05:21 PM EST on Wednesday, February 9, 2005

Reported by: Jessica Chang

Sheppard Burton has lived in his 25th Street home in Va. Beach for two decades. He's done a lot of the work on it himself.

"This is my home. I love my home, It's got my blood, sweat and tears," he said.

But his plans may be wiped out by a School Board plan that would take down his home and seven others near Va. Beach Middle School.

It's part of the plan to merge Kemps Landing Magnet and Va. Beach Middle schools on 24th Street near the oceanfront.

They'll have to find other homes in the next couple of years.

"If they force us to move out of our homes, I am going to have so little faith left in the city that we're probably going to move out of state," Burton threatened.

The site selection committee narrowed to five the possible sites for the new school. One site would take away many more homes. Another was too expensive and two other sites would have violated rules within the Joint Land Use Study that the city is working on with the Navy.

That's why the committee recommended 25th and 26th Streets.

"While we may support the need for a new middle school, these are families. It's going to affect us very much and I think that they need to realize that," Christine Kalatzis noted.

The city and the residents must still negotiate the purchase price and moving expenses. Meantime, some residents tell us they've hired lawyers to fight the School Board's decision.;