School board approves architect for two school projects
Bethware Elementary and Kings Mountain Middle schools are both aging and both running out of room, according to Cleveland County School System.
Cleveland County Board of Education recently voted to approve architects for projects to improve or add classrooms to both schools.
According to a district-wide facility assessment, which was released in the summer of 2022, Kings Mountain Middle School was built in 1975 with a building score of three, meaning it is recommended that the building be replaced or improved within three to six years.
Both Bethware and Kings Mountain Middle are predicted to see enrollment growth.
They are just two of the county’s multiple aging schools.
Bethware Elementary is the oldest school in the county, built nearly 100 years ago in 1925 with Casar Elementary close behind, built a year later.
The majority of the schools in the county were ranked a three, according to the assessment.
Board of Education members recently discussed plans for Bethware and Kings Mountain Middle, identifying them as the first schools in need of attention.
Superintendent Stephen Fisher said Bethware has been designated “project 1A.”
“We need to go ahead and get moving with some work on that project as we look at grant opportunities and partnerships,” he said during a November meeting.
Fisher told board members that the system is looking at significant classroom additions - between 12 to 16 - at Bethware and a science center that would be added to the campus. Plans would include new traffic flow, a new layout and a focus on STEM.
Board members voted six to three to approve Holland & Hamrick as the architect for the Bethware project.
“We are experiencing growth,” Fisher said. “We’re out of space and anticipate that school to grow.”
He said the school is in a prime location for a STEM or science center and the school system has some partnership interest with local businesses and industries.
“We definitely have some big dreams there, that's why it's important that we begin the work with an architect… how do we best maximize that to work for our students,” Fisher said.
He said there is not yet an estimated cost for the project since they are still in the preliminary stages.
“Until we get some design work… and better scope of what we want to put on there, it's hard to estimate the cost right now,” Fisher said. “The cost of school construction is quite large, quite significant.”
Kings Mountain Middle will also be undergoing a building addition and the operations committee heard from three architectural firms in December, according to the committee report, which was presented at the board of education’s December meeting. The committee recommended Holland & Hamrick for the project, and board members voted and approved that recommendation.
“This will get started with some design documents, floor plans, it will stop short of engineering design,” said Board Chairman Robert Queen.
He said once the board reviews those plans from the architect, it will give them a better understanding of the cost.
This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: Which two Cleveland County schools will be adding classrooms?
