Hendersonville High construction timeline: Projected completion dates by area
Construction of the new Hendersonville High School is nearly a year ahead of the original schedule, with a target completion date now in August 2022.
The Henderson County School Board was given news that the project was 11 months ahead of schedule during a construction update Monday.
Chief Administrative Officer Carl Taylor attributed the sped-up process to students being off campus during months of remote learning, as well as decent weather conditions.
The updated timeline for HHS shows the following completion targets:
May 22, 2021 – gyms (for graduation only)
Aug. 13 – new building (3.5 months ahead of original schedule)
“I’m happy with the end of the year. I’m excited we got back to some normalcy under Plan A,” West Henderson High School Principal Luke Manuel said. “We’re glad to see our students.” Middle and high school students in the county returned to full-time, in-person learning under the state’s Plan A option in March. Other recently relaxed Covid-19 restrictions in North Carolina also mean schools will hold graduation ceremonies in the county on May 28 that will look similar to past graduations with seniors receiving their diplomas outdoors, except for Hendersonville High School, which holds its graduation in the gym. Last year, high school graduation was a drive-through event with families watching from cars as graduates received diplomas one at a time.
The spring is believed to be the work of two early developers from Jacksonville, Florida.
“They created the Echo Mountain subdivision,” said Town Council member Paul Hansen. It was the first subdivision up the mountain after town founder W.A. Smith developed springs, lakes and other amenities in lower Laurel Park.
John H. Patterson built the large home that became the Echo Mountain Inn as a summer residence around 1896. The property has changed hands numerous times since Patterson built his summer retreat, serving as a tea room, a camp for girls and, since 1935, an inn. The Echo Mountain subdivision came 16 years after Patterson first arrived, when he and a partner named Ives laid out the lots.
Parents and school supporters are sponsoring proms at various venues in the coming days despite the fact that statewide Covid-19 restrictions bar the high schools themselves from participating in the traditional spring dance that students missed last year. “The students have made many sacrifices during this pandemic and we felt like the students were most deserving of a special night,” said Alison Gosnell, one of the parent organizers of the prom at Hendersonville High School. “The best reactions I have gotten are really from the students. They have been telling me ‘thank you’ and telling me about their dresses and tuxedo selections.”