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The Stanly County Board of Commissioners took a step towards a comprehensive school facility study at Tuesday’s meeting.

Commissioners unanimously passed a resolution stating the board would be “willing to equitably share the cost (up to 50%) of a comprehensive plan and to collaborate on a formal request for proposals (RFP) in an effort to solicit proposals from qualified and competent firms with a demonstrated ability to carry out and deliver a comprehensive planning process consistent or more complex than the aforementioned scope.”

The resolution also stated that “without a comprehensive plan the Board of Commissioners does not have the information it needs to make an informed financial decision regarding a bond referendum.”

County Manager Andy Lucas presented the resolution to commissioners, noting the board has a work group which meets with the Stanly County Schools (SCS) facilities committee members.

Lucas said there were “a lot of questions that would need to be answered in a more comprehensive way so that our board can make informed decisions” regarding SCS’s future plans.

He said if SCS were to build two new high schools and one elementary school, the cost of a bond for the projects would be around $300 million.

“Chances are there would be a tax increase associated with that,” Lucas said.  “It’s just a matter of us doing our due diligence.”

Board chair Bill Lawhon said commissioners “have a lot of things to be considered when we talking about spending any kind of money…when we look at it, we need to be able to have the answers to those questions.”

Commissioner Patty Crump said she felt paying 50% of the cost of a study would be “equitable,” while Peter Asciutto said a study “would get the ball going.”