Schools

Pflugerville ISD Elementary Students Must Climb Wall to Get to School

It's either climb the wall or take a nearly 2-mile walk down a busy stretch of road.

Everybody knows the daily routine for school children.

Wake up, get dressed, eat breakfast and get to school. But some Pflugerville area elementary school students have to add an unusual step: Climb a wall.

Students who live in the Dessau Fountain Estates mobile home community and who attend Barron Elementary find themselves with two options to get to school. Walk about 2 miles down a busy road or climb over a white brick wall separating the community and school, which share a property line. Many families are opting for the wall, reported KEYE.

Find out what's happening in North Austin-Pflugervillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

A makeshift wooden ladder has been set up on both sides of the wall, allowing students and their parents to get up and over. While it may be safer than climbing the wall without any aid, there are no handrails and the rungs of the ladder are quite small. KEYE shows the wall and ladder in their news report.


Find out what's happening in North Austin-Pflugervillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

But families aren’t content with their unusual morning ascent. The parent’s want the Pflugerville ISD and Dessau Fountain Estates to work out a way to install a path directly to the school. It would save the kids time and get rid of the potential dangers of climbing a wall.

In a statement, Pflugerville ISD spokeswoman Tamra Spence said:

“During the building phase of Barron Elementary in 2011, Pflugerville ISD attempted to purchase a lot in the Dessau Fountain Estates to provide a concrete sidewalk to the campus. In October 2011, Pf ISD received approval from the property manager to build the sidewalk, however in May 2012 the owner of the property informed Pf ISD officials that the district could not purchase the land to create the sidewalk.”

The school is still interested in acquiring land to create a path between the school and community. Because the community is within a 2-mile radius of the school, they do not provide bussing.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

More from North Austin-Pflugerville