Hillsborough County School District unanimously voted to close Walton Academy for the Performing Arts, citing safety and security failures that officials said left students and staff at risk.

The districts superintendent and chief of security said the school lacked clearly marked safe areas in classrooms and did not have a functioning alert system required by Florida law.

Officials also noted a gate on the campus had a large hole, which they said compromised perimeter security.

"There have been district inspections out at Walton Academy and state inspections which are completely different that identify a lot of the same inconsistent compliance issues," said John Newman, Chief of School Security & Emergency Management.

However, the schools principal said those concerns have been address

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