Fairhope city leaders took a step this week toward answering a question that has simmered for years: should the city chart its own course on public education?
After a lengthy and at times tense discussion, the Fairhope City Council voted unanimously to have staff work with the Fairhope Education Advisory Committee to gather cost estimates for a formal study. That study would weigh three paths forward — creating an independent city school system, forming a special tax district to raise more money for local schools, or continuing to operate within the Baldwin County system while the city keeps contributing cash and in-kind support worth roughly $850,000 a year.
Estimates for the study itself ranged as high as $40,000. Advisory committee chairman Kerry Flowers said the timing matters, pointing to Baldwin County voters’ recent rejection of a property tax increase meant to fund school construction and expansion countywide. He argued the community deserves hard numbers rather than assumptions about how well Fairhope schools are performing.
One option under consideration, allowed under state law, would ask Fairhope voters to approve a 3-mill property tax dedicated to a special school district. That revenue would flow to the five schools serving the Fairhope area: Fairhope Elementary, J. Larry Newton School, Fairhope Intermediate, Fairhope Middle and Fairhope High. Advisory committee members noted that nearly half of Fairhope’s public school students actually live outside the city limits, a fact they said needs to be weighed carefully before any decision is made.
Council members were divided on how far to take the inquiry. Three members spoke in favor of moving forward with the study, while two voiced firm opposition to researching an independent system at all, arguing county voters had already sent a clear message at the ballot box. Supporters countered that a countywide tax vote and a targeted, in-city funding mechanism are two different questions, and that the council owes residents solid information regardless of which way sentiment eventually breaks.
Money for the study would come from the roughly $350,000 the city already sets aside annually for area schools, a practice in place since 2012. A previous outside analysis of a possible Fairhope school breakaway was completed back in 2010, but proponents of a fresh look say it never fully explored the special tax district option now on the table.
No timeline was set for completing the cost estimates, but city staff were directed to begin coordinating with the advisory committee immediately.