HOPKINSVILLE, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – Christian County Public Schools Local Planning Committee approved their draft of the District Facility Plan to send to the Kentucky Department of Education at their meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 4. Next, KDE will make revisions and send it back to the district.

Eric Hang with Hafer Architects shared that the plan is divided into five priorities. Priority one projects will occur in the next two years. “Projects include the new high school and the career and tech portion of the new school,” said Hang.

The Career and Tech Academy will house different pathways including engineering, computer science, agriculture and transportation, business, art, and more.

Millbrook and alternative school

Priority two projects include work that will be done in the next two to four years. “These include school upgrades and renovations to match KDE standards,” said Hang. The committee went through every school in the district categorizing renovations from good, fair, and poor.

“When things are listed as poor it doesn’t mean things are failing, it just means it’s the end of the life cycle and should be replaced,” added Hang. Millbrook Elementary School has one of the highest renovation needs, totaling over $7 million. “Constructed in 1962, you can see lots of things are on the list including adding resource rooms, a special education room, and a dedicated art and music room.”

Superintendent Chris Bentzel says the plan is to relocate the Bluegrass Learning Academy from the Stadium of Champions football complex to the current Christian County High School facility on Glass Avenue. “At that point with pending funds available we hope to turn the area back into a track and field, soccer, weightlifting room, and training room. That was the original purpose for it, not alternative school,” said Bentzel.

Hang also went over priority three and priority four which includes non-educational facilities, improvements to the central office and building a new bus garage. Priority five focuses on extracurricular activities including property acquisition, work at the daycare center, and upgrades to the Stadium of Champions.

The committee unanimously approved the plan and will reconvene in the coming months to review KDE’s revisions.

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