Construction of an athletics stadium for R.J. Reynolds High School is set to continue after months of delay.
The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education approved spending about $2 million to support the controversial project last year.
Most of the construction work was completed in December. The next phase involves setting up water, sanitary sewer, and stormwater utilities, which should take about 90 days.
The school board approved a contract on Monday to make that happen between Home Field Advantage, a nonprofit advocating and fundraising for the stadium, and the company North State Water and Sewer.
But the president of both organizations is Kathryn Spanos, and some board members, like Trevonia Brown-Gaither, had concerns about a potential conflict of interest.
“I want to make sure that we won't be held liable because of a conflict where she is president of HFA and of the organization that’s doing this," she said.
School officials say the board wouldn’t be liable for any conflict of interest, because the district isn’t a part of the contract and the work is privately funded.
Rodney Latham, the vice president of North State and Spanos’ brother, told the board that the decision came down to cost and that their company was willing to complete the project without making a profit.
“I just want to see this happen. So that's why we're doing what we're doing. And we're open to any scrutiny regarding that," Latham said. "I just wanted to bring that up. We're just doing this to make this thing go.”
The total cost of the utility installation is roughly $968,000. Latham says another bid was for $1.4 million, not including materials.
The stadium, which will be located at Hanes Park, has drawn criticism over the years. Community members expressed concerns about traffic, noise and use of the public land.
The board approved the contract with a vote of 8 to 1 with Board Member Sabrina Coone voting against it.
Amy Diaz covers education for WFDD in partnership with Report For America. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.