Hoover officials share proposed new elementary school zone maps

HOOVER, Alabama – Hoover school leaders have posted a more detailed elementary school rezoning proposal on the school system's website, including maps of proposed areas to be rezoned.

The post includes some new information that Superintendent Andy Craig had not shared publicly previously, including additional apartment complexes that could be rezoned and the elementary schools where some of the apartment children may attend:

MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENCE REZONING:

• Six multi-family communities currently zoned to Riverchase Elementary would be rezoned to Greystone Elementary. Those include the Riverchase Gardens, Royal Oaks, Summerchase at Riverchase, Colonial Grande at Riverchase Trails and Sterling Oaks of Riverchase apartment complexes and The Gables condominiums. All of these are off Riverchase Parkway East. See the Riverchase Parkway East map.

• The Ridge Crossings apartment complex would be moved from Deer Valley Elementary to Trace Crossings Elementary. See the Ridge Crossings map.

SINGLE-FAMILY RESIDENCE REZONING

At least a dozen single-family communities also would be rezoned under the proposal, which Craig has said is still in the developmental phase. Here are the various elements of the single-family rezoning:

• Students who live in the Lake Cyrus community would be reassigned from Deer Valley Elementary to South Shades Crest Elementary. See the Lake Cyrus map.

• Students who live in the area that includes the Woodlands and Grand Oaks communities also would be reassignmed from South Shades Crest Elementary to Trace Crossings Elementary.  See the Woodlands and Grand Oaks area map.

• Students who live in the Lake Crest area would be reassigned from Gwin Elementary to Trace Crossings Elementary. See the Lake Crest area map.

This map shows just about the entire city of Hoover, with areas proposed for school rezoning outlined in red.

Craig has said the elementary rezoning plan is being driven by a need to anticipate growth, prevent crowding in schools, make use of unused space at Trace Crossings Elementary and more evenly distribute children demographically.

Most of the housing growth in Hoover is in the western part of the city, which threatens to overcrowd schools such as Deer Valley Elementary. Meanwhile, Trace Crossings Elementary, which a decade ago held more than 1,000 students, sits half-empty with less than 500 students.

Half the student body went to Riverchase Elementary when it opened in 2004, and fifth-graders were moved to an intermediate school that opened in 2011. Plus, some parents moved or put their children in private school after they noticed a decline in test scores there.

Some parents at Trace Crossings Elementary have been pushing for school attendance zones to be redrawn because they believe their school has a higher percentage of children from apartments that have become a haven for children moving from lower-performing school systems.

The influx of students who were new to Hoover City Schools and not at the same level academically as their peers who had been in the Hoover system from the start has presented a challenge for Hoover teachers. Administrators say progress is being made, including at Trace Crossings.

Still, Craig has said any rezoning plan he submits for U.S. Department of Justice approval will work to further desegregation and not impair it.

Craig is meeting with various communities individually in small groups and said he plans to make a formal proposal to the Hoover school board at its Sept. 8 meeting. He does not expect the board to vote on his recommendation at that meeting, but instead to allow time for pubic feedback, he said.

In the meantime, people can email feedback to school officials at rezoning@hoover.k12.al.us.

Craig's school rezoning proposal, which now affects eight of the 10 elementary schools in Hoover, has garnered opposition from many parents. Some are making suggestions to alter the proposal, and others are calling on the school board to table it and form a committee or community-wide task force to work with Craig on a new proposal.

Stay up-to-date on developments at www.al.com/hoover