Superintendent Jeff Cox discusses an architectural rendition of the plan earlier submitted by Mitch Franklin for a new middle school that would be co-located on the campus of the current Sparta Elementary School.

Solid data sought for school cost

The members of the Alleghany County Board of Education gathered for a Sept. 25 special called meeting to discuss facilities and prepare them for an upcoming meeting with the Alleghany County Commission. As the meeting came to a close, members voted and Chairman Clarence Crouse directed Superintendent Jeff Cox to speak with the architects that the school board has been working with—Randy Baker and Frank Williams with Pinnacle Architecture in Matthews—and ask them to design a potential middle school and offer more concrete figures.

Topics of concern for the board members to be addressed between Cox and the architects include—but are not limited to—how to utilize Charles Street during school hours and verifying that construction quotes are all-inclusive, including cost of necessary items for each particular classroom.

During discussions, Cox told the board members there were no "iron clad" quotes in terms of the potential middle school. However, figures of $5 million to $7 million were given during a previous joint meeting of the boards.

In response, Board member Faron Atwood said, "That's why I'm a little concerned that when we met with the commissioners the other night, that we gave that number out at the public meeting. I think that opened us up to shoot ourselves in the foot...That just concerned me after that meeting the other night, we're throwing that figure out there and to me, I just didn't think we as a group had sit down and discussed this in enough detail to be going in front of the commissioners and throwing that number out there. Now, to me, in their eyes we're pinned down (to) $7 million."

Cox told Atwood that he did not disagree with what he was saying, "But I do remember we qualified it three or four times to say this is a preliminary number, we're working to try to get the cost down. That's in the minutes..."

"But you know what they heard," Atwood interjected. Cox stated he reminded the commissioners the number quoted was a "preliminary quote," and added Atwood's comment was "a point well taken."

Board member Joel Souther mentioned it was his understanding through a discussion with Baker that the $6 million only covered the building itself and did not include necessary equipment, such as chairs, desks and the like.

Board member Mitch Franklin offered, "It sounds like what we need to do is get a plan that we can agree on and get it finalized and try and give us a number."

Souther stated, "The number we take to the commissioners needs to take in all of it, computers everything. In other words, when we walk out of there, that's going to put a student in that building. I don't think we're nowhere near that at this time."

Cox replied, "If it comes back a lot different than what's already quoted, I'm going to personally be a little frustrated. They know we're building a cafeteria. If you're quoting a cost of building a cafeteria, I hope you're not quoting the cost of four walls and nothing in it. They know that some of those classrooms are going to be vocational classes, so those are more expensive than the traditional classrooms. I hope the number that he gave us, that the preliminary number took in account a little bit of wiggle room..."

Later in the meeting, Cox re-addressed estimate figures saying, "What they have actually told us is 45,000 square feet between $110 and $120 a square foot. The low end of that, $110, that's $4.95 million. When you go to the high end of that, that's $5.4 million. When we're quoting $6 million, that's leaving $600,000 above what the high end of their estimate was."

Assistant Superintendent John Farrelly suggested that the board have concepts and plans in place, including costs, and be able to provide a side-by-side comparison.

 

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