The Lowndes County School District Central Office building is getting a facelift.
The LCSD board approved a preliminary plan during its Friday meeting to add approximately 3,000 square feet of interior space and a new parking lot to its offices on Highway 45 South. Neil Waggoner of JBHM Architects says plans are still in the early phases, but the interior space will likely include new restrooms and a new boardroom, capable of hosting 80 visitors.
Superintendent Mike Halford expects the construction to cost around $800,000, but says that estimate is intentionally high to avoid going over budget. The LCSD also has approximately $4 million wrapped up in roofing projects at campuses around the district and $2.5 million budgeted for new classrooms at the Caledonia Schools campus.
The new boardroom will offer a larger venue for district board meetings — capacity in the current boardroom is 58 — while providing space for simultaneous meetings.
“We just do not have an adequate facility to host meetings and carry on staff development or have 12-14 people to have an opening of a bid,” said Halford. “This will allow us to have more than one meeting at a time.”
The LCSD board had been presented with three layout options for the new space at its June meeting. It chose to have the new boardroom added to the front of the Central Office building along with a renovated entry. Waggoner says the new entry will create a new image for the building.
The building”s current parking lot is little more than a handful of paved spaces and a gravel driveway. Waggoner says the total number of spaces for the proposed parking lot has not been determined. Halford says the space available for a parking lot is uncertain because the school district”s property ends approximately 50 feet in front of the building. The Mississippi Department of Transportation owns the remaining land and has plans to widen Highway 45.
The board also voted to adopt the district”s proposed $55 million 2010-2011 budget at Friday”s meeting.
Jason Browne was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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