Tennessee’s Columbia Central High Construction Project Defies Controversy

COLUMBIA, Tenn. — Sometimes the stars align: In the case of a new Tennessee high school, some might say they formed a constellation resembling a dollar sign and a clock. What astrological prognostication can one derive from this — how about the once-controversial school project coming in ahead of schedule and under budget? Huzzah!

Developer Hewlett Spencer of Nashville, Tenn., and contractor Bell & Associates Construction of Brentwood, Tenn., share the credit for ushering the $47 million Central High School project in Maury County, Tenn., from start to finish with two months to spare.

Here are the specs: The new schools boasts a cafeteria that looks like it belongs in a high-end mall, a new state-of-the-art gym (with a capacity of 1,862), an 803-seat auditorium readymade for live performing arts gigs, a fancy foyer and an additionally auxiliary gym, a trophy case and band, chorus and ROTC rooms — among other amenities.

Located in a suburb about an hour south of Nashville, Columbia’s citizenry were initially divided on the prospect of having a new school, according to the Daily Herald, a local news service:

The debate over whether to build a new Central High School was fierce. It started in 1994 and lasted for more than 20 years. When the Maury County Commission voted in 2015 to build the new school on the existing Lion Parkway site in Columbia, a band played on the Maury County square to mark the joyous occasion. There was no music at the school Sunday at an open house to show off the immaculate hallways, but there should have been…

Source: Central High Construction Project Finishes Early, Under Budget