County will help

fund college expansion
By Scott Nicholson
nicholson@wataugademocrat.com

The Watauga County Board of Commissioner agreed to use future capital improvement funds to accelerate an expansion at Caldwell Community College & Technical Institute.

CCC&TI president Ken Boham presented construction bids Monday for a planned Phase II expansion of the Watauga campus on White Oak Road. The first phase included three modular buildings, while the next phase is a combination of nursing and vocational space and a maintenance storage area.

The low bid for the second phase came in at $691,000 over the budgeted amount.

The county agreed to cover about half that amount against future contributions to the capital improvement fund.

Boham said the amount of rock on the site drove up the bids. Items suggested for “value engineering” or elimination were deemed unacceptable by the project architect.

Boham said the four bids for the occupational training building on campus were within $100,000 of each other. He added, it was the first time in his 13 years that bids had come in over budget.

The college received $950,000 in state-provided Allied Health money and also had money from state educational bonds that were adopted in 2000.

“We certainly don’t want to do anything that will jeopardize our nursing program in Watauga,” Boham said. The state board of nursing had directed the college to expand its instructional space, and the project would also require a sewer pump station.

Boham said the college could place another modular structure to accommodate the state’s nursing requirements but found in Phase I that modular construction wasn’t necessarily quicker or cheaper. The amount of rock could drive up the price later if the bids didn’t shift the unknown expense to the contractor.
“We pretty much know that we’re going to run into rock,” Boham said, adding soil bores showed rock at a depth of six feet, while one end of the project requires a depth of 30 feet.

“We’re at a situation where, if they run into Mount Rushmore, it’s their problem, not ours.”

Boham said there was a footprint for an extra building even after the proposed 14,000-square foot expansion.

He said the vocational space would be shared with high school students and asked the county commissioners to advance money from capital funds the county sets aside each year for CCC&TI. The low bid was from Amber Contracting Company Inc. of Hickory for $3.1 million.

Commission chairman Jim Deal said the educational subcommittee had discussed the issue because of future vocational needs at the new high school. The subcommittee felt the 3,000 square feet of space was better at the college campus than trying to squeeze it onto the high school project. Deal said adding the space now would allow people to begin using it sooner and would cost less than adding it to the high school project.

Boham said the projected completion date was early in 2009. The county’s capital improvement plan earmarks $200,000 over the next five years, and Boham said the plan had a balance of more than $300,000 and the balance could be spread out over the next couple of years.

In effect, the county would be loaning the college money from the fund, Deal said. He said the nursing program was vital in meeting health-care needs and providing jobs for the area.

Poplar bypass
County manager Rocky Nelson introduced a plan to review a traffic signal for the intersection of Poplar Grove Road and N.C. 105. “As we all know, Poplar Grove Road is used as one of our unofficial bypasses,” Nelson said.

Deal said he’d seen accidents and near-accidents take place, particularly with people turning left. Deal suggested a resolution that a light be placed at the intersection and asking the town of Boone and Appalachian State University to support the improvement. Deal said a signal would also slow down speeding traffic along N.C. 105.

Commissioner John Cooper said a signal might back up traffic during rush hour and said the timing of the light would be important. He said a traffic light would probably address the problem but careful study would be required for the best and safest solution. The draft resolution will be discussed during the next board meeting on Dec. 20.

Deal said, “I think we need to look at a traffic study for our entire area,” noting that problems existed elsewhere and that the county, town and Appalachian State University could discuss developing a plan together.

Stewart Simmons coverage
The commissioners discussed a request from the Stewart Simmons Volunteer Fire Department to provide additional services in the eastern portion of the county. The department hopes to develop a cooperative arrangement with Wilkes County to serve that portion of the county, particularly the Laurelmor development.

The upscale development will eventually have up to 2,500 residences with a mix of single-family homes, condominiums and recreational buildings. About 80 percent of the development is in Watauga County.

“This may be an opportunity for us to improve our EMS services in that portion of the county,” Nelson said.

The EMS Advisory Committee will make a report during the commissioners’ planning retreat early next year.

Reappointments
The board reappointed county manager Nelson, assistant county manager Deron Geoque and board clerk Anita Fogle, with Angie Ritter and Monica Harrison serving as substitute clerks. The firm of di Santi, Watson, Capua & Wilson was appointed as the county’s legal representative. Deal was reelected board chairman and Billy Ralph Winkler was elected vice chairman.