A new semester is underway, and a set of modular classrooms are still sitting empty next to an overcrowded school.

Panther Creek High School in Cary built three buildings with 22 modular classrooms last year.

They are not legally allowed to open them up to students because of a town ordinance.

Wake County schools and Cary Town Council met Monday night to try and get on the same page, but after the closed-door meeting, people from both boards say they had not resolved anything.

"I'll talk with my board, and we will make some decision and will get back with the Cary Town Council," said School Board Chair Rosa Gill.

The issue is a Cary law requiring developers to improve roads if they're going to cause more traffic; the additional classrooms fall under that ordinance.

Wake County had hoped Cary would waive the rule, but Cary officials say they can't.

"The law is the law. We cannot waive our ordinances in any way, shape or form," said council member Don Frantz. "If we did, we'd have developers from every development in town coming back and suing us."

The school district wants Cary to pay the $1.4 million in required improvements, but the town council has said for months that they don't have room in the budget for that.

"The cost is the responsibility of the school board," said Mayor Harold Weinbrecht.

The council has tried to make things a little easier by voting to give the school district three years to start the improvements.

"As soon as they sign a bonding agreement and get their site plans approved, we'll get the kids into those modular units," said Weinbrecht.

But for now, the school board isn't committing to anything.

"We had a few questions that were answered, and we will continue to talk," said Gill.

Town staffers are going to go back and look at one thing that could change the requirements. School starts before 7:30 in the morning, so the traffic count might not have as much of an impact during peak hours as originally expected.

The frustrating thing for Panther Creek teachers and students is that the increase in traffic has already happened, with or without the mods being used.