The Macon County Board of Commissioners listened to a proposal for a new construction project that could be a glimpse into the future of Franklin High School during the meeting on May 11.
In April, the Macon County Board of Education voted in favor of a resolution supporting construction of a new Franklin High School at its current location. The board members feel that having weighed all options, the current site is still the most efficient option in terms of security, cost effectiveness and available resources. Superintendent Chris Baldwin brought in representatives from Novus Architects to help make the case to the commissioners, speaking positively of the proposal they had to offer.
“We’re encouraged by the information that they’ve provided regarding the feasibility of a new facility at the current site,” Baldwin said. “We’re encouraged by the possibilities of minimal displacement to students, minimal disruptions to instruction and minimal security issues.”
The concept proposed by Novus Architects could begin the design phase in June and start site work as soon as this November, with an expected completion date of February 2024. It would involve consolidating the school buildings near the back of the current football practice field with a three-story academic wing, an improved arts facility and auditorium and an athletic complex with an attached field house. Using excavated dirt from the practice field, the architects believe they can raise the elevation of the current football field to the point that it’s only about one story lower than the school building.
The concept would likely require a budget of between $75.8 million and $88.85 million. Between $60 million and $70 million of that total would be dedicated to site, building and demolition costs, while the rest would be put towards design fees, pre-construction work and a variety of owner costs. Emily Kite with Novus Architects said the concept assumes that the soil on the current location is already suitable to the new project’s construction needs, which would save a massive amount of money compared to other proposals that would require moving more soil.
“One of the more compelling things about this concept in contrast to other things that we explored was the ability for us to use the dirt that’s available on site without having any sort of imbalance there,” Kite said. “Many of the other concepts that we looked at, both on this campus that were more heavily phased and also at the new sites that we looked at over the course of the last several years, all had an imbalance in that situation that translated to a pretty substantial amount of moving dirt and a pretty substantial amount of cost.”
There wasn’t a vote on the proposal at the meeting, as the commissioners will need to speak further about how to pay for the project given various other commitments in the fund balance. However, with support from the school board, the commissioners generally agreed that progressing on the plan for a new high school would be a priority in the new fiscal year.
“It’s a need,” Shields said. “I think it’s good for Macon County to understand that need and to understand that we want what’s best for our kids… this is the time for us to go into the 21st century.”
The commissioners will have their next meeting at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 25 in their boardroom at the Macon County Courthouse.