School board and developer to swap land

LAKEWOOD RANCH — The Manatee County School Board and Lakewood Ranch developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch Inc. will move forward with a land swap deal in east Manatee County, according to an article in the East County Observer, sister paper of the Business Observer. 

The School Board approved a trade of about 145 acres it owns on State Road 64 with a minimum of 120 acres in the northeast quadrant of Lakewood Ranch. An 80-acre high school would be constructed on the site. 

A second 40-acre site south of State Road 64 could be used for an elementary or middle school campus. 

The property is expected to be closer to development occurring during the next decade. 

During the 2007-08 fiscal year, the School Board purchased a 159-acre site from Schroeder-Manatee Ranch for $1 for the construction of a middle school, high school and bus depot.