By Staff
Years have passed since the Brewton City Board of Education first floated the idea of a new middle school, and after much searching and discussion, the school board and city are finally sitting down to the table to negotiate a price for land on U.S. 31 North to build the new school.
There are still many details to be hammered out, not the least of which are an appraisal and a proposed cost for the property, but we are glad to see that progress is being made.
School board members have worked hard to find the best place to build a new school, after a long debate in the community about whether to use part of Dogwood Hills golf course, the board has moved on to an alternative piece of land.
If the property on U.S. 31 proves appropriate, we hope the city and school board can quickly come to a fair agreement on a price and move forward with a new school.
While students and teachers and administrators at the current middle school are certainly succeeding academically, they are doing so in a building that is deteriorating quickly.
Just last week lunchroom employees complained to school board members that they work without air conditioning, and students have to eat their lunches in the heat of late summer and spring. It may seem like a small thing, but it's important to the comfort of students and employees.
In the months and years that the school board has been looking for land, the costs of construction have gone higher, and other projects have been delayed as well.
We encourage the city to be fair in its price for the property so that the school board can build a beautiful school and be able to make improvements at its other campuses.
We hope that this piece of land proves fit for a school, and that the city and board of education can strike a deal to get the project moving forward.