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BY IVAN SANDERS
STAR STAFF
ivan.sanders@elizabethton.com

The Carter County Building and Grounds Committee at its Tuesday meeting heard from Mayor Patty Woodby on several projects, including new guttering for the courthouse.

The mayor told the committee that the project will require a special company to install the guttering and that an RFP would be needed. She said Shaw and Shanks in a preliminary report had estimated the cost of materials at $24,000 and when the repair costs are submitted that an RFP will be issued.

She said that the guttering on the front of the courthouse will be included and that it will not be replaced.

Mayor Woodby also advised the committee that there are no updates on the Sluder property and that it will be spring of 2022 more than likely before she receives a report.

In other reports, the mayor noted that once the bathroom project at the courthouse has been completed that all ADA requirements will be taken care of for all county buildings.

She provided an extensive report on the Workforce Development Center project, which is being converted into classroom space for a centralized CTE Center for Carter County school students.

Mayor Woodby said there are currently 100 students on a waiting list for the cosmetology class which will be taught at the center as well as an extensive list for the welding class.

Also, a chemistry lab will be completed that will fulfill the lab credit at Eastman Chemical Co. and Nuclear Fuel Services will be a focal point of the new teaching center.

The bulk of the monies needed to complete the three classrooms comes from having to install a return air system to the hoods that will have to be installed in the chemistry lab.

The mayor said she met with representatives of Shaw and Shanks Tuesday to hash out phases of the work project and the most immediate needs. The center will be divided into three phases with phase one to be completed by the fall of 2022.

The first phase will consist of 11 welding bays, a cosmetology classroom, and the chemistry lab. When asked how the $250,000 would be funded, Mayor Woodby said $25,000 will come from the 3-Star Program and $100,000 each will be requested from Carter County Schools and the Carter County Commission for the investment.

Phase II will begin once Phase I is completed and will include the build-out of Building One on the campus. Once the build-out is completed, Northeast State will move into that building, then Phase Three will begin.

“The project shows the great teamwork of Tracy (Dr. McAbee, Superintendent of Carter County Schools) and the school department’s willingness to contribute $100,000 to the project,” Mayor Woodby said. “There are many great opportunities for this facility and Shaw and Shanks have done a great job in putting the design work together.”

The mayor also said the opportunity will exist within the phase work to provide a 100-person conference center for local groups to use for presentations once the center is completed.