A continued exodus from the Pittsburgh Public Schools could leave the district with as many as 14,000 empty seats by 2018, according to consultants the district hired to help plan a future wave of school closings and reconfigurations.

L. Robert Kimball and Associates, a Cambria County architectural and engineering firm, and DeJong Inc., an Ohio planning firm, are preparing a long-range facilities plan for the district at a cost of about $500,000.

During a progress report to the school board, the consultants last night offered an overview of enrollment data that they'll use to make recommendations about renovating and closing schools. Officials said such changes will be necessary to save money and operate efficiently in the face of continued enrollment drops.

District spokeswoman Pat Kennedy said the consultant firms' final report will be submitted in about a month but cautioned that the school board won't immediately vote on implementing the recommendations. Rather, she said, the district will weigh the recommendations -- plus academic considerations, parents' preferences and other factors -- in making decisions about school changes in coming years.

The consultants said the district's enrollment in prekindergarten through 12th grade fell from 34,674 in 2003-04 to 27,690 in 2008-09.

They projected that the decline will slow over the next 10 years -- thanks in part to stabilization of the city's birth rate and popularity of the Pittsburgh Promise college scholarship program -- leaving the district with 23,400 students by 2018-19.

Although the district closed 22 schools in June 2006, eliminating about 10,000 empty seats, the consultants said schools throughout the city still have excess capacity.

They projected that by 2018-19, enrollment in prekindergarten through eighth grade would:

• Fall from 4,734 to 3,952 in northern and western neighborhoods, boosting the number of empty seats from 2,023 to 2,805.

• Fall from 9,368 to 8,269 in eastern neighborhoods, increasing the number of empty seats from 2,824 to 3,923.

• Fall from 5,537 to 5,052 in southern neighborhoods, taking the number of empty seats from 700 to 1,185.

The consultants also projected that by 2018-19, enrollment in high schools citywide would fall from 7,563 to 6,122, boosting the number of empty seats from about 4,820 to about 5,960.

The consultants said the condition of district buildings also would play a role in their recommendations. The firms last night said 40 buildings require moderate repairs and that 14, including Pittsburgh Oliver High School on the North Side, need major repairs.