Wayne Co. Commissioners - Wayne-Wilson News Leader, Fremont, NC

27 September 2007 — School facilities in the northern end of the county were the hot button issue at the Wayne County Commissioner’s Community Meeting at Charles B. Aycock Monday night.

After giving a brief presentation on services the county offers to all of its citizens, County Manager Lee Smith addressed questions that citizens had written and submitted before the meeting began. And while the topic ran the gamut from ditches to recreational services, the biggest issue on most people’s mind was how soon schools will be expanded in northern Wayne County.

Darron Flowers of Fremont asked why the county was just now looking at school facilities when growth and overcrowding issues have been apparent for years.

Mr. Smith explained that the county has had several big projects that also need their attention and money, and that they cannot just favor one project over the other.

“As a taxpayer myself, I want to know what the payment on the building is, as well as the operational cost,” he said. “I want to know how building is going to affect the tax rate.”

Another problem, he said, was getting information on not just what it will cost to build additional structures at a particular school, but also the cost of maintaining that structure.

“We are just now getting estimates on operational costs for the proposed school projects in the county,” he said. “We have gotten that, and sent it back to the school board for revisions, and we’re meeting with our financial advisors about it.”

He also said that the county is composing a prioritized list of all county projects is in the works now, including either an expanded or a new jail facility, as well as consolidated library facilities in the northern and southern ends of the county.

“We don’t want to promise you that a high school is going to get built a certain year, and then when that year gets there, we can’t go any longer without a new jail,” he said. “The local government commission won’t let you build that much at one time, you have to spread it out. So we’re trying to get a handle on everything we’re trying to do.”

Later in the meeting, Mr. Smith addressed a similar question on addressing classroom space in the county, and dealing with overcrowded schools in some areas while having open space in others.

He said that, while he knows it is controversial, the schools have been asked to look at things like reassignment and year-round school. They are also examining the possibility of setting county-wide rules limiting the amount of mobile units schools can have before they must build more classrooms at the school.

“We have asked the school board to look at all the ways that we can utilize the schools better,” he said, “and you can’t do that without looking at some difficult options.”

He said that in addition to adding classroom space, the board also has to look at what he calls the core of the school – facilities like cafeterias, media centers, and athletic facilities. He said that the capacity to increase the core must be there before more classroom space is added.

Mr. Flowers asked where exactly the county was in building schools.

“Not to be disrespectful, but can you tell us when you are going to be able to build at each of the schools?” he said.

While he stopped short of putting exact years on construction, Mr. Smith did say that in the prioritized list from the school, building an additional building at Norwayne is second or third on the list, while building more space at CBA is sixth.

He added that plans for a two-story educational classroom were in the works for Norwayne.

Vance Greeson of Pikeville then asked if American Disabilities Act (ADA) would be met in the two story structure, including putting an elevator in.

Mr. Smith said the building would have to meet those standards to be approved.

School board member Dave Thomas, who also attended the meeting, added a little perspective to the situation in Northern Wayne County.

“The high school has 1220 students right now,” he said. “They have 305 students per lunch period in the original cafeteria built in 1961. There are 13 mobile units, and ten teachers without classrooms.”

He also said that Aycock is the only high school in the county that only has one feeder school, and that he felt the need for a second middle school was on the horizon.

Pikeville Mayor Herb Sieger asked why the county was committing money to libraries he didn’t think were pressing, because there are already facilities in both Pikeville and Fremont, when schools so clearly need to be built.

Mr. Smith said that the county is working on a five-year plan and a 10-year plan for all county projects, and that it would be unfair to dismiss any needed projects. He also referred Mr. Sieger to library director Jane Rustin for more information on the libraries.

The school discussion ended with an emphasis on a proposed quarter-percent sales tax in the county that could be used to generate revenue for schools.

“We’ve heard from a lot of people that the would rather see the sales tax than a proposed land transfer tax,” he said, “and we thing that would generate more revenue.”

He encouraged citizens to contact the commissioners with their thoughts on the tax, and thanked them for all their input during the meeting.

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