ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla – St Johns County is one of the fastest-growing counties in the country and it is dealing with some growing pains, having county leaders look to the state for help in handling the growth.
School board member Beverly Slough hosted a town hall at Freedom Crossing Academy Tuesday evening to discuss the growth in the county especially when it comes to schools.
Recommended Videos
Slough and another school board member, Kelly Barrera went to Tallahassee to speak with lawmakers about getting more money under what’s called “high growth allocation.” It is money in a grant that helps ease the burden for school districts when it comes to building new schools, something Slough said seems to be happening almost every year in St. Johns County.
“Houses came faster than anybody anticipated in this hot housing market, things are selling and people have kids and that just adds to it,” said Slough.
When it comes to school, growth, the district has outlined plans, including adding portable classrooms where needed.
RELATED: St. Johns County School Board members lobby state lawmakers for funding to deal with rapid growth
Another hot topic in the county is the big Silverleaf Expansion project. The county approved the expansion in December but commissioners will need to vote on the plan again after it was denied by the state that must undergo a 60-day review.
The expansion is expected to bring in 5,600 living spaces in single and multi-family homes as well as commercial space.
It’s unclear when the next vote will happen.