Despite the current state of the economy, the Cumberland County Board of Education is ready to move forward with more building projects.

After a recent discussion with Upland architect Kim Chamberlin, the BOE has decided to pursue plans for Pleasant Hill Elementary, Baker's Crossroads Elementary and Cumberland County High School in order to better accommodate students and their needs.

"(These) three projects have been in the wings, waiting to be talked about over the last few months and, I guess, even going back so far as a year," said Chamberlin, who updated the board on the projects' status and new prices.

The first project he referred to involves renovating the "old classroom wing" at Pleasant Hill Elementary. The single-story freestanding facility with a partial basement has the potential of holding at least eight more classrooms of approximately 800 square feet, Chamberlin noted.

"Roughly, what we're looking at is…adding six classrooms on the upper level and a couple of classrooms on the lower level," he said.

In December, the architect conducted a walk-through of the old building, which is now being used for storage, to observe its condition. Although the facility is in "fair shape," Chamberlin pointed out that "it has a lot of age on it" and needs several repairs.

"Structurally, the exterior wall is in pretty good shape but it needs some brick work done," he explained. "The roof appears to be in good shape. The floor structure I have some issues (with because) there are some areas that will be in need of some replacements, but we won't know completely until we get into it.

"Certainly, all of the systems are worn out in the building — mechanical, plumbing, electrical — and will need full replacement," Chamberlin continued, adding how an upgrade of the mechanical system will require a larger electrical service to handle additional loads.

In addition, all of the interior finishes will have to be replaced as well as damaged ceilings, insulation and plastered walls throughout the facility.

According to Chamberlin, the upper level of the structure is 8,400 square feet and the lower level is about 4,000 square feet. Using current construction cost values, he estimated the renovations would total $868,000 to $1.24 million.

"We roughly put a number between $70 and $100 square foot to bring it up to what we would consider to be current standards and useful classroom space…We're looking at roughly a $1.24 million price tag for the full-building renovation," he said.

Before the board made a final decision, Chamberlin suggested they consider constructing a new addition to replace the old one. Though he did not have exact figures, he said "new construction would be pretty close to the same thing," about $120 a square foot.

"You could look at a comparable new construction for about the same price and probably have something more usable and we won't have to work around existing corners and stuff like that," he said.

As an example he used the Phoenix/Alternative School, which was completed in September for $100 a square foot. It measures about 10,788 square feet and includes three small offices and nine classrooms.

"If we can build a new one there for approximately the same price, I would like to see that," said 8th District representative Jim Blalock, who made a motion to build a new addition for the school. Mary Smith, 7th District representative, supported it.

"I think when we talked about that the community down there wanted to renovated it …because it was an old building," said Chair Shirley Parris, 3rd District.

"There were discussions about trying to utilize what was there, and I think part of it was to look at also cost," Chamberlin stated. "There is always the thought that if you utilize an old structure there are savings, but at some point they do start to wear out."

"It's been two years since we looked over that, and it's deteriorating quickly and is in worse shape then when we were down there two years ago," said Director of Schools Aarona VanWinkle. "We need to do something."

"(But) the bottom line is we don't have $1.2 million," stated Dan Schlafer, 9th District representative.

"No, we don't, but our job is to plan for what the needs of the children are…" VanWinkle replied.

The BOE voted unanimously to approve Blalock's motion. Chamberlin told the board that a new addition could take up to 12 months to finish once all the plans are completed and OK'd by the fire marshal. He gave a completion date around the beginning of 2010.

"I think that even at this point, there is no way we could get anything out there by the next school year," he said.

During the discussion on Pleasant Hill Elementary, Chamberlin mentioned that adding a second story would not be a cost effective solution for the school. However, he had no qualms about making the new elementary school at Baker's Crossroads that way.

"We like to stay a single story when building in that size, but now when we start getting into larger footprints like what we're looking at for Baker's Crossroads, a second story does make sense," he said.

The plan for the new elementary school has not changed since the last time Chamberlin updated the board on the subject. It still depicts a two-story building with classrooms for pre-K through third grade on the first floor and for fourth through eighth grade on the second. With a total square footage at 107,345, the price of the new elementary school will be nearly $14 million, he noted.

"We've not seen any escalation in construction prices," he said. "Of late, things have been coming down so the numbers are fairable at the moment compared to what we've seen in the past."

Because she felt the new school needs to be "up and going by 2014," VanWinkle suggested the board approach the county commission once more about the facility as well as the projects for Cumberland County High School.

According to the DOS, the plan for the high school includes an $4.5-million auditorium measuring 400 square feet; $1.75-million band, choir and art rooms as part of the complex; and air conditioning for the existing gymnasium, valued at $400,000.

"Those are the three major items that remain…to bring it back up to par with Stone Memorial High School," said Chamberlin.

The board followed VanWinkle's recommendation and approved motions for the two plans to be taken before the county commission.