Parents voice opposition over Fort Mill Schools redistricting plan

FORT MILL, S.C. — Parents’ emotions ran high at a Tuesday night meeting about redrawing Fort Mill Schools district lines and reassigning 2,600 students over the next two years.

“I respect the difficulty of these decisions, but logic is the clear path,” said Fort Mill resident Laura Edwards.

District leaders said they received 450 emails from residents in 11 neighborhoods after a first map was drafted by a consultant.

They presented a second draft Tuesday night but parents were still angry.

“I’m very disappointed in the district’s recommendation,” Edwards said.

Edwards lives in the Habersham neighborhood where more than 100 students could be moved next year from a school to one about a half hour away.

“We are putting in a pedestrian walkway to our neighborhood schools that is going to be fully funded by the community,” said parent Laura Edwards.

“We will be crossing over I-77 and having to turn left with what would be catastrophic amounts of traffic,” said Robbins.

Robbins, a parent in the Knights Ridge community, said her neighborhood has been rezoned four times in the last decade. She said they are being split up.

“We moved them back to go to school where the rest of their neighborhood was going to be going to school,” Robbins said.

The redistricting comes with the opening of Flint Hill Elementary and Flint Hill Middle schools, which will be next door to the controversial Silfab solar facility.

School district officials have been waiting on Silfab’s emergency response plan with the potential of hazardous chemicals onsite.

“What we received in information today was that those plans were approved by the EPA and also that our schools do not fall under any mandatory evacuation zone, even at the worst level of an issue at the plant,” said Joe Burke, chief communications officer with Fort Mill Schools.

“I’m not worried about them evacuating,” Robbins said. “I’m worried about my kid blowing up. I know what hydrochloric acid is.”

Parents are asking the district to take drastic measures to keep kids and staff safe.

“Flint Hill should not have children in it until Silfab is closed,” Robbins said.

“It’s not realistic,” Burke said. “The schools are currently in construction. At this point, we don’t even know if Silfab will open. Again, there are multiple court cases that are going to make that decision.”

The district will post the updated map on Wednesday.

The community will get another chance to provide feedback at a meeting on Nov. 4.

The school board will vote on a final version on Nov. 5, which is Election Day.

VIDEO: Look inside controversial solar manufacturing facility in Fort Mill

Look inside controversial solar manufacturing facility in Fort Mill

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