The Cobb Board of Education on Thursday voted to purchase nearly four acres of land close to Walton High School for $2.65 million, adjacent to newly acquired land for a new softball and tennis complex.
After an executive session, the board voted 6-1 in two separate motions by Post 6 member Charisse Davis, who represents the Walton and Wheeler clusters.
The properties include 3.5 acres at 1483 Pine Road for $2 million, and 1.2 acres at 3753 Providence Road for $650,000 (indicated by the blue stars on the map above).
At last month’s meeting, district officials announced the board’s intent to acquire the new parcels.
Those parcels are located next to 15.2 acres on Pine Road that the district purchased in November for $3 million (red star), after threatening the property owner, Thelma McClure, with eminent domain.
There’s a sign fronting that property on Bill Murdock Road, and across from the Walton campus, that it’s to be the future home of Walton varsity tennis and softball teams.
Their old facility is where the new Walton classroom is located, and the teams have been playing home competitions since 2014 at Terrell Mill Park.
Walton softball parents had been considering legal options under Title IX, a federal law banning sex discrimination in education.
The board didn’t discuss the additional land purchases at Thursday’s meeting. The only member to vote against was Jaha Howard of the Campbell and Osborne clusters.
Funding for the property acquisition comes from Cobb Education SPLOST V revenues. So will construction costs, but those have not been determined and there isn’t a timetable for that project.
The school board also voted 7-0 for a fiscal year 2021 budget of $1.3 billion. It includes using $31 million in reserves to close a $62 million deficit following state budget cuts in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.
The budget maintains an existing property tax rate of 18.9 mills, includes step salary increases and there are no pay cuts or furlough days for employees.
The budget was amended to add $15 million in spending for COVID-related expenses.
For full budget details, click here.
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