Students hurry to their next class down the main corridor of East Hamilton Middle/High School during the first day of school on Aug. 11, 2010. Principal Gail Chuy said that though the school's capacity is only about 1,500 students, the student population currently stands at 1,750.
Students hurry to their next class down the main corridor of East Hamilton Middle/High School during the first day of school on Aug. 11, 2010. Principal Gail Chuy said that though the school's capacity is only about 1,500 students, the student population currently stands at 1,750.
East Hamilton-area parents have long voiced concerns about the impact hundreds of new families - and students - might have on the area's already overcrowded schools if the need for new facilities is not addressed.
Last month, the Hamilton County School Board presented the County Commission with a list of school construction priorities, but now, commissioners are asking if rezoning schools could be the best method to address that overcrowding while saving construction costs.
In a follow-up interview, school board Chairman Steve Highlander, who represents District 9, said rezoning would only be a short-term fix, especially in East Hamilton as the area continues its anticipated growth trajectory over the next 10 years.
"I think it's a very real possibility that the growth would outpace the ability to heal it by rezoning," Highlander said. "We need some new schools, especially in the growth areas. We definitely need some."
Confirmed as the fastest-growing sector of the county by the Regional Planning Agency, East Hamilton, labeled "Area 12," is expected to make up 32 percent of the coming housing demand, market studies show.
"That's like a third of the pie," said Pam Glaser, RPA principal planner.
The demand has yielded increased interest in the area from residential and commercial developers, with 2,231 building permits and 71 zoning cases occurring in the last four to five years, Glaser said.
"The quality of these schools will go down if they put 100 kids in these classrooms," one resident said during a January community meeting about a proposed residential development.
Several of the schools in East Brainerd and Ooltewah are already full or nearing capacity, said Highlander.
He pointed to East Hamilton Middle/High School, which Principal Gail Chuy said was built for between 1,500 and 1,600 students but currently has 1,750 enrolled. Highlander also pointed to Ooltewah High School, as well as Snow Hill Elementary School, whose overpopulation has forced nearby students to ride the bus more than an hour away to attend Ooltewah Elementary School - another facility nearing capacity.
"With all the new homes that are being built, we've got to do something here soon," he said.
The commission asked the school board to consider merging and rezoning schools as an option to make sure the existing buildings were being fully utilized before tax dollars were spent building more.
Assistant Superintendent Lee McDade said the Hamilton County Department of Education is finalizing a school utilization list containing a school-by-school number of empty classrooms, which he expected to present to commissioners at their March 8 meeting.
Right now, officials are only discussing the possibility of a rezoning; no plans or decisions have been made. But if they do choose to move forward, administrators at HCDE's central office would need to draw out specific plans and present them to the school board for approval.
School rezonings have worked to combat overpopulation in the past, McDade said.
Though unpopular, the 2012 decision that moved hundreds of students from East Hamilton Middle/High School to Ooltewah schools worked to relieve overcrowding in area facilities, he said.
The list of top construction priorities presented to the commission last month ranks East Hamilton's Harrison Elementary School, Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts and East Hamilton Middle School at the top of the list, in that order. Snow Hill Elementary was also listed at the top of a separate list for building additions.
With the need to build a new $100 million jail facility looming before the county, funding for school buildings may be scarce, Highlander said during the follow-up interview.
Though he admitted options are limited, Highlander said the school board will continue to look for alternative solutions, and McDade said considerations are still in the early phases.
"We're not saying we're going to rezone, we're not saying we're not going to rezone," McDade said. "We're just looking at all options right now."