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County BOE moving
ahead on school
Alyssa B. Martin news-herald.net Loudon County Board of Education will build and open a new school and significantly update other facilities in the next three years. During the board’s October monthly workshop and meeting Thursday, Bryan Pierce, senior project manager at Cope Architecture, provided schematic design for renovations at Philadelphia Elementary School and additions to Greenback School’s sports facilities.
He also presented a design for the proposed new
“north end school.”
Cope suggested
adding two hallways at PES — allowing for 10
more classrooms — and building a new
multipurpose auditorium space with up to 364
removable seats and a collapsible stage.
Board Member Scott Newman expressed concerns the auditorium wouldn’t be nice enough. He said he expected a set stage and stationary seating on a slope. “If we’re going to do it, do it right,” Newman said. Several board members agreed. Michael Garren, director of schools, reminded Newman that updates and changes can be made during the design stage, emphasizing any suggestions are welcome. For Greenback, Cope unveiled an approximately 7,000-square-foot, multipurpose auxiliary gym for basketball, volleyball and baseball. The design has floors for a variety of sports, six goals that can come down from the ceiling and stairs leading to a mezzanine with a batting cage. Pierce proposed moving the existing Greenback football field 10 yards to improve visibility and building new aluminum bleachers on each side of the field to allow for 1,104 seats, including a 400-square-foot press box on the home side and 436 seats for visitors. A new concession stand and soccer locker room would be added between the field house and new bleachers. The plan includes LED lights and changing the field to turf with additional padding to help prevent injuries. The new facility on the north end of the county would be a middle and high school with capacity for 1,500 students. The board purchased land earlier this year between Highway 11 and Simpson Road for $1.83 million from First Baptist Church in Lenoir City. Entrances from both roads allow for a good flow of traffic.
Pierce’s design showed a two-story
building with high first-floor windows
to prevent intrusions but allow natural
light.
All middle-schoolers would be in one wing of the school, while high-schoolers would occupy the other side of the school on both levels. Although the first floor will serve CTE classes, including vehicle lifts and garage doors for automotive classes, the top floor will have regular classrooms and labs. Middle- and high-schoolers will only cross paths in the cafeteria, gymnasium and auditorium, Pierce said. The lower floor will serve as the main basketball court with hardwood floors, while the upper level will have two additional full-sized courts with multipurpose flooring. Pat Hunter, who has attended BOE meetings and workshops regularly for the past 20 years, raised concerns about how the new school will impact county taxpayers. She also wondered if all parts of the design will accommodate such a large student population and when the facility would open. Garren said once the board agrees on the schematic design, more information will be needed to determine the number of classrooms. He said he didn’t see the proposed size of the cafeteria being a problem. Once the design development stage begins, Pierce should also have a better idea of an accurate timeline for construction, he said. Garren said he anticipates the project will take three years to complete. “The preliminary plans sound wonderful,” Hunter said. “I guess I have a concern that if we build a new school are we going to have a bunch of Lenoir City kids coming to the county schools? This has been discussed many years about district students in Lenoir City and in the county. “It would be a concern because a lot of the development is coming from Lenoir City and, at the end of the day, they’re not going to pay for the building,” she added. “It’s only going to be those of us that live in the county that pay for the brick and mortar.” Garren said the need for a new school is impacted by numerous factors and will be sorted out as the process unfolds. Members of the board reminded Hunter and others in the audience that city residents also pay county taxes. The plan is to share information on the projects and take requests for the new school’s name, colors and mascot after fall break, Garren said. In other business, BOE members approved budget amendments outlined in the board information packet and presented by Chad Presley, business manager for Loudon County Schools. Zackary Moore was approved for hire as North Middle School’s new assistant boys basketball coach. NMS student Noah Browning was recognized for qualifying for the state cross-country meet. Browning placed 28th out of 133 runners in attendance. The board unanimously voted for all matters on the agenda, including a suggestion to join a nationwide litigation effort against social media companies. While the effort doesn’t cost the school district, the idea is to raise awareness and make taking posts and photos off social media easier for schools. The board also unanimously voted to reimburse $25,169 to a parent who volunteered to put bathrooms at the Loudon County Technology Center softball fields. The amount covers all out-of-pocket costs to the parent. |
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10/16/23