OCALA, FL (352Today.com) – Two Marion County School Board members said Thursday that the clearest message from this week’s meetings on the former Central Elementary School building was a plea to not tear the building down.
The district held the meetings at 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, in the Browne Greaton Cole Auditorium, 1614 E. Fort King St., to hear public input on the property at 512 SE Third St. In a Sept. 29 press release, Marion County Public Schools Director of Public Relations Kevin Christian said the former district office, which is also known as the former Central Elementary School, closed in December 2022 because of facility and environmental concerns. The board is considering selling the building and property and scheduled the meetings to gauge community sentiment before any decision is made, according to the release.
What the community said
Board member Nancy Thrower, who attended the Thursday, October 8, 2026, work session, said the request she heard was direct.
“My simple takeaway was the community is basically pleading with us to not tear down that building,” Thrower said during the session. “Whatever happens, whatever we do with it, whatever, please just don’t tear it down. That’s what I walked away with.”
She said she looks forward to more discussion of what could be done with the site, and she told residents the board has not yet decided.
“I know the community really appreciated the authentic listening. You know, a lot of times people think that we already have our minds made up,” Thrower said. “It takes at least three board members to move anything forward. So until the vote is taken, the die is not cast. Input is very important.”
Board member Lori Conrad called the conversation a positive one and thanked Deputy Superintendent Ben Whitehouse and district staff for setting it up.
“The board is always asking, but we want to hear from the community,” Conrad said. “We ask; it’s what we want, but it’s a heavy lift for the district team.”
Conrad said she also left believing residents want the building saved. What stood out more, she said, was talk of partnerships.
“I too walked away with a sense of [that] they want, the community wants, to save that building, but more importantly to me was the fact that there was a lot of discussion of partnerships,” she said. “It was nice to be in a room where people were talking about working together to better the community, and so over the last couple of years, I personally feel like that’s increased. There’s more people willing to come to the table. I want to give a shout-out to City Manager Pete Lee; he came and was part of the discussion. And so, it was really great. And so, thank you to everyone that made that happen. Same is true with our town hall meetings. It’s been important to the board as a whole to hear from the community.”
Moving forward
No sale of the building or other action on the property was taken Thursday. The district’s release said the meetings were meant to help gauge sentiment before the board moves ahead.
The next Marion County Public School Board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, October 13, 2026. The agenda can be accessed here.