Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Rezoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
OCPS staff advance targeted rezoning around Kelly Park, Wolf Lake and Zelwood; May 12 public hearing set
Summary
District staff presented targeted rezoning options that would shift small groups of students among Kelly Park, Wolf Lake (elementary and middle) and Zelwood to address crowding and eliminate a bus route; the board agreed to move both items to a May 12 public hearing.
Orange County Public Schools staff presented targeted rezoning options April 28 that would move small groups of students among Kelly Park School, Wolf Lake Elementary and Wolf Lake Middle, and Zelwood Elementary to address overcrowding and reduce transportation burdens.
Superintendent Dr. Vasquez opened the workshop and turned the presentation over to Stacy Neil of student enrollment, who introduced the enrollment team and walked the board through the rezoning process under OCPS policy JC. Neil described the timeline (community meeting March 23; work session March 31; public hearing scheduled May 12) and defined rezoning types — technical, targeted, relief and consolidation — that shape how staff propose changes.
Staff said the targeted change to the Kelly Park zone would move parts of the Winding Meadows and West Park subdivisions into Kelly Park’s boundary. Neil reported 16 students living in the Wolf Lake Middle School area are recommended to be rezoned to Kelly Park’s middle-school program, 42 students residing in the split Winding Metals neighborhood would be placed entirely within the Kelly Park zone, and 50 students currently in the Zelwood Elementary zone were recommended to move to Wolf Lake Elementary. Neil also noted a West Ridge Park move would place affected students within two miles of Wolf Lake Elementary and would eliminate a bus route.
Neil summarized capacity and demographic data: Kelly Park’s Fish (Florida Inventory of School Houses) capacity is 1,248; February 2, 2026 enrollment was about 1,080 (reported as 65% white, 23% Black, 12% other; 69% non‑Hispanic, 31% Hispanic). If the rezoning occurs, staff projected Kelly Park’s attending population for 2026–27 between about 1,140 and 1,160. Free and reduced‑price meal, ESE and ELL percentages were presented in staff slides.
On family feedback, Neil said staff received input from 10 families on the Winding Metals/West Ridge Park proposal — seven supporting and three opposing. She reminded the board that families eligible for a grandfathered transfer must apply by May 26, 2026 and that transportation is not provided for grandfathered transfers.
Board discussion was brief. One board member said they had no questions and welcomed the elimination of a bus route, adding they were content to move the item to the May 12 public hearing. The transcript records a short audio outage of the YouTube feed that briefly interrupted the workshop; staff confirmed video services were checking the feed.
Next steps: staff will reopen the online survey and accept petitions and emails until 7:30 a.m. on May 4 for board review before the May 12 public hearing. If approved at the hearing, the rezoning would commence in August 2026.
