Erin, a consultant from the MDI design team, presented a districtwide facilities master plan to the Lenoir City Board of Education on Jan. 15, outlining near-term maintenance needs and longer-term capital options including a new elementary gym, expanded athletic facilities, on-site tennis courts and consolidation of administrative offices.

The plan, which Erin said is intended to “give you a ballpark estimate” on order-of-magnitude costs so the board can prioritize projects during budget season, is meant as an anchor for the board’s Feb. 26 retreat and future capital budgeting. Erin described the work as an assessment of existing conditions, accessibility and life-safety systems across every district property and said the materials will include detailed engineering reports for maintenance staff.

Erin told board members the central office is “overall in good shape” but noted maintenance items that should be addressed soon: restroom exhaust fans that aren’t working, rooftop equipment nearing end of life, and potential upgrades needed after testing fire alarms and egress lighting. The presentation recommended adding accessible restrooms and minor renovations, and consolidating staff now housed in a separate building into new offices at the central office to avoid duplicated maintenance costs.

At the elementary school, Erin said the campus is well maintained but lacks ADA-compliant door hardware and accessible restrooms, and does not have a secure vestibule. The consultant proposed a front-side gym addition that would create a secure vestibule, improve drop-off circulation by separating bus and car loops, provide a larger stage for performances and allow full-school assemblies. Erin noted the design assumes third grade would move to the intermediate site, making the elementary campus pre-K through second grade in the scheme presented.

Board members questioned parking impacts; Erin responded the proposed plan reshapes the existing circular drive into an oval and focuses changes on the bus loop while preserving private-vehicle parking. She also noted district land adjacent to the elementary campus could be developed for parking if needed.

For the intermediate/middle school and the adjacent track complex, Erin said moving the track to the high school was infeasible because of site and roadway constraints, so the recommendation is to upgrade the existing track complex — a more substantial entrance, masonry gate and site-built bleachers with a press box, concessions and restrooms — and add stabilized turf areas that can be used for occasional event parking.

At the high school Erin praised the overall condition of classrooms and finishes but identified opportunities for small renovations and athletic upgrades: an auxiliary gym to relieve scheduling conflicts, six on-site tennis courts (the minimum to host district matches), consolidated football facilities, improvements to the baseball and softball practice buildings, and landscape islands to add shade and seating between facilities. She also flagged localized maintenance issues such as concrete spalling in several pilasters that should be fixed before they become structural problems and recommended testing egress lighting and fire-alarm systems where testing had not been possible during school operations.

Erin said cost estimates in the presentation are high-level and that any project would receive a full cost estimate at the time the board decides to proceed. She said the materials presented will be provided as a bound packet for the retreat that will include engineering reports and additional existing-condition photos for the maintenance team.

The board did not vote on any capital projects at the Jan. 15 meeting; the presentation was positioned as a planning tool to inform future budgeting decisions. Erin emphasized the master plan provides options rather than a prescriptive list of immediate projects, and that the board will revisit priorities once funding and programming details are clarified.

The board thanked the MDI team for the work and confirmed retreat planning on Feb. 26 will include further discussion of how to sequence and fund any recommended projects.