News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The Putnam County Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday to ask for a 45 day extension on an option to purchase land for a new elementary school in Southwest Cookeville.
A number of board members still had concerns about soil issues at the site, which could cost a considerable amount of money to address.
“If we had to stabilize the soil based on the initial testing, the range of the cost was a pretty broad range,” Director of Schools Jerry Boyd said. “Projections said somewhere above $600,000 and $2.5 million depending on the extent that you had to stabilize the subsoil.”
Board member Lynn McHenry said the location is ideal for what the board is looking for.
“One of the things to keep in mind, the cost of the land itself is still a small percentage of what the whole project would cost us,” McHenry said. “It’s probably less than 10-percent of the whole project if we build a K-4 for $20 million, which makes it even more important that we have the location that we want.”
The original purchase option deadline is Thursday. When the deadline runs out, and if a 45 day extension isn’t granted, the board can make another offer on the property.
The property sits near the Highland’s Business Park and has an asking price of just over $678,000.
