Property decisions main topic of meeting
By SCOTT POWELL Ledger Staff Writer spowell@gaffneyledger.com

A school board building committee will discuss the future Tuesday for one of the oldest school buildings still left in Blacksburg.

Blacksburg Academy Street opened in 1956 as an elementary school for black students.

After schools were integrated in 1968, the Academy Street School became an annex to Blacksburg Elementary.

The annex housed sixth grade classes for several years in the 1970s and then became a kindergarten school until Blacksburg Primary opened in 1985. School officials said the former Blacksburg Academy Street school was used as a storage area for several years, but the district has not used the property in the past decade.

The property has fallen into disrepair and has become a safety hazard, school board chairman Donnie Lee Smith said.

"The district owns the Blacksburg Academy Street property so we are liable for what happens on it," Smith said. "We need to discuss what we want to do with the property. There is going to be an accident there if the district does not look out."

The Blacksburg Academy Street is one of nine property issues to be discussed Tuesday at 5 p.m. during the school board building committee meeting.

School trustees are still considering whether to spend $70,000 to purchase six-tenths of an acre across from the old Blacksburg High gym. The property is 125 feet by 670 feet.

A Blacksburg property owner contacted the school district in October of 2007 about the possibility of buying the land. The property contains a small building that was recently renovated and has had heating and air conditioning installed.

In addition, school trustees will discuss future plans for the current Limestone Learning Center.

Limestone College officials have previously expressed an interest in the school property, which is next door to the college's lacrosse field.

The district is scheduled to move out of Limestone Learning Center this summer into a new building for its adult education and alternative school programs.

Additional items on the committee's agenda include a water problem at Ramseur Street near Blacksburg High, a Blacksburg High softball field and female restroom facilities near the school's football stadium. School trustees will discuss whether to replace carpet in Grassy Pond Elementary classrooms and add fencing around several school playground areas.