The bidding process for Carter County, Tenn., to secure synthetic turf fields at two area high schools has sparked controversy within the community.
According to records obtained by local NBC affiliate WCYB, the school system received bids for both Happy Valley High School and Cloudland High School on Tuesday, but many wonder where the money is coming from.
The bidding process for Carter County, Tenn., to secure synthetic turf fields at two area high schools has sparked controversy within the community.
According to records obtained by local NBC affiliate WCYB, the school system received bids for both Happy Valley High School and Cloudland High School on Tuesday, but many wonder where the money is coming from.
The bidding process started Tuesday with two companies placing bids totaling more than $1.5 million to replace both fields, WCYB's Liam Bridgeman reported.
Some community members questioning the decision, especially with Hampton High School closed since September due to Hurricane Helene.
“They need to be prioritizing getting the kids of Hampton High School their school back instead of moving them to Keenburg and postponing it like there's nothing,” Jaden Yoder said.
Many in the community believe the fields will be built out of funds the school system received from the state for Helene relief, but Carter County Schools public relations coordinator Brandon Young says this isn’t true.
“None of the money that we'll be using is from the Hampton High School project,” he said.
Young says the funding for the Happy Valley field upgrades will come from alternate funding sources and savings.
Cloudland's field is being funded by insurance after Helene damaged parts of their facilities.
Young says these upgrades are necessary because all the students who would use the fields at Hampton High School will have to use Happy Valley’s fields next school year.
“That traditional field could not handle that much foot traffic along with Happy Valley Middle School, Happy Valley High School and their youth club,” he said. “This is good for all of Carter County schools and it will help all of our students have nice facilities. We're so excited that they're going to have some things that other school systems in our area have.”
"In the meantime, the school system is currently conducting environmental testing at the Hampton High School site," Bridgeman reported. "They say once this is complete, repairs can begin."
