County approves adding school board to armory deed

Despite the budget committee recommending holding off, the full Johnson County Commissioners voted to add Johnson County Schools to the armory deed.On Nov. 6, the school board voted to request that they be added to the deed for the armory.Johnson County and JCS bought the building from the Tennessee Department of Military in 2024, evenly splitting the cost when the National Guard left the building and Mountain City. Only the county's name is on the deed, however.The county plans to use half the building for administrative offices, a community gathering space and a welcome area. It has informally agreed to let JCS use the other half for CTE classes, including beautician and culinary courses, which are scheduled to be completed in Spring or Summer 2026.The building and property at 1923 S. Shady St. includes a 14,700-square-foot public building, a 5,700-square-foot warehouse and a 360-square-foot open porch, according to Tennessee GIS records.Mayor Larry Potter said they have a good relationship with the school board. Later, School Board Chair Kevin Long called them all "one big happy family."County Director of Accounts and Budgets Russell Robinson said although he is on the school board, he recused himself from that Nov. 6 vote. Robinson did speak on the history of the armory at that meeting, as well as at the Nov. 20 commissioners' meeting. Later, Commission Chair Freddy Phipps asked Attorney Ryan Carroll if that's a conflict of interest, to which Caroll said you can't locate a personal gain.Hesitancy was about whether the 50/50 ownership split included the land behind the armory to Crossroads Drive, something Commissioner Chair Freddie Phipps mentioned in both the budget committee and full meeting.However, the motion to "divide the whole thing 50/50" was put forth and passed 14-1, with Tracy Greer casting the lone "nay" vote.Potter said having the building helps in scenarios where the courthouse or Heritage Hall becomes unavailable, giving both the county and school system a backup location.The day after the meeting, the Johnson County Board of Education was officially added to the property deed.Later in the meeting, the commissioners unanimously approved spending $44,071.20 in tourism enhancement dollars for LED screens at the entrance to the armory, which will display what the county has to offer for tourists. The screens will be 11.5 feet by up to eight feet.A question was then asked about the parts of the building for the school kids and those for the county. Robinson said there will be a "hard separation."