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County, school board review three-phase master plan for SMHS

By Lisa Majors-Duff
An overview of the needs assessment for Smoky Mountain High School was delivered to a joint gathering of county and school leaders earlier this week.

The incomplete master plan was presented by Jim Padgett of Padgett and Freemen, the architectural firm hired to determine the best way to renovate the 40-year-old facility. Plans to date call for a three-phase project that could take as little as three years to finish, he said, though school officials were quick to admit such a project could take much longer, especially without knowing funding sources.

Major changes proposed by Padgett at the high school include relocating and enlarging the inadequate cafeteria and administrative spaces, rerouting the student and bus traffic for both Fairview Elementary and the high school, and adding a performing arts center and auxiliary gymnasium. Other areas addressed in the plan include the vocational program and the media center, which remains smaller than the state standards for a school of nearly 1,000 students, he said.

Both the vocational program and the cafeteria could be addressed in phase one of the project by building a new "D" building and relocating vocational classes that are now scattered throughout the campus. Included in this move would be the agriculture and horticulture programs to the new building. With this area vacated, a new cafeteria could be constructed in its location.

Phase one would also include rerouting of student drop-off traffic to enter the campus from Fairview Road and use the current bus parking lot as the main thoroughfare for unloading students. Buses would then park in the current senior parking lot while not in use.

Parking lots for students who drive to school could be relocated to an area recently acquired for campus expansion, said Padgett. The new traffic pattern puts vehicles on the perimeter of the campus.

Once phase one is completed, Padgett suggested that phase two could include relocating the media center into the now vacant cafeteria space. Administrative offices, which are currently scattered throughout the campus, could then move into the old media center space.

School board members immediately voiced concern at moving the newly-renovated media center. The area was enlarged and wired for new technology options less than two years ago.

Phase three of the project is proposed to include adding a performing arts facility and an auxiliary gym to the campus. A new performing arts center would rely on building a new road in the northeast area of campus, which could be routed toward the county's newly acquired Jones Street. This new road could then be used as a main outlet for the campus, with a traffic light added to its intersection with N.C. 107.

Though accurate cost analysis cannot be determined until the master plan is completed, Padgett roughly estimated $4.5 million would be needed for each of the three phases of the project.

Most of those at the meeting Monday voiced support for the ideas presented, with minor changes and suggestions offered. School Board Chairman Martha Queen expressed concern that immediate internal needs ­ including required handicapped facilities and existing restrooms - may not be addressed soon enough. School board member Ali Laird-Large wondered both about funding for the project and the new traffic pattern.

Mary Jane Dillard, another school board member, also questioned the availability of funds and how change orders during construction could be minimized.

Commission Chairman Jay Denton, who taught biology at the high school prior to being elected to office, said his concerns centered around the proposal to renovate recently renovated areas, such as the media center; and that immediate infrastruction problems may not be addressed as soon as necessary. He also voiced concern about increased traffic being proposed on Fairview Road and the lack of attention being given to increased academic space.

Commissioner Stacy Buchanan, who currently teaches at the high school, said his major concern lies in ways to fund the project. According to Local Government Commissioner guidelines, Jackson County will not be permitted to borrow funds again until Jan. 2003, when $7 million could be available, he said. The county has already committed itself to a $20 million debt, which will be used for a variety of capital improvement projects, including education facility needs.

The idea of putting a bond referrendum to a vote of the people, which is strongly supported by the school board, is not highly thought of by the commissioners.

The meeting ended with both boards agreeing to meet again with Padgett and Freeman representatives Wednesday, April 26, at 6 p.m. at the Justice Center. By then a revised master plan should be available for further discussion.

Back to Archive: 04/20/00.