MARY ESTHER — Mary Esther city officials and residents are mobilizing against a proposal to close Mary Esther Elementary School, warning that the loss of the nearly 60-year-old campus would erode the city’s identity, disrupt families, and leave the community as the only municipality in Okaloosa County without a public school.

The issue dominated a special City Council meeting on Tuesday, where officials outlined the Okaloosa County School District’s timeline, and residents, many with lifelong or generational ties to the school, pleaded for intervention before a final decision is made.

City Manager Jared Cobb told council members the district met with city staff on Dec. 5 to discuss a plan recommended by Superintendent Marcus Chambers to close Mary Esther Elementary and Longwood Elementary amid sharp enrollment declines in the southern part of the county.

“So it opened about 1965, been serving Mary Esther for 60 years,” Cobb said of Mary Esther Elementary. “Their current enrollment is about 400 students, which is down from about 620 [in] ’18.”

Under the district’s schedule, the school board is expected to vote Jan. 12 on whether to authorize a public hearing. That hearing is tentatively set for Feb. 23, when board members could vote on the proposed closures.

“If this is approved, the potential closure would be for this next school year, and so come August, there would not be school at Mary Esther Elementary,” Cobb said.

District officials have pointed to enrollment declines, demographic shifts, the rise of charter schools and expanded homeschooling options as factors driving the recommendation. Cobb acknowledged those trends but said Mary Esther Elementary’s enrollment remains comparable to hundreds of schools statewide.

“There are about 250 elementary schools that successfully operate with enrollment between 300 to 450,” he said.

Even so, Cobb said the consequences for Mary Esther would be significant.

“If the school is closed, Mary Esther would be the only city without a public school,” he said.

Cobb also cited the city’s comprehensive plan and community vision process, which identified neighborhood schools as essential to preserving small-town character and community cohesion.

“One of the city’s top challenges was a lack of identity,” he said. “The school was identified as a primary neighborhood anchor.”

Mayor Chris Stein, who said he attended Mary Esther Elementary as a child and later served as president of its alumni association, said city leaders must be present as the school board moves toward a decision.

“We need to be there, the 12th, the 23rd, you know, up to the point of we’re going to vote,” Stein said. “They need to hear our viewpoint, that we are not just going to sit here and do nothing either way.”

Stein said he and Cobb plan to speak at upcoming school board meetings, with Cobb addressing data and policy issues and Stein speaking as a longtime resident.

“It means a lot to me,” Stein said. “I was there when the first door opened, you know, I was in second grade.”

Several council members questioned whether the proposal aligns with the school district’s broader priorities.

Councilwoman Susan Coxwell said she believes investment patterns suggest Mary Esther has been deprioritized.

“They put a whole lot of money across the street at Fort Walton Beach High School,” Coxwell said. “I haven’t seen much money going into Mary Esther. … I think it’s wrong. We need to keep our school.”

Councilman Bernie Oder said the district’s financial pressures cannot be ignored, even as emotions run high.

“The population at the school has been declining for 10 years,” Oder said. “But I see a lot — I hear a lot of emotion, but how does the school district balance the budget? You know, they’re hard numbers.”

City Attorney Hayward Dykes said the city has no authority to prevent the closure but would retain control over any future redevelopment of the property.

“Any redevelopment would likely need to come to the LPA and this council, probably for future approval,” Dykes said.