Millions of dollars in repairs needed at Asheville City Schools

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Asheville City Schools is working to address high-priority maintenance needs in several schools. Buncombe County’s School Capital Fund Commission has approved funding requests for several projects that will now go before the Buncombe County Commission for final approval.

“We’re fortunate to have a lot of really nice buildings in our district, and we’ve tried to prioritize the ones that needed the most repair,” Asheville City Schools Executive Director of Operations April Dockery said.

The School Capital Fund Commission approved $5,341,805 for an extensive renovation of the Asheville High School and SILSA auditorium. Missing tiles in the ceiling and water damage marks are some of the most noticeable signs of need in the auditorium.

“It’s been in dire need of repair for many years now, and it’s kind of the heartbeat of our school system, and our community accesses that quite frequently,” Dockery said.

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The School Capital Fund Commission also approved funding for work to replace the varsity gym floor, bleachers and lighting at Asheville High School and SILSA.

Some $4,440,920 was approved for HVAC replacement, including ceiling replacement, at Lucy S. Herring Elementary School. According to a presentation Asheville City Schools made to county leaders, the HVAC system is at a “critical” point.

“If the pipes burst while students are in the building, this would mean no heating/cooling throughout the building and flooding of classrooms,” the presentation stated.

“Some of it is just longevity and use, things need to be repaired. It’s just like a car, you got to keep it tuned up. Some of it just got out of hand and just didn’t get all the needed repairs that it needed, and we recognize that and we’re trying to fill in those gaps,” Dockery said.

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According to Buncombe County, the School Capital Fund Commission uses funds from Article 39 sales tax revenue to review and fund capital project requests for Asheville City Schools and Buncombe County Schools.

Buncombe County commissioners are expected to vote on final approval for the funding in November.

OVER $150 MILLION APPROVED FOR BUNCOMBE COUNTY SCHOOL PROJECTS