CCSB Addresses Use of School Buildings

RISON - The Cleveland County School Board voted Monday night to have people using buildings at both the New Edinburg and Kingsland School campuses for non-school purposes to leave those buildings as the district considers its options about what to do with the properties in the future. Superintendent Jerrod Williams informed the board that a part of the old New Edinburg School building was being used to house someone as well as a storage facility, and that the Sturgis Building on the Kingsland School campus has been used as a recording studio for about the past nine months. Williams told the board that he learned of the buildings use while inspecting the Cleveland County School District's physical properties to get a better idea about the district's insurance needs. Williams said he was surprised to learn that it looked as though someone was living inside one of the former classrooms inside the old New Edinburg School. He said he also noticed that some of the space was apparently being used for storage. In addition, he said he found several parts of campus that were in complete disrepair, including some places where the roof was collapsing or had collapsed. He said none of the buildings were secured in such a way it would prevent someone from going inside unimpeded. Meanwhile, Williams said he found recording equipment inside the Sturgis Building at the Kingsland campus. After visiting with some local residents, he said it seems the building as been used in that way for about nine months. In both instances at the New Edinburg and Kingsland campuses, Williams said the school district is not receiving any money for the use of the buildings. At New Edinburg, Williams did note that the electricity being used there is paid by a private individual and not the school district. However, he said the power being used at the Strugis Building is being paid for by the school district. While both situations involved school property being ...