Jackson School Board To Add Sprinkler To CTE Building

The Jackson County Board of Education will move forward with adding a sprinkler system to the district’s new CTE building.

Maintenance Supervisor Josh Morgan told the board Monday night that the fire marshal said to him that the building would have to have a sprinkler system unless they made the building 500 square feet smaller. Morgan said it was worth adding the system now so the building would be prepared for any future growth.

“If we do put sprinklers in it, the fire marshal rules go way down, and it’s a lot easier for inspections, you’re allowed to do more stuff, and in the future, if you decide to add anything onto it, you’re going to have to put the sprinkler in anyhow, then this point will be even more expensive,” Morgan said.

Morgan said it will cost $180,000 to install the system. He said there is a chance that a new water line will have to be installed to support the sprinkler system, which would bring the total cost to $250,000.

“I know it’s a lot of money, but if this program really takes off you know, it’ll be, if they have to come and do it later, it’s going to cost a lot more,” Morgan said.

Morgan said he wanted to consult them before approving the addition to the building’s final blueprints. He said architects were waiting on the decision. Morgan said a flow test will be conducted to see if a new water line needs to be added.

In other business, the board approved a bid for some $26,500 to paint sections of Gainesboro Elementary and Jackson County Middle School. They also approved a $34,000 bid to put new fencing up around the middle school.