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Commission Set To OK Agreement On Schools

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By JULIA FERRANTE, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 25, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - The county commission on Wednesday is slated to sign off on an agreement to ensure Pasco has enough schools to serve its growing population.
School district officials approved the pact last week, but many issues remain unresolved.

The parties have tried several times to work out their disputes, which center on who should pay for road improvements near new schools.

A 2005 state law requires Florida counties to have a "concurrency" plan that spells out how counties and school districts will find property and build new schools. The plan also must show how the parties, through joint planning, will compensate for additional traffic.

County and school officials have agreed to disagree on the transportation issue. County officials say the school district should pay for improvements to compensate for extra traffic. The school district argues the county should pay for off-site traffic fixes.

The county commission is slated to approve the agreement at a public hearing at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at the West Pasco Government Center, 7530 Little Road. The plan says the county and school board "acknowledge that there are conflicting and undefined requirements" in state law about who has responsibility for off-site traffic improvements.
School board attorney Dennis Alfonso has predicted the state Department of Community Affairs, which must approve the plan, will send it back and ask officials to detail how they will resolve disputes.

The Hillsborough County School Board in August challenged the Hillsborough County Commission in court, hoping to clarify the same issue. The Pasco school board is hoping the outcome of that case will end their differences with the county.

Reporter Julia Ferrante can be reached at (813) 948-4220 or jferrante@tampatrib .com.

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