School officials OK plans for new cafeteria at high school

Air conditioning question lingers

By Lynn Hotaling

John Cort and Stephanie Holland of Cort Architectural Group in Asheville presented a revised cafeteria plan Monday (Feb. 4) to members of the Jackson County Board of Education. After meetings with SMHS staff, faculty and students, the architects enlarged the scope of the proposed cafeteria to accommodate the smaller tables and chairs high school personnel preferred, Holland said.

School board members, after lengthy discussion, gave their OK to the plan, which adds 1,000 square feet to the new 450-seat cafeteria and some $141,000 to the project's price tag.

Cort estimates the cost of the new dining room and kitchen at $1,741,135, which is $5,213 more than the uncommitted funds allocated for the project. That total does not include cafeteria tables and chairs, he said.

Proposed alternates to the project include two bathrooms ($50,000) and a concession stand ($75,000) to be located in the school's existing cafeteria, which will be used as a commons area until school officials reach a final decision on remodeling the space.

Board member Ray Trine expressed dismay that the project did not include renovation of the existing cafeteria space.

"Maybe I've misunderstood all along, but if we approve this we'll still have that ugly old room? That's not what I envisioned," Trine said.

Though other board members did not seem surprised that the existing space would not be remodeled as part of the new cafeteria project, they did remark that such renovations need to be a high priority and need to be completed early in the next phase of SMHS facility upgrades.

Another item not included in the new cafeteria project is the cost of air conditioning the existing cafeteria space, a matter that was debated by school and county officials during August and September.

Both the school board and county commissioners decided to go ahead with air conditioning to make the current cafeteria and kitchen more pleasant for students and food service staff; however, the first round of informal bids came in well over an engineering estimate of $40,500 and architects were asked to rebid the project, Cort said.

Prior to asking for additional bids, officials learned electrical service near the cafeteria is not adequate for the proposed new equipment and that running another line from the far end of the building would add some $30,000 to the project's cost, Holland said.

Cort asked school board members Monday how they wished him to proceed - whether to continue with plans to air condition right away or wait to do so in conjunction with construction of the new cafeteria.

The cafeteria staff is willing to forego air conditioning of the existing space until a new electrical service is added as part of cafeteria construction, SMHS Principal Kenny Nicholson said.

School officials approved plans for the new cafeteria Monday and said they would explain the shortfall for cafeteria furnishings and air conditioning to the commissioners tonight. One possibility mentioned was to add both the dining room seating and air conditioning as additional alternates to the project.

The new cafeteria and kitchen, which will be constructed in the parking lot adjacent to the existing dining room, will be on the same grade as the gymnasium in order to allow handicap access from the existing lobby area to the gym. Students will enter the new space through the existing cafeteria along accessible ramps, which will also provide some elevated seating in the new cafeteria to break up the space and make it more inviting, Holland said.

Construction of the new facility is expected to take a year. If all goes according to schedule, the project will be ready to bid in 60 days, Cort said, and work on the project can begin May 25, which will allow for occupancy on the first day of school in 2003.

Commissioners' approval is required before the project can proceed because the new cafeteria is the final component of the first phase of a planned $6.5 million upgrade of the 41-year-old school, which is being funded with money commissioners borrowed in 1999.

A master plan for renovations at SMHS was approved in May 2000, and work on the Phase I projects began later that year. Teachers and students moved into a workforce development addition, the first major construction project of Phase I, last month.

Board member Trine expressed dissatisfaction with the pace of upgrades at the high school.

"We originally envisioned improvements at Smoky Mountain as a five-year plan," Trine said. "Three years later, we're still not finished with Phase I. The reason is the objection we had to start with - too many hoops to jump through. We need to go back to the commissioners and find a way to expedite (these projects)."

Trine was apparently alluding to a serious disagreement between school board members and county commissioners during the summer of 1999. That conflict stemmed from differing opinions as to which board should approve and control the high school renovation project.

School board members initially balked at transferring title of the SMHS physical plant and campus to commissioners allowing that board to use the school property as collateral for a $10 million loan. County leaders expected to use that loan to fund Phase I at SMHS as well as other county capital improvements, including the new jail presently under construction adjacent to the Justice Center.

The needs assessment and master plan, prepared by architects Padgett and Freeman, was another bone of contention. School leaders, especially Trine, maintained that they had completed several studies and were aware of what was needed. Commissioners, led by Chairman Jay Denton and Vice Chairman Stacy Buchanan, insisted a needs assessment and plan were necessary to ensure that the high school's most immediate needs were addressed first.

School leaders transferred the high school property to commissioners in July 1999, and both boards agreed they would jointly choose a project architect and jointly approve each stage of the SMHS plan.

Back to Archive: 02/07/02.