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Snow slows progress on school projects

By Lynn Hotaling

Scotts Creek School construction site Herald photo by Lynn Hotaling

Despite recent snow and ice, a construction crew was busy Tuesday (Feb. 1) setting steel in the two-story central classroom area at the new Scotts Creek School on Parris Branch Road near Sylva. Designed by McMillan Smith and Partners of Spartanburg, S.C., the 93,000-square-foot school is expected to be completed in time to begin school in August 2001.

Work continued this week on school construction projects, though progress has been slowed due to recent winter weather, said Clarence Hubbell, school system construction coordinator.

Under way are classroom additions at both Fairview and Smokey Mountain elementary schools, interior finish work at Smoky Mountain High's field house and a new 93,000-square-foot facility to replace Jackson County's oldest school, 46-year-old Scotts Creek Elementary.

Fairview's addition has been least affected by the snow, ice and chilly temperatures that have plagued the county during the past two weeks, Hubbell said Tuesday. Much of that addition is already under roof, and construction crews have been able to work on the building's mechanical components regardless of the weather, he said.
Scotts Creek School construction site Herald Photo by Lynn Hotaling Progress on Smokey Mountain's addition is about three weeks behind Fairview's Hubbell said, but both are on schedule to be completed in time for classes to begin in August.

Crews were back on the job Tuesday at the new school site on Parris Branch, where several workers were setting steel in the two-story central classroom area.

All foundation walls are complete, Hubbell said, as is all underground plumbing and most of the underground electrical conduit. Concrete block has been laid for the first level of the building's two-story section.
Construction on the new school is proceeding on schedule, Hubbell said, and the facility should be completed in ample time to begin classes there in August 2001. The original target completion date was Dec. 1, he said, but construction was delayed for some 10 weeks last summer due to wet conditions at the site that prevented compaction of the building pad.

Jackson County borrowed the $10.5 million needed to build Scotts Creek's new school. The two elementary additions are being constructed from a combination of $1.7 million in state critical needs funds and $1.8 million county commissioners borrowed late last year.

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