Opponents of a $34 million Amicks Ferry Road Elementary School might be right.

The company paid to do a $76,000 study found too few students to fill the new school.

The District 5 board and administration hired Milone-MacBroome to do the rezoning study 2 years after making a controversial land purchase on Amick's Ferry Road. 

Neighbors protested the board's plans due to traffic that might flood the narrow road.

At an Oct. 7, board rezoning meeting, Patrick Gallager of Milone-MacBroome,  an engineering and planning firm said, "There are not enough students around Piney Woods to use all that space.

"We have to grab students in other areas. It makes driving times and transportation costs greater."    

Gallager added, "Students that may live closer in proximity to Chapin Elementary or Lake Murray Elementary will be transported to Piney Woods to fill the school. Some students may end up passing CES to attend Piney Woods."  

Katrina Goggins, district communications director, said, "The company's study was prompted by growth in the Chapin area and a need to redistrict for the planned new elementary school in Chapin.

"The firm's study also examines capacity and growth across the district as part of that process."  

Mike Zuba, director of planning for Milone & MacBroom, said in a note to District 5 shared with the Chronicle, "From our experience, whenever you open a new school there is almost always impact to the surrounding schools.

"Piney Woods is on the far western border of the district, which means that impacts are going to be concentrated in the neighborhoods to the east of the school in the Chapin and Lake Murray attendance zones.

"The scenarios assign some areas to Piney Woods that are closer to Chapin, although these areas are also within a reasonable travel time to Piney Woods.

"In our professional experience, we have never encountered a school district where all students attend the building that is closest to their home, or where redistricting impacts can be avoided when you open a new school.  In fact, there are a number of areas in District 5 today where students do not attend their geographically closest school.  This is a function of the location of the school itself as well as enrollment growth and patterns. 

"Piney Woods isin an area identified by the county as having residential growth potential. We project that student populations will continue to grow in the neighborhoods surrounding the school over the next 10 years and beyond.

"It is important that we don’t fill the school to its maximum capacity when it opens to be able to accommodate long-term growth. This plan is looking long-term and the boundaries have been adjusted to accommodate this future growth without the need to conduct elementary redistricting again in the future."