Jackson County Commissioners selected Knoxville-based Cope Architecture to replace Pinnacle Architecture to lead the Smoky Mountain Middle School construction and Blue Ridge School renovation projects at their regularly scheduled Nov. 3 election-night meeting.
Soon, Republicans Mark Letson, Todd Bryson, and John Smith will end their tenure on the board, as voters selected three new Democratic candidates, Casey Walawender, Sean Bridgers, and Marcia Almond, in the midterm election to replace them.
Plans for the county’s first standalone middle school and needed renovations at Blue Ridge School have stalled over the past several months.
The county was forced to reconsider budget constraints when commissioners nixed adding a $105 million school bond referendum to the ballot at the last second in September, and commissioners have expressed unhappiness with Pinnacle Architecture’s leadership thus far.