Wake high school could be called Rolesville High

The Wake County Board of Education's Facilities and Operations Committee voted 3-0 Tuesday morning to name the school Rolesville High School.

The school was tentatively named Forest Ridge High School until the school board voted last week to halt the project and move the location.

The current Wake Forest-Rolesville High School would be renamed as Wake Forest High, the committee suggested, though it also recommended the board hold a public hearing on that change.

"The boosters are all for it. I can tell you that," committee Chair Chris Malone said of dropping "Rolesville" from the current school's name after the new school opens.

That, however, is not expected before 2014.

The board was told there would be expenses for changing signs at Wake Forest-Rolesville as well as new sports and band uniforms.

The committee also suggested making the same change for Wake Forest-Rolesville Middle School.

Officially known on plans as H-6, the school will be on one of two other sites – one at U.S. 401 and Louisbury Road and another at Rolesville and Quarry roads northeast of Raleigh.

Last week, the school board voted 5-4 to abandon the Forest Ridge site, at Forestville Road and U.S. Highway 401 and to pursue land deals on the other two sites.

The move could cost the school system an additional $15.4 million and delay the opening of the new school by as much as two years, to 2014.

Asked at the meeting what he thought of the name-change, Andre Smith, the school system's area superintendent for Wake Forest-Rolesville, laughed heartily and told the committee, "That's a community decision!"

While naming one future high school, the committee also got a briefing from district staff on a joint-use plan with Cary for the future H-7 high school in West Cary at Green Level Church and Roberts roads.

The town will have an adjacent park and have evening and weekend use of tennis courts and outdoor basketball courts and the school's parking lots, Betty Parker, from the school system's facilities staff told the committee.

Staff also briefed the panel on major renovations at Wilburn Elementary School on Marsh Creek Road in Raleigh.

Students from the year-round school will move to modular units at Spring Forest Elementary in early April so a new two-story building can be built. They are scheduled to come back in January 2012.