At the time of consolidation, the area was going through unprecedented growth due to suburban spread. In 1954, for example, the Centereach School District faced a classroom-shortage crisis. It was solved only when local home developers (whose buyers and new area residents were causing the crisis) volunteered to build ten "one room schoolhouses" in one month's time, with a plan to later convert the buildings into residences. This "Unity Drive" project name was adopted by the elementary school (now a Pre-K/Kindergarten center) built nearby a few years later.