Cobb school board calls for SPLOST referendum; OK's Walton Robotics Lab

Charisse Davis, Cobb Board of Edcucation — *Cobb school board member Charisse Davis*

The Cobb Board of Education on Thursday voted to call for a November special election to extend the Cobb Ed-SPLOST sales tax and approved spending $307,000 to bring the Walton Robotics Lab back to campus.

On a 6-1 vote, the school board adopted a resolution calling for the SPLOST referendum, which if approved by voters would collect a one-percent sales tax from 2024-29, an estimated $894 million.

The funds would be used for facility construction and maintenance, similar to the Cobb government SPLOST.

Among the major projects of SPLOST VI would be a rebuild of the main Sprayberry High School classroom building and new annexes at Kincaid, Mt. Bethel, Murdock, Sope Creek and Tritt elementary schools in East Cobb.

The board did vote to remove another major project on that list, a special events center for the school district designed for graduations and proms.

For the last two years the Cobb school district has held graduations at McEachern High School due to COVID-19 restrictions. Most graduations in recent years have taken place at the Kennesaw State University Convocation Center, but that facility was not available for the last two years.

During a work session Thursday afternoon, board members Charisse Davis of Post 6 (Walton, Wheeler clusters) and Jaha Howard of Post 2 (Campbell, Osborne), pointed out that district officials have said there are at least $2 billion in facilities and maintenance needs, and a new SPLOST would fund less than half of that amount.

Marc Smith, the district’s chief technology and operations officer, said in response to a question from Howard that the estimated cost for a special events center would be $40 million.

Howard said of the special events center that “I love it, but not now” and urged his colleagues “to do the fiscally conservative thing.”

He said the district has numerous schools that are in disrepair, and that there are more important facilities priorities.

Board chairman Randy Scamihorn countered by asking “if not now, when?” regarding the issue of whether the Cobb school district would “ever control our own destiny.”

He voted for the resolution (David Banks of East Cobb’s Post 4 was the only vote against). The board voted 7-0 for a contract to have the referendum included in the November elections, which in Cobb this year are in municipalities.

The cost for the SPLOST special election is to be determined and will be acted upon later.

The board was unanimous in a 7-0 vote to spend $307,000 to create space at Walton High School for a robotics lab. That lab has been located in recent years at East Cobb Middle School after the Walton campus underwent a rebuild.

Several robotics parents spoke to the board at the start of Thursday night’s board meeting to request approval of the project, which will take place during the renovation of practice gymnasium space at Walton.