Site work and new construction of an educational facility in Blountville, Tennessee. Completed plans call for site work for a educational facility.

https://heraldcourier.com/news/sullivan-school-board-approves-several-capital-improvement-projects/article_9be78214-f2ee-11ee-9f1f-1b241d7a1c6b.html Last month, the board also approved a motion to spend $550,000 from the fund balance to be spent on the Construction Lab project at West Ridge High School. Innovative School Model Grant funding will also be used for the high school’s project. ______________ https://heraldcourier.com/news/local/education/sullivan-commission-to-consider-construction-project-funding-from-school-board/article_f78126d4-e61e-11ee-9e44-c77991247276.html Sullivan commission to consider construction project funding from school board Robert SorrellMar 19, 2024 Two major projects from the Sullivan County school system will be discussed Thursday by the County Commission. ___________________________________ https://www.johnsoncitypress.com/news/appalachian-highlands/sullivan-school-board-seeks-to-spend-more-than-1-million-of-fund-balance/article_aa8178a7-7e6d-5896-b113-1c77f63d8cde.html BLOUNTVILLE -- Sullivan County school officials are asking the County Commission to allow $550,000 in fund balance to be spent on partial funding of a West Ridge High School career technical education or CTE expansion. They also voted at a called meeting to seek permission to use up to $500,000 from fund balance on four projects at Sullivan East High School with no grant help. The West Ridge project is to be partly funded by CTE Innovative School Model Grant of $1 million, which every public high school in Tennessee is receiving but must spend by June 30, 2026. The project would be for space for career technical education programs, funding a construction lab for such things as residential and commercial construction, electrical and masonry, as well as heating and cooling. Sullivan School officials discuss spending proposals Sullivan County school officials, including career technical education head Debbie Madgett, to the right, Monday afternoon during a called school board meeting discussed proposals to spend fund balance to help fund an Innovation School Model Grant plan at West Ridge High School that came in more than the available grant money. RICK WAGNER rwagner@sixriversmedia.com Debbie Madgett, who oversees CTE for the school system, said it would help with dual enrollment at Northeast State Community College and the College of Applied Technology-Elizabethton, work-based learning and industrial certification programs. VOTING DETAILS The Board of Education voted 5-0 with one absent and one seat vacant to approve the request to the County Commission, which meets Thursday in a regular voting meeting. The 24-member commission must approve the school board using fund balance. School board Chairman Matt Price, Vice Chairman Matthew Spivey and members Michael Hughes, Mary Rouse and Randall Jones voted for using the fund balance, with member Paul Robinson absent and the District 1 seat formerly held by Mark Ireson vacant. Ireson, a county commissioner and chairman of the commission's Education Committee, attended the meeting. The commission's agenda Thursday also includes filling his old seat, from which he resigned in January shortly before a lawsuit seeking his removal from the board was to have been heard in Chancery Court. Former Commissioner Angie Stanley won the March 5 Republican primary for the seat and faces no filed independent or Democratic opposition for the Aug. 1 general election for a four-year term. BID DEADLINE LOOMS Time is of the essence on the West Ridge matter since the low bid of $1.49 million on the West Ridge plan expires April 7. J.A. Street and Associates is the low bidder. Randall Jones Jones "We're never going to get it any cheaper," Jones said by phone during the meeting since he participated remotely. The board also voted by the same margin to approve spending up to $500,000 on four projects at Sullivan East High: replacing the football press box, installing new lights at the girl's softball field, installing new tennis court lights and repairing poor drainage on the boy's baseball field. The vote did not specify limits on the four individual projects, and officials indicated the new softball lights could be bid out along with a pending bid for baseball lighting. If bids come back too high, the board could delay one or more of the projects. WEST RIDGE DETAILS The local fund balance money would be combined with the Tennessee Innovative School Model grant to fund a nearly $1.5 million expansion at West Ridge to house the construction, electrical and heating and cooling program to be moved from the West Ridge Annex at Sullivan Central Middle to the new West Ridge building. West Ridge opened in August of 2021, when the former Central High reopened as Central Middle. However, the board at the called meeting also indicated a strong interest in renovating existing space in the annex at Central to be used to move digital arts, currently split between the two campuses, all back to the annex. Madgett initially presented those as an alternative to the proposed work at the main West Ridge campus. That potential plan also includes improving space used for cosmetology at the annex and making space for a new barbering program there. The low bid on the West Ridge project was $1.49 million but only $953,188 of the $1 million state grant that runs out June 30, 2026 remains, leaving a shortfall of $536,812. Architectural fees came out of the initial $1 million. The board increased the total fund balance appropriation proposal to $550,000 to cover any unforeseen issues. PORCH ENCLOSURE ON HOLD In other matters, the board took no action on the low bid to use ISM funding to enclose the second-floor "porch" at Sullivan East Middle, which opened in January of 2019. The low bid on that will expire March 29. michaelhughes Michael Hughes (Sullivan County Board of Education member) Hughes said it would be better to build a whole new addition to East, which was designed for that possibility, rather than enclose the porch. He said at least one donor is willing to give money toward the overall project plus an outdoor classroom in addition to the project. The lone bid, from Preston Construction and including two alternates, was $751,677, but only $476,030 of the Innovative School Model Grant of $500,000 remains after architectural fees have been spent. Hughes and Jones indicated the addition might cost less than the porch enclosure of about 2,000 square feet and could be larger, maybe 3,000 square feet. The plan is to make more space for the school's robotics program operations and storage, although they said separate from the ISM funding more storage space in general is needed. The board requested architect Dineen West advise school system officials of a cost estimate and potential tentative plans before the April school board meeting, during which it could vote to proceed with that project. SULLIVAN COUNTY SCHOOLS Madgett after the meeting said ISM grant amounts of $500,000 each for Sullivan Heights and Sullivan Central middle schools are to be spent on planned on STEM or science, technology engineering and career exploration labs, one at each school. The East High $1 million in ISM is to go toward planned health sciences and nursing facilities there. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ WEST RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION LAB. This project is being funded by the Innovative School Model (ISM) Grant, with funds administered by the Tennessee Department of Education. Qualified Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs) are encouraged to submit. By submission of a signed bid, the bidder certifies total compliance with Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, and all regulations promulgated thereunder. All bidders must be licensed State of Tennessee Contractors as required by the Contractors Licensing Act of 1994 (TCA Title 62, Chapter 6). A Bid Envelope Cover Sheet has been included in the bid documents. The Bid Envelope Cover must be completed and attached to the sealed envelope. No bid will be opened unless the outside of the sealed envelope containing the bid provides the following information: the Bidder's name, license number, classification of license and date of expiration and a quotation of that part of his classification applying to the bid; the Geothermal, HVAC, Masonry, Plumbing, Mechanical, Sprinkler, Electrical and Roofing subcontractor's name, license number expiration date and license classification, if any, must also appear on the Envelope Cover. If no Subcontractors are being used, the outside of the envelope must state, No Subcontractors are being used on this project. Questions will be answered in an addendum that will be issued no later than March 1, 2024. Bid Notes: A bid bond or certified check in an amount equal to five percent (5%) of the total of the bid is required. Certified checks should be made payable to Sullivan County Trustee. Certified checks will be deposited and refunded within five (5) days after bid opening except for the two (2) lowest bidders. The remaining bid bonds or refund checks will be returned promptly after the Owner and accepted bidder have executed the contract. The successful bidder will be required to execute acceptable Performance and Payment Bonds in an amount equal to one hundred (100%) percent of the contract price. Owner Rights: The Owner reserves the right to reject any or all bids, to waive any informality or irregularity in the bid received and to accept or reject any and all items of any bid. No Bidder may modify, withdraw, or cancel a bid within thirty (30) calendar days after the actual date of the opening thereof. All questions must be submitted no later than February 28, 2024, by the close of business.