St. Johns County School Board approves new high school, parents voice concern over its location

The St. Johns County School District is taking steps to try and catch up to its growing population.

Tuesday afternoon, they approved a motion to build a new high school that would benefit the new Silverleaf development.

After nearly three hours, the school board came to the decision that they would locate the new school on the outskirts of the development along County Road 16A.

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Sean Scullion, who lives in St. Johns County with his wife and 12-year-old son, said he was disappointed by their decision.

“Back on March 12th, the school board voted against it, making the developer go back to a 2015 plan that was approved for a high school site inside the community. Now today, I’m a little stunned, to be honest with you,” Scullion said.

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That school board-approved location was pitched by the developer.

Scullion says his main concern is the safety of the students. The new school will be built along 16A and he’s already seen a number of accidents.

“There’s was a time where our kids where getting off the school bus and about 10 minutes later a distracted teenage driver came barreling in literally where the kids were and ran her car into a thousand pound rock and I can’t even tell you … we’re afraid to leave our neighborhoods,” he said.

The Silverleaf community could bring in more than 10,000 homes along St. Johns Parkways just west of I-95.

Parents like Rebecca Slate hopes a new school will at least help ease St. Johns County’s growing pains. Slate says it has caused school overcrowding issues.

“I can’t see it hurting in terms of the population of children coming in to one place,” Slate said.

Next month, the school board’s recommendations will go before the board of county commissioners for approval.

Cox Media Group