Rockcastle County board reviews updated athletics complex and middle-school construction plans
Summary
Designers showed the board detailed changes to the athletics complex—dual ballfields, locker-room options, parking tweaks and recessed tennis courts—and staff said RCMS furniture for classrooms and labs is estimated at about $1.2 million, funded from the RCMS building fund.
Designers presented an updated athletics-complex plan to the Rockcastle County Schools board that highlights dual baseball and softball fields with a central hub, revised locker-room layouts, and site changes intended to improve circulation and event flexibility.
"We added a little lane of faculty parking" and space for food trucks to support events, the project presenter said, describing changes that also include scoreboards, pitching bullpens and a prominent flag at the highway-facing elevation. The designer recommended concrete tennis courts—"more forgiving" and less risky than asphalt—if the budget allows, saying concrete broadens the pool of qualified contractors and reduces future maintenance risk.
The design team showed options for locker rooms (48 full-height lockers recommended rather than 96 of smaller lockers) and added exterior dugout storage to reduce interior storage pressure. They also proposed press boxes created by a small tower that improves sideline sightlines and creates dedicated umpire/staff restroom and changing areas upstairs.
Board members pressed the design team about circulation from the tennis courts to concessions, handicap parking locations, and whether the dugout configuration would require spectators to walk around fields to reach restrooms and concessions. The presenter acknowledged trade-offs: attached dugouts improve team logistics but complicate pedestrian flow in some places and recommended signage and modest parking adjustments to mitigate those issues.
Separately, staff reported progress on the Rockcastle County Middle School (RCMS) construction and a classroom-furniture quote. Dr. Ballinger said the furniture quote to outfit classrooms, office spaces, gym and science labs is "a little over $1,200,000," and that the funding will come from interest earned on the RCMS building fund rather than from the district's general fund.
The design team said remaining immediate tasks include finalizing interior wall details, netting systems and other finish items so the plans are constructible; the designers expect to return with finalized drawings for approval before work continues.
The board did not take a formal vote on the design at this meeting; staff said the team will return with finalized designs for the board's approval schedule.
