By: Jeremy Handel, Staff Writer
jeremy@thewoodrufftimes.com
The Spartanburg County School District Four Board of Trustees approved the district’s budget for the 2023 – 2024 fiscal year, which is 11.5 percent higher than the previous year. The Board also approved a contract for grading services to clear and prepare the site of the new high school.
Assistant Superintendent for Business and Finance Chris Benfield presented the proposed $31.2 million budget to the Board, a $3.2 million increase over last year. The increases are attributed to a 5 percent increase in all pay scales for district employees, with additional increases for some teacher pay scales, a 3.7 percent increase in employee health insurance premiums, and increases in purchases of services and supplies due to inflation.
Benfield also presented the proposed budgets for R.D. Anderson, McCarthy-Teszler, and the Spartanburg County Alternative School, all of which Woodruff utilizes for some students. Each of the three budgets also saw moderate increases due to similar increases in salaries, benefits, and cost of supplies.
He also explained that the increases could be absorbed without raising property taxes in the district. The Board approved the budgets unanimously. In other business, Trustees considered an item to approve a contract for the grading and site preparation for the new high school. The Board accepted a bid of $11.2 million by Clary Hood for the project. The district’s contractor for the new school project, Harper General Contractors, handled the bidding process and recommended Clary Hood.
The grading and site prep contract will include clearing brush and timber from the site, grading and leveling the site, implementing stormwater runoff and erosion control measures, and installing stone base and curbing for future pavement work. The contract saw an increase of $785,000 compared to initial estimates based on increased costs for the storm drainage portion of the work.
Justin Solesbee, vice president for preconstruction services with Harper, told the Board they were prepared to issue the contract as soon as it is approved and that mobilization and work on the site would begin as soon as mid-July.
School board meetings are typically held on the first Monday of each month at 6 p.m. at the district office. The meetings are open to the public, and the next meeting will be Monday, August 7.
Author: Tracy Sanders
