A Tallahassee resident is urging Leon County Schools to restore community access to high school tracks closed in 2020, while school officials say they are willing to revisit a potential partnership with the city.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A push to reopen Leon County’s high school tracks to runners, walkers and other members of the public is gaining renewed attention, with school board members and district leaders discussing whether a partnership with the city could make public access possible again.

The issue surfaced repeatedly during Tuesday night’s Leon County School Board meeting, including during a discussion of joint-use agreements with local governments and later during public comment.

Resident Bobby Nahum urged the district to restore access to the tracks, saying they have been closed to general public use since 2020.

“In 2020, we took a wrong turn by closing these tracks,” Nahum told board members. “It’s time to take a U-turn.”

School board member pushes for tracks to reopen

Board member Laurie Lawson Cox raised the issue as district officials discussed partnerships that allow Leon County students to use recreational facilities operated by the city and county.

“I would love to see us expand that to some of our high school tracks as well,” Cox said, noting board members have discussed the issue previously.

Leon County Schools already has a joint-use agreement with the city of Tallahassee and is working to renew a similar agreement with Leon County.

District officials said those partnerships give students access to facilities for sports including football, basketball, golf and swimming. At the same time, the district allows numerous outside organizations to use school facilities.

That prompted renewed discussion about whether the same partnership model could provide public access to high school tracks.

Hanna: City previously wasn’t interested in supervising tracks

Superintendent Rocky Hanna said the district has previously approached Tallahassee officials about the issue.

“We did approach the city a year or so ago,” Hanna said. “They were not interested in babysitting our tracks.”

But Hanna said the district is willing to try again.

“We will go back and have more conversations with them,” he said.

His comments highlight one of the central obstacles to reopening the facilities: supervision and security when school is not in session.

Hanna drew a distinction between supervised community activities already occurring at schools and allowing unsupervised access to district property.

Resident says security concerns can be addressed

Nahum argued the district already has tools available to address those concerns.

He pointed to the district’s Security Center as a potential way to monitor the facilities while they are open and argued Florida law provides liability protections that could help make public access possible.

“All the pieces are in place to get the tracks back open,” Nahum said.

Nahum also told board members that shared-use agreements involving school recreational facilities are not unusual.

He cited examples in Duval, Citrus and Brevard counties, saying the Florida Department of Education maintains information on joint-use agreements around the state.

“The precedent is there,” Nahum said.

Argument centers on taxpayer-funded facilities and public health

Nahum framed reopening the tracks as more than a convenience for runners.

He cited a Florida law intended to encourage greater community access to taxpayer-funded school recreational facilities outside normal school hours.

During his presentation, Nahum said the state’s policy recognizes that increased access to recreational facilities can encourage physical activity and help address health issues including obesity and diabetes.

“Opening our high school tracks to the public could help combat today’s epidemic of childhood obesity as well as create a healthier community at large,” Nahum said.

He also cited findings from a state shared-use task force suggesting greater community use of school property could increase residents’ sense of ownership in neighborhood schools while potentially discouraging vandalism and other crime by putting more people around campuses outside school hours.

District says schools already provide significant community access

Hanna pushed back on any suggestion that Leon County Schools generally keeps its facilities closed to the community.

“We give our schools back to the community,” Hanna said.

He pointed to youth sports, flag football, adult basketball, Pop Warner and other organizations that already use district property.

District officials also named community organizations including COBB, Deer Lake and Miccosukee-area programs as examples of the broader sharing of recreational resources between schools and the community.

The difference, Hanna stressed, is that many of those activities are organized and supervised.

Board wants broader look at athletic facilities

The track debate could now become part of a broader review of how Leon County Schools’ athletic facilities are used.

Board member Darryl Jones asked district officials for a complete inventory of athletic facilities — including tracks and gyms — along with information explaining which facilities are available to the public and the process for gaining access.

Jones said such a review could give board members a clearer picture of the facilities Leon County taxpayers already own and how extensively they are being shared with the community.

No vote was taken Tuesday to reopen the high school tracks.

But Cox’s support, the public appeal and Hanna’s commitment to restart conversations with the city mean the issue remains alive.

For advocates, the goal is straightforward: find a way to address security and supervision concerns while once again allowing residents to use publicly funded tracks when they are not needed for school activities.

“Restore public access to our high school tracks,” Nahum told the board. “Let’s get back to normal.”