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On Thursday, the Troup County School Board voted to approve a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) of $38,894,662 for the building of a new Rosemont Elementary School.

Superintendent Dr. Brian Shumate said the board has been working on this project for roughly two and a half years.

“We’ve been right on track with everything that we’ve done,” Shumate said. “While the costs have gone up from when we were estimating this thing two years ago, our board has been very supportive and we’ve worked through it together to get to where we are, and I appreciate their support.”

Plans for the school were discussed in detail during Monday’s TCSS work session by contractor  Southern A&E and construction manager at risk J&R Construction. Due to inflation and the rise in the cost of materials, the price of the school has gone from an initial $22 million project to a more than $38 million project.

The board was presented with a breakdown of the costs, starting with the various work categories that will be completed by subcontractors, which totals $32,957,156.68. Allowances in the plan include the installation of an emergency radio system ($90,404.25), a septic system ($1,273,000) and an owner’s contingency ($2,500,000), which includes furniture and other needed elements.

The funds for the project will come from Education SPLOST funds, according to TCSS documents.

“We’ve got other schools in the future that will be the same boat — Rosemont of all of our elementary schools was probably one of the oldest buildings, and it had some issues for a while,” Shumate said.  “To have a new school out there in that community, it’s going to be a great thing for kids.”

Shumate said down the road the board anticipates the Rosemont school community to grow.

“When people come to our county and see these nice facilities, it will be a reflection on the community and its support for public education,” Shumate said.

The new school is estimated to be a single-story building of 116,010 square feet, equipped with 56 full-size classrooms, six half-sized classrooms for students with special needs and will hold approximately 850 students.

If the need for more space arises, Southern A&E planned for the design to include 16 additional classrooms that could be on each end of the building.

The plans are estimated to help relieve traffic concerns the current Rosemont school faces and will allow space for up to 300 cars to be stacked for car riders. Rosemont School Road will also be closed to thru traffic, while traffic will flow in from Highway 27.

A groundbreaking is expected to be scheduled in January 2023.  Substantial completion of the project is expected by July 2024.