Bibb district looking for more property for school complex project

The Bibb County school district is poised to break ground on two major projects within the next year. The Board of Education took steps to move the transportation/campus police facility and Northeast/Appling complex projects forward at its Thursday meeting.

The district wants to see if additional property can be obtained for the $49 million school complex on Upper River Road. Extra land, especially along Walls Road and Briarcliff Circle, could provide a safer traffic route and an alternative entrance into the property, said Jason Daniel, executive director of Capital Programs for the district.

Board members gave the superintendent permission to negotiate with property owners and get appraisals. If it’s not possible to acquire additional acreage, the district already has enough land for its current design plans, he said. With approval from the board, the district will now apply for $7.2 million in Georgia Department of Education funding for the project.

Construction on the complex is on track to start in June 2018, with plans for the high school to open in 2019 and middle school in 2020, Daniel said.

Board members also OK’d an extra $1.84 million in education special purpose local option sales tax funding for the new transportation/campus police facility on Cavalier Drive.

“The original budget wasn’t enough to carry the needs for the project,” Daniel said.

Construction on that project should start in late October and wrap up by summer 2018, he said.

In addition, board members agreed to allow a new $1.5 million sports complex to be built behind Hartley Elementary School on Anthony Road. The Cal Ripken Foundation and Macon-Bibb County will pay $750,000 each for the project, but there will be no cost to the school district.

The board is working on a new policy that makes the guidelines of entering into executive session more clear. The policy will allow members to participate by phone if they are ill or outside of the area.

This story was originally published August 17, 2017 at 6:33 PM with the headline "Bibb district looking for more property for school complex project."