The Chickamauga City School Board has officially approved its budget for fiscal year 2017, and has chosen a contractor for the new Gordon Lee Memorial High School building.
The board approved its $11,094,432 budget late last week. The board also awarded the construction contract for the new high school building to R.K. Redding, located in Bremen, Ga., said Superintendent Melody Day.
According to Chickamauga City Schools Finance Director Diane Miller, very little, if any, of the general fund will go toward financing the new school building, which is being paid for with bonds.
The cost for the approved bid is $12,015,200, which includes several additions to the original plans: a high-efficiency indoor heat pump, high noise reduction ceiling tiles and self-cleaning cassettes for the HVAC system.
"The three add-ons brought the total bid price for R.K. Redding to be $12,015,200," Day said. "We have not made a decision on a fourth add-on for sure. It is terrazzo flooring. We have some terrazzo in the current main building still in excellent condition after 86 years. It's hard and it shines. It's a beautiful floor.
"Carpet has to be changed out, but this [terrazzo flooring] lasts for 80-plus or more years. Other types of flooring are replaced two to three times over that time frame. Terrazzo won't be in the first couple of phases. We will see how costs are running by the third phase to determine how much terrazzo flooring will be used in the new main building."
According to Day, fiscal year 2016 did not include any furlough days and neither will fiscal year 2017.
"We are very pleased to be back at a full school year calendar," she said. "The students will have 179 school days. The school calendar and the information on the school bid are on the school website at chickamaugacityschools.org."
Students start classes Aug. 24, with teachers returning to the classroom Aug. 15.
The next Chickamauga City School Board meeting is set for Aug. 8 at 5:15 p.m. at the Central Office in downtown Chickamauga. The school board meets the second Monday of each month. Meetings are open to the public.