Jones County School Ownership Transferred in Ceremony
TRENTON — The Jones County K-12 school's ownership was officially transferred from the developer, First Floor, to the Jones County government in a ceremony on Monday, February 3, 2025. The event marked the culmination of a public-private partnership that resulted in the construction of a state-of-the-art, energy-positive school facility. The school combines the district's previous elementary, middle, and high schools into one campus.
The project was made possible by a needs-based school grant from the North Carolina General Assembly, along with private investment. The innovative public-private partnership allowed the county to build the new school without raising taxes. First Floor, together with Metcon architects, managed the design, construction, and financing of the project and owned the building until December 2024.
Kyle Smith, the Jones County manager, spoke at the ceremony, highlighting the significance of the project. “Jones County has proven that public private partnership creates value," Smith said. He also noted the previous school buildings were in need of improvements and the traditional approach of building new schools would have required raising property taxes.
U.S. Congressman Greg Murphy also spoke at the event, noting that education is best done locally. “What you’ve done here is done things locally,” Murphy said, congratulating those involved. He also stated that the federal government does not have much to do with school construction and that this project is an example of how education can be done at the local level.
Schumata Brown, Chairman of the Jones County Board of Education, stated, "The transfer is not about ensuring that your school remains a beacon of excellence, equipped to meet the needs of today and the challenges of tomorrow". He emphasized the collaborative effort between the school board and the county government to ensure the school continues to serve its purpose efficiently.
Aaron Thomas, a contractor with Metcon Construction, also spoke at the ceremony. Thomas noted the old school buildings in his home county were 78 years old and still being used. He emphasized the unique nature of the public private partnership. “Successful P3s are all about being able to bring together stakeholders, bringing the best ideas from the public sector, bringing the best ideas from the private sector and putting those together to deliver something that individually neither of those groups of stakeholders would be able to solve for,” said Thomas.
Other notable attendees and speakers included Senator Phil Berger, former Senator Harry Brown, and representatives from the North Carolina General Assembly, local government, and the project's design and construction teams.
The school is designed to be energy-positive, with 2,150 rooftop solar panels and geothermal wells. It is estimated to generate 60% to 70% more electricity than it consumes. It also uses about half the energy of a traditional school. The building incorporates features such as high-performance glass, LED lighting, and daylight harvesting systems.
The project, which took roughly a decade to complete, is considered a model for other districts seeking to leverage the needs-based grant program. The Jones County K-12 school is the second public-private partnership of its kind in North Carolina.
Neuse News is a locally-owned small business startup in downtown Kinston. Our goal is to provide free, hyper-local news to Lenoir, Greene and Jones counties. The kind of news our grandparents read in a format fit for today's times.
We provide this by having supportive advertisers and we encourage you to click on their ads, shop with them, and eat with them. Every bit of financial support is important to help us sustain free, hyper-local news.
Please consider supporting Neuse News with as little as $5 one-time or via a monthly option. Every little bit helps us, help you.
