Horizon High to be torn down

New middle school to rise in its place to serve Smyrna area.

A Cobb County h igh school will be torn down to make way for a new middle school to serve students in the Smyrna area.

As early as next week the Cobb County School District will begin demolition of Cobb Horizon High School at 1560 Joyner Ave. in Marietta, said Marc Smith, the district’s chief technology and operations officer.

The demolition project is expected to be completed by the end of June. School board members approved a $215,000 contract with Evergreen Construction to tear down the high school.

In the fall, Cobb Horizon students will move to a 90,000-square-foot building at the corner of Cobb Parkway and Terrell Mill Road, wh i ch the school board purchased for $5.9 million.

The building will allow Cobb Horizon High School to grow, said school district spokeswoman Nan Kiel. As of March, the school had about 300 students.

“Only minor modifications will be needed to support students at the new facility,” Kiel said.

Construction on the new Susan Todd Pearson Middle School is scheduled to be completed in time for the start of the 202122 school year. The new school will relieve the student population at Griffin and Campbell middle schools, Smith said.

The middle school, which will accommodate about 960 students, will cost about $37 million. Construction will be funded with Special Purpose Local Option Sales Taxes, the school district said.

Under the contract approved by the board, Evergreen Construction will oversee the building project and will guarantee a maximum price for the work. Any additional cost will be paid by Evergreen Construction.