SCHOOL

Okaloosa School Board approves $175M in bonds for new school, additions in Crestview, Destin and Baker

The Okaloosa County School Board approved the issuance of Certificates of Participation (COPs) on Monday to generate $175 million to fund major construction projects, including a new K-8 school in Crestview and additions to two existing schools (Destin Elementary and Baker School).

The board chose to use COPs as a financing mechanism, continuing a practice the district has employed for about 40 years. This method allows the district to secure all the necessary funds upfront to complete the projects, rather than waiting to accumulate funds over time.

• “The reason is so that we can get all the money up front. So that we can complete the projects that the Superintendent has already briefly outlined,” explained Dr. Lamar White, School Board Member. “Otherwise we’d have to wait… roughly over 25 years. I don’t think that would work.”

The Series 2024 COPs will finance the planning, construction and equipping of three key projects:

• A new 1,200-student K-8 school in Crestview
• 3-5th Classroom and other additions for Destin Elementary School
• 10-Classroom addition for Baker School

Julie Perry, the district’s chief financial officer, presented the financing plan. The COPs will have a maximum term of 25 years, with a final maturity no later than October 1, 2050. The district plans to use property tax revenues to repay the new COP 2024. The current COP, 2022-A, is being funded with half-cent sales tax revenue.

Jerry Ford, the district’s financial advisor, explained the complex financing structure to the board. “If this were a corporate transaction, they would be sold to investors at a hundred cents on the dollar,” Ford said. “But because of our tax code, municipal buyers are a little bit different.”

• Ford emphasized that while the board was authorizing a not-to-exceed of $195 million, they expect to issue about $160 million. The higher authorization provides flexibility in case of market changes. The COPs will net $175 million for the projects.

Superintendent Marcus Chambers highlighted the strategic planning behind the financing. “We have that pay structure already in place going forward,” Chambers said. He noted that payments on a previous COP issue were structured to decrease after a few years, making room for this new debt.

Dr. Bill Smith, program director for facilities planning, provided details on each project. The new Crestview K-8 school will be built on 49 acres of an 80-acre parcel owned by the district. The Destin Elementary project involves a two-story, 30-classroom addition, while Baker School will get 10 new secondary classrooms.

Chambers emphasized the broader impact of these projects across the district:

• “With the K-8 school, we’re now able to impact the vast majority of the elementary and middle schools in the Crestview area that are over capacity. This is going to provide capacity because we’ll have to rezone and students will go to the new K-8 school. As that happens, more capacity will be developed at the current schools.”

He added that the Destin Elementary addition would allow fifth graders to return from the middle school, alleviating capacity issues at both schools. For Baker, he noted the addition would “allow for some extra capacity as well as the Baker community continues to grow.”

All three projects are slated for completion by August 2026, though the Baker addition may be finished sooner.

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SCHOOL

Okaloosa School District unveils plans for new two-story K-8 school in Crestview

The Okaloosa County School District has unveiled plans for a new 1,200-student K-8 school in Crestview, aiming to alleviate overcrowding in the area’s elementary and middle schools.

• The school board approved the project as part of a $175 million bond issuance during their July 22 meeting. The new school, set to open in August 2026, will be the district’s first new school construction in 16 years.

“This is exciting because it has been 16 years since we have built a new school from scratch,” said Dr. Bill Smith, program director for facilities planning. “I think you’re going to be very happy with the building.”

The new facility will be constructed on 49 acres of an 80-acre parcel recently acquired by the district. Located west of the new Crestview bypass, the site is approximately halfway between the current Arena Road and the railroad tracks, which was just south of Highway 90.

The school’s design includes several modern features:

• Two-story classroom wings
• Gymnasium with PE/Athletic locker rooms
• Band and chorus rooms
• Media/Innovation center
• CTE/Science/Art wing
• Cafeteria designed as an Enhanced Hurricane Protection Area (EHPA) Emergency Shelter

The school will feature a curved parent pickup and drop-off area on the north side, with bus pickup on the south side. A frontage road will run the full length of the property, allowing for future expansion.

A notable feature of the interior is the common area or atrium. Smith described it as “a foyer or atrium as you go up those stairs. They will go into the classroom wings, which you see through the window.” Chambers emphasized the multi-purpose nature of this space: “It’s not just the means to get upstairs. It’s also a place that can also be utilized instructionally.”

• The site will also include athletic fields, playgrounds, and ample parking. A traffic study has determined that a traffic signal will be needed at the school’s entrance on the new bypass.

Chambers noted that the 80-acre parcel allows for future expansion: “Strategically, we purchased this land so we had the ability to do two schools on this when the need arises. So when the need arises, we would build an elementary school on the remaining acreage and then the current school would then be transformed, specifically, into middle school.”

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SCHOOL

Destin Elementary to expand with new 3-5 grade center, includes 30 new classrooms

The Okaloosa County School District has unveiled plans for a significant expansion at Destin Elementary School, featuring a new two-story addition to house grades 3-5. The school board purchased a 7.6-acre parcel of land adjacent to the school last year.

• The project, approved as part of a $175 million bond issuance, aims to address capacity issues and improve traffic flow at the beachside school.

Dr. Bill Smith, program director for facilities planning, presented details of the project to the school board during their July 22 meeting. “This is an elementary, 3-5 center,” Smith explained. “You’re talking about another two-story wing which will include STEM rooms..30 classrooms, multi-purpose area…new administrative suite.”

In addition to the new classrooms, the project includes:

• A multi-purpose area
• A new administrative suite
• A neutral users lounge
• New gang restrooms to serve the existing cafeteria
• A revised drop-off and pick-up area
• Additional parking

The expansion will allow fifth-grade students currently housed at Destin Middle School to return to the elementary campus. Chambers explained the broader impact: “This is going to provide capacity at Destin elementary, but it’s also going to allow the fifth grade from Destin middle to come back to Destin elementary. So now we’ll be pre-K through grade five. They will also still have the ability to increase capacity because you don’t want to just build to capacity.”

A key feature of the project is a new access road to improve traffic flow. The service road on the new property that was acquired gives the District access off of Benning Drive. According to Smith, this will “bring parents in and do a loop and carry them back out on Benning to get rid of some of the traffic on Beach and Kelly.”

• The project also involves relocating the existing playground and baseball field to accommodate the new construction.

With this new building, comes the removal of portables.

“This is designed to get rid of the portables that are there,” he said to the board. “And you’ll also be able to get rid of all the portables that you have at Destin Middle School because you’re bringing capacity out of there.

Construction is slated to begin soon, with completion expected by August 2026.

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SCHOOL

Baker School to receive new classroom addition, replacing aging portables

Baker School is set to receive a significant upgrade as part of Okaloosa County School District’s recent $175 million bond issuance. The project includes a new 10-classroom addition, aimed at increasing capacity and replacing long-standing portable classrooms.

• Dr. Bill Smith, program director for facilities planning, presented details of the project to the school board during their July 22 meeting. 

A key benefit of the project will be the removal of aging portable classrooms. “The most important thing probably for Baker is the seven portables that are sitting there right where this building is going to go will be leaving the facility one way or the other,” Smith emphasized.

Superintendent Marcus Chambers highlighted the significance of this change by referencing Baker School’s Principal Mike Martello: “Sadly, I would say, Mr. Martello attended kindergarten in one of those portables. So we’ll be removing those portables and adding the much needed classroom addition at Baker.”

• The new addition will be similar in design to other recent additions in the district. Smith noted, “It looks very similar to Crestview.”

The expansion is not just about replacing old structures, but also preparing for future growth. Chambers explained, “The classroom additions at Baker will allow for some extra capacity as the Baker community continues to grow. We also have additional acreage at Baker, if the need were to arise if we had to do something else.”

The project’s layout includes:

• 10 secondary classrooms.
• Additional gang restrooms.
• A connecting walkway back to the existing canopy.

While the district’s other major projects, including the new K-8 school in Crestview and the Destin Elementary expansion, are slated for completion by August 2026, Smith indicated that the Baker addition might be finished sooner.

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SCHOOL

Okaloosa Superintendent explains strategy of K-8 over a second high school for Crestview

As the Okaloosa County School District moves forward with plans for a new K-8 school in Crestview, some community members have questioned why the district isn’t building a second high school instead. 

• Superintendent Marcus Chambers addressed these concerns during the July 22 school board meeting, explaining the strategic thinking behind the decision.

“The question is…why not high school?” Chambers acknowledged. He then detailed how the K-8 school allows the district to address capacity issues across multiple grade levels simultaneously.

“With the K-8 school, we’re now able to impact the vast majority of the elementaries in the Crestview area, the two middle schools in the Crestview area, all those schools are over capacity,” explained Chambers. “This is going to provide capacity because we’ll have to rezone students who will go to the new K-8 school. And then as that happens, more capacity will be developed at the current schools.”

Currently, Crestview High School has approximately 2,400 students, which Chambers described as “a healthy high school, not an overpopulated high school.” However, he acknowledged the challenges that come with a school of this size.

• “With the overpopulation, you look at what the inside of the building looks like when kids are moving around?” Chambers said. He noted that a recent classroom addition at Crestview High School has already helped with capacity issues.

The superintendent also addressed the debate within the community about potentially splitting Crestview into a two-high school town. “When we talked to folks, if we were to build a second high school right now, do we want a high school that has 1,200 and 1,200 [students]?” Chambers posed. “So now we take a strong, robust high school and have two 1,200 [student] high schools. And people vary in their opinions on that.”

While a second high school isn’t in the immediate plans, Chambers emphasized that the district is prepared for future growth. He mentioned that the district owns 71 acres in the north part of the county that could be used for a future high school if needed.

• In the meantime, the district has other options to address high school capacity. “We have acreage on Crestview High School right now where we have preliminary plans in place. If we had to build a 9th grade center, we have the ability to do that right now on Crestview’s campus,” Chambers said.

The superintendent also pointed out that the new Okaloosa Technical College (OTC) North campus will help alleviate some pressure on Crestview High School. “That’s also going to add capacity to Crestview High School because there will be a number of those students who will go to OTC north for their CTE courses,” he explained.

Board member Tim Bryant highlighted an important consideration regarding the high school’s population. “2,400 is what’s on paper, but that doesn’t always mean that’s 2,400 [students] that are actually in school at one time too,” Bryant noted, referring to students who may be off-campus for various programs or activities.

• Chambers agreed, adding, “First period, you’re not going to find 2,400 students at Crestview High School, and you’re not going to find that seventh period as well.”

For now, the district’s focus remains on the K-8 school and other projects that will provide immediate relief to overcrowding across multiple schools. However, Chambers assured that the district continues to plan for all possibilities as Crestview and the surrounding area grow.

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