IPS predicts a slight increase in enrollment next year but still anticipates a cash crunch in roughly three years.
The school hasn't yet found a location on the west side. Two other charters in Indianapolis meanwhile, still plan to open in the fall.
District officials want instruction to be more consistent across school buildings. Staffing will be a challenge.
The district also plans to merge its Simon Youth Academy with another alternative education program at Arsenal Technical High School.
The Indianapolis charter school on the far eastside recently celebrated its new food lab and launched a culinary club, which hopes to take inspiration from a civil rights story.
The awards are funded by a $12.5 million trust set up by an anonymous donor couple.
The play will show throughout All-Star Weekend, highlighting how one Indianapolis Public Schools basketball team made history as the nation struggled with civil rights.
The demand is the latest development in an ongoing divide between IPS and the charter school community.