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Blount County board approves $348,000 budget increase for Heritage Middle LED lighting replacement
Summary
The Blount County Board of Education approved a bid award and $348,000 budget increase from Fund 177 to replace Heritage Middle School lighting with dimmable LED fixtures; staff said the district expects an 8–10 year payback.
The Blount County Board of Education voted to approve a bid award and a $348,000 budget increase from Fund 177, the Education Capital Fund, for a full replacement of lighting at Heritage Middle School.
District staff described the project as part of a broader effort to reduce energy use and improve classroom lighting. "This project is continuing in our longs our our desire to reduce energy across the district as well as give excellent lighting for our students in the classrooms," said Mr. Dukes, a district staff member presenting the project. Dukes said the new fixtures will be dimmable inverted-trough-style LED lighting intended to replace aging fluorescent fixtures and yellowed plastic covers.
The board discussed funding and whether the amount had been included in the capital plan. Financial staff member Ms. Yates told the board that the work had been part of the district's capital plan for Fund 177 and that each project in that fund must be taken to the board and the county commission. "So this was actually budgeted," she said in response to a question about whether the money was already planned.
Dukes told the board the district projects a payback period of about "8 to 10 years," noting that increases in kilowatt-hour costs could extend the net energy savings over time. Board members asked for clarification on funding sources and the fund accounting process before the motion moved to a voice vote. After a motion and second (names not specified in the record), the board approved the bid award and the $348,000 withdrawal from Fund 177 by voice vote.
No specific vendor name, contract number or vote tally was recorded in the meeting transcript. The board did not attach additional conditions to the approval during the discussion on the record.
The project is the district's first full-school LED conversion at Heritage Middle; staff said prior LED work had focused on renovated science labs or individual renovation projects. Implementation will be handled by district procurement and facilities staff and is subject to any standard contract and county commission approvals required for Fund 177 projects.
