Is the “tortured path” of Greensboro’s Ragsdale High School finally coming to an end? Residents of southwestern Guilford County certainly hope so.

That dramatic terminology was used by Board of Education member Paul Daniels as he described the history of the $32 million renovation project, which he also described as “snakebit from day one.”

“This project has been one contingency after another, and none of those contingencies ever seem to get met,” Daniels added.

The concept for a renovated Ragsdale is now nearly a decade old, and the school board on May 10 finally approved a contract, although questions still remained. At one point, school board members were discussing whether it was a better use of taxpayer money to provide umbrellas or build a covered walkway.

The project’s history is indeed convoluted. In 2003 the board placed design work for the Ragsdale renovation on a $300 million bond alongside funding for a new Jamestown Middle School.

From the beginning the projects have been linked both financially and physically. Ragsdale and Jamestown sit on adjoining sites, and the idea was to incorporate the old middle school building into Ragsdale’s renovation once the new middle school was completed.

Voters approved the 2003 bond, but funds for both Ragsdale and Jamestown were diverted to other projects, and the school board was forced to place both projects on a $457 million bond in 2008, which voters also passed.

While the new Jamestown Middle School opened in time for the 2010-11 school year, the Ragsdale project remained fraught with problems.

The 2008 bond listed the cost of phase one — combining Ragsdale with the old Jamestown building with a new gym and media center — at $24.9 million. The second phase would be the addition of an autism wing at a cost of $8.5 million.

But the bid for the first phase came in $5 million over projections, so the board voted to rebid the project.

At the board’s May 10 meeting, chief operations officer Andy LaRowe presented a “total maximum price” of $32.1 million for both phases.

“We’re still following the scope of the project as promised to the voters in the bond program,” LaRowe told the board.

But there are still sticking points. For starters, $9 million in funds from other projects will have to be moved to cover the cost, including $5 million from another autism wing at a proposed high school in the northwest part of county.

Second, there is the matter of so-called “add-alternates” — suggested items not included in the final bid.

Daniels, who represents the Jamestown district, grilled LaRowe on the add-alternates, which included major items such as an HVAC system that covers both buildings, and not-so-major items such as a covered walkway, new cafeteria windows, and new theater lighting.

The discussion of the add-alternates became quite detailed as board member Nancy Routh stated she’d rather issue umbrellas than spend the money on a covered walkway because umbrellas “are more useful.”

Another issue was the possibility that the add-alternates could change the overall bid. As a result, the contractor — Greensboro–based D.H. Griffin/Balfour Beatty — possibly would no longer be the lowest responsible bidder.

“Your purpose tonight is to award a contract, and you can’t award a contract when you don’t know who the winner is,” warned school board attorney Jill Wilson.

“Then why have this conversation?” Daniels asked, growing visibly irritated.

Ultimately the board voted to approve the contract and instructed staff to pursue separate bids for add-alternates.

Taxpayers might find it strange that the school board was debating covered walkways and cafeteria windows as Guilford County struggles with tough budget negotiations, made even tougher by its significant debt load, most of which is the $457 million school bond.

Complicating matters is the fact that county commissioners, who have had a testy relationship with the school board, will have to approve any transfer of funds.

Despite the lingering issues, Daniels expressed hope that a contract would “give the folks at Ragsdale as much security as we can give them.”

Sam A. Hieb is a contributor to Carolina Journal.