By Edmond Ortiz
Staff Writer

The Schertz-Cibolo-Univer-sal City School District has formally accepted consultants’ facility planning study, which urges formation of a strategic master plan that addresses long-term growth.

The school board fielded a presentation Dec. 6 by Facility Programming and Consulting, SA Research Corp., and Pfluger Associates Architects. The study examines demographics, and makes recommendations regarding class and school sizes, attendance feeder patterns and what it might cost in the future to build more schools.

SCUCISD is currently experiencing a slightly slowdown in the influx of families, but projections show that continuing development especially in east Cibolo require the district to make plans for additional campuses well into the next decade and a half.

Based on previous talks with board members and administrators, the consultants suggested maintaining smaller classes and neighborhood-type schools, essentially keeping 4A status under University Interscholastic League rules.

The consultants also recommended building larger rooms, but not immediately filling them in order to leave space for future growth. Steele High School, for example, has space leftover to add a classroom wing.

The planning study proposes reusing vacated campuses for administrative purposes and streamlining feeder patterns. Based on demographics, the study projects SCUC possibly achieving nearly 52,000-student population upon residential build-out more than 15 years from now.

The district could potentially have those students attending a total of 58 schools by then, the study states. The current districtwide enrollment has already exceeded 10,300 among 12 campuses.

“As you grow, there will always be a time when buildings and the number of students will never be at equilibrium,” Doug Lowe of Facility Programming and Consulting told the board.

The idea among stream-lined feeder patterns, consultants said, is to maintain manageable sizes of schools and classrooms.

While district officials and other community members may desire smaller schools and classes, there could be a premium to be paid down the road, Lowe said, as efficiency – the ratio of schools per 10,000 students - drops a bit in the effort to manage an expanding school district. Efficiency increases if the district were to go with a slightly higher number of students per campus.

Consultants also revealed a possible 15-year cost model, a hypothetical scenario where the district could build an addition five elementary, one intermediate, two junior high and two high schools over that length of time.

Given existing and probable costs of land, material and other factors, the total cost could be as high as $825 million. The consultants added that continually replacing existing campuses and may grow to become difficult as costs rise.

Trustees agreed a long-term strategic plan is needed as long as some flexibility is permitted.

Trustees also said the district should immediately take a finished master plan to city officials in Cibolo, Schertz, Selma and Universal City to ensure those entities are in tune with SCUC and vice versa regarding future land planning.

“The master plan is a roadmap on how to get from one milestone to another. It’s also a consensus-building tool,” Lowe responded.

Meanwhile, the district will hold public forums in January on proposed attendance boundaries for the opening of John Sippel Elementary School next August in Schertz.

A newly formed rezoning committee had its first meeting Nov. 27 to review demographic information and discuss ideas for the campus, which is being built under the 2006 bond program to relieve Watts and Green Valley elementary schools.

The panel is expected to forward recommendations for the Dec. 20 school board meeting. Neighborhoods in attendance zones for Watts and Wiederstein Elementary could be most affected in a shift.