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School set to grow at its current site

The Cambridge School's master plan calls for a new elementary classroom building to come first.

By JEFFREY S. SOLOCHEK
Published February 6, 2005

TAMPA - A private Christian school that once flirted with the idea of buying the old Idlewild Baptist Church in Lake Magdalene now has plans to expand at its existing site near Lowry Park.

The Cambridge School has quietly bought about 3 acres next to its current home on N Habana Avenue and has hired an architect to design a campus almost double in size. Three families have donated a total of $1-million to spur the project, which begins with a ground blessing next week. "The school has just grown in a way that we just need additional facilities," said the school's advancement director, Kelley Sims. "We've had grade levels that we've just had to turn away."

Once affiliated with Seminole Presbyterian Church, the 40-year-old school became independent about four years ago. It bought the old Armenia Nursery for $300,000 last year after considering a move north.

The idea of migrating to Lake Magdalene came as partial recognition that more than half the school's students come from northwest Hillsborough communities such as Carrollwood, Lutz and Odessa, elementary principal Sharon Hickinbotham said.

But school officials decided to remain central, so the school can draw from all over the community, she added.

A master plan calls for a new elementary classroom building to come first in the construction program, Sims said. It could be ready to occupy by late 2006 or early 2007.

By redesigning the elementary part of the campus, the Cambridge School also plans to create space for a distinct middle school and to remodel the high school areas for growth, too.

"We see the ability to expand a couple of hundred students pretty quickly," Sims said.

The school will not increase its student-teacher ratio, though, she added, and it will aim to maintain the small-campus atmosphere that families have come to expect.

Hickinbotham said the school plans to embark upon a capital campaign to help support construction costs. But the amount needed is not certain because the designs are not complete.

Jeffrey S. Solochek can be reached at 813 269-5304 or solochek@sptimes.com

Pastor John Keen of Seminole Presbyterian Church will bless the property at 8 a.m. Feb. 17 where the Cambridge School plans to expand. The school is at 6101 N Habana Ave. The public is invited. For information, call (813) 872-6744, ext. 248.

[Last modified February 5, 2005, 09:49:05]