Flashback Twenty Years! Knox County Schools & Standard Knitting Mills
February 23, 2013 in Community, Current Events, Elected Officials, Government, Knox County, Knox County School Board, Knox County Schools, Politics, Schools Central Office
I blogged a day or so ago about the lunacy of the Knox County School District considering relocation of the Central Office to the Standard Knitting Mill site. Mike ‘da career killa’ Donila posted yesterday here about the square foot rent the Schools pay at the Downtown AJ Building. He is correct, come to find out they pay right at $5.15 a square foot and that includes utilities.
This ain’t the first time that Knox County Schools has been enamored with the old underwear and sock production facility. Flashback 20 years to 1992, a great idea of building University High and closing Fulton and Austin East and merging the two. So what happened? School Boarder Sam Anderson and County Commissioner Madeline Rogero caved to public pressure and scrutiny to not merge the two schools into one University High.
Instead, millions of dollars were spent renovating and expanding Fulton High School and millions more on improvements at Austin East. Those millions in expenditures have not turned around test scores. So why now consider moving the school bureaucracy to a piece of crap big box in an abandoned blighted community? Every 20 years school superintendents and school boarders come and go and they keep revisiting proposals that are too costly and will not improve student test scores, graduation rates or the like. It makes no sense.
I do believe Parkridge would object to being called “an abandoned blighted community?”
I most certainly do take exception to your characterization of our neighborhood! Are you wanting it our in Concord?
Cynthia, are you asking if I want Standard Knitting Mill in Concord? NO! Do I want Standard Knitting Mill where it is? NO. Read my blog, tear it down and have much needed green space. Are you asking if I want Schools Central Office out in Concord? NO. My proposal as I have blogged here on Shock And Awe about is to divide the central office and move it out into four existing buildings spread in all four quadrants of the county. That is fair and equitable to all. Surely, you agree.
Just so that you understand, I have no issue with “where” the administrative arm of the school board is. I personally would like for most of it to go away! I only had issue with your characterization of Parkridge. Do we have blighted properties in Parkridge-yes, we do. We have blighted properties all over Knox County. The city and the county working on a “complaint driven” system ensure that. I would like to see the mill repurposed and in use. We really don’t-in Parkridge anyway-need more “green space”. Who is going to pay for it????? The mill could be many things. 400,000+/- sf equals a fantastic opportunity for a destination for downtown Knoxville, regional indoor sports complex or for a re-use such office space for the admin-anything to get them out of the AJ bldg and re-uses the mill bldgs works for me! Thanks for all that you do Brian!