employees at all three schools. He said if the proposal passed, USEP would work to make sure workers feel supported.
Superintendent Kurt Browning told board members the rezoning process will begin after this school year, and messages to those potentially affected will be sent out Wednesday. Kuhn said the process will include workshops for impacted families.
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Sarah Blazonis
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