Robbinsville – The Graham County Board of Commissioners and Graham County Board of Education held a special meeting Dec. 12, to discuss the construction of a new football stadium.
Both boards are working together to fund this project since both the county and schools anticipate making good use of the new stadium.
The first step to tackle is the stadium’s design. Graham County Project Manager Jason Marino explained that the county is still waiting on the design of the stadium from LS3P and that will cost $158,600.
The hope was to have the design done by August, but Marino said the design could be finished by spring – with the potential to open it up for bidding.
The estimated cost of the new stadium is $750,000.
“When I put that number out there, it includes ADA, landscaping, retaining walls, seating and permanent seating – basically, a completed project,” said Marino. “We do anticipate with a new design to get a better view and better line of sight to the stadium.”
He suggested that the front edge could be lowered for a better view of the field. Other factors will also be considered in the design, like security, restrooms and ambulance access. The plan is to also have aluminum seating that can be adjusted to fit the levels of the stadium. There could be more seating and wider seats for better movement; permanent stands can be built once a design is approved.
Access to the football field and the back of the stadium will also be improved.
The cheerleader stand would need to be field level, but also not reduce the line of sight.
Graham County Schools Superintendent Angie Knight added that permanent bleachers are a desired part of the design, but it takes about a year to build them.
“So regardless whether the brand new permanent bleachers are there, we need to go forward in finishing the site,” said Knight.
If the permanent bleachers are not built when the stadium is finished, temporary bleachers can be placed and then removed when the permanent ones are completed.
A temporary set of bleachers costs $77,000; potentially more, depending on the stadium design.
The councils approved a reimbursement resolution between the county and the school district to fund the stadium’s design. Graham County Finance Officer Stacy Carpenter said that the funds will come from the county’s capital reserve to front the money for the design to Graham County Schools. The school will pay back the money with their sales-tax fund.
The average sales-tax reimbursement annually is about $531,500, according to Carpenter. Graham County Schools could pay this off in a few years, according to Knight.