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No decision made on west Orange County relief high school

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The school board and County Commissioners held a meeting that lasted nearly five hours Tuesday night, but they were unable to come to an agreement about plans to build a relief high school in west Orange County.

Commissioners and board members and went back and forth during the meeting as residents on both sides listened. The land used to build a new high school in west Orange County has been an ongoing issue for some time.

After no resolution at Tuesday night's meeting, school board members said they're prepared to take the case to court. Board members are still focused on building the school on the original chosen site, a location that several residents have opposed.

"They are going to put 3,000 kids, 70 buses, maybe 1,000 cars right in my backyard," resident Roland Prieto said.

County Commissioners already rejected a proposal to re-zone the land, prompting the school district to sue.

School officials said Monday night they'd be willing to consider alternative sites and both sides seemed interested in compromising. With no decision made, leaders agreed to schedule another public meeting about the issue.

"Tonight, even though there are two perspectives we are coming at this with, I think what we heard is a wide open door to pursue all options in the best interest of the community," school board member Pam Gould said.

District officials said it's essential that an agreement is reached soon because they want the new high school built by 2017.