May 11, 2026
BRCC President Laura Leatherwood speaks before the Transylvania County Board of Commissioners on May 12, 2026.
Jonathan Rich / BrevardBeagle.com
By Jonathan Rich
BrevardBeagle.com
Monday night the president of Blue Ridge Community College made her request to the Transylvania County Board of Commissioners for $51.6 million as part of the ongoing county budget process and repeated the request from previous years for a new location the school’s Brevard campus can call home in the next 10 years.
BRCC budget presentation to Transylvania County Commissioners, 5/11/2026
BRCC President Laura Leatherwood told the board her school needs $746,559 in operating costs to cover items such as on-site security, property insurance and physical operations, but the bigger part of that price tag for next year is the school’s capital request. That total includes $76,500 for new epoxy for the floor of the automotive bay in the applied technologies building.
“The automotive floor has to be replaced,” Leatherwood explained. “We’re going to use all of our capital dollars for just the floor and that will be our project for the entire year with our capital dollars.”
The search for where a new BRCC would go
Then there is $50.8 million for new construction of a new Blue Ridge Community College campus within the next ten years.
The current campus off Asheville Highway is two buildings on eight acres of land with 44,000 square feet of classrooms, labs, office space and a small library, but the building is a former elementary school built in 1951.
BRCC budget presentation to Transylvania County Commissioners, 5/11/2026
In the fall of 2025, 452 degree-seeking students enrolled in courses at the Brevard campus, including 205 career and college promise high school students and 455 workforce continuing education courses.
Those numbers and the age of the main building have had BRCC administrators looking for a larger campus since 2021, but a new location within Transylvania County has not yet been identified or developed to open in the next decade.
“This is not new news for you all. We need to be able to expand; we need a campus.” Leatherwood told the Commissioners. “Our campus is 75 years old. It’s an elementary school, and I think it’s really important that we’re making sure we’re on your radar moving forward.”
Commissioners Larry Chapman and Jake Dalton met with Senator Kevin Corbin in Raleigh last week and reiterated the need for state funding a new BRCC location in Transylvania County
“We have submitted to them our official list of capital needs here,” Chapman said. “In order to do this, it’s critical that we have outside help. I know you’re pushing on it from your end and I understand from the senator that the state has come through with the bucks for other schools and community colleges across the state. I encourage anything we can do there because that would take the pressure off of our other capital needs.”
Leatherwood said she would be meeting with leaders in Raleigh next week to repeat the need for a new improved BRCC campus in Transylvania County, but added it would be easier to get that funding if a new location had already been selected.
“I do think it’s really important though, that if we could identify real estate, that would give me some leverage to say ‘Hey, we’re ready to go into design and infrastructure,’” she said. “I think if I could keep that in the front and center of your minds, I think that’s really important. That gives us a little bit more leverage. A hundred percent of asking the state to do 100 percent of anything is kind of difficult.”
“We understand that and we understand the issues with a level piece of ground too,” Chapman replied.
“That has always been the question; the campus needs have and continue to be on our legislative needs each year going forward and it’s always part of our capital workshops” said Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Teresa McCall. “Our question has always been where. We’re in no position to purchase land. I don’t think anyone has identified any land. I know there was a search that was made at one time … but I would find acreage in Transylvania County and it’s a little hard to locate. At the risk of sounding callous, I don’t really think it’s our responsibility to find the land. If it fell in our lap that’s one thing, and we would certainly work with you to help identify land if you know of some or someone else knows of some that might be a possibility.”
BRCC budget presentation to Transylvania County Commissioners, 5/11/2026
Leatherwood then reviewed for the Commissioners the results of the county-sponsored Capital Planning Committee that met seven times between April and October in 2023 to discuss the school’s programming needs, physical limitations, and options for the future.
The analysis identified a total of $707,095 improvements that could be made to campus buildings and parking at the campus located off Asheville Highway through 2026, but also reiterated previous studies presented to commissioners recommending the main Strauss building be replaced with a new 54,577-square-foot building at another location.
In January 2024, architects for a new BRCC Transylvania County campus recommend such a project would need at least 15 buildable acres and 25 parcel acres for the project.
At that time, officials began looking at areas along the U.S. 64 corridor in Rosman as a possible new location, but many of those potential properties had ongoing floodplain and slope issues which would make construction difficult.
“I think it’s really important I bring those recommendations back to you front and center as we begin to think about this moving forward,” Leatherwood said becoming more animated.”Ten years from now the building is going to be 85 years old. My fear is that something will go wrong that will take significant investment in a building that is 75 years old. I know it’s a challenge, but we also need to make it a priority and we’d like to respectfully request the Board do so as well.“
An alternative BRCC at Davidson River School?
Chapman brought up the December 2025 decision to consolidate the Davidson River alternative school with Brevard High School as part of a new 70,000-square-foot career and technical education wing and exceptional children’s wing on the North Country Club Road campus.
That construction, paid for by a $62 million grant from the NC Department of Public Instruction, would leave the Davidson River school, which was built in 1945, vacant and Chapman asked if that property off Ecusta Road would be suitable for a new BRCC Transylvania County campus.
Members of the Transylvania County Board of Commissioners discuss BRCC’s budget request on May 11, 2026.
Jonathan Rich/BrevardBeagle.com
“Would that be a possible option for maybe doing your classroom-type stuff and free up some space for the trades in your current facility?” Chapman asked. “These are options that we can look at in the interim if that would help. Of course, that’s a school board decision, but we’re going to have that big empty building at some point.”
“I have to admit I know very little about Davidson River School,” Leatherwood replied. “I don’t know how old it is. We’re in a 1951 building; then we’re going to have the same challenge that we have right now, right? Unless there’s significant money to remodel and make it fit the way that we need it to fit. I don’t think I can answer that. I don’t know anything about Davidson River School.”
“Well, I would encourage you to ask those questions,” Chapman said. “In my opinion, it’s probably one of the better buildings we’ve got in the county when you look at it. But anyway, I’d encourage you to reach out to the School Board and at least ask those questions.”
Transylvania County Manager Jaime Laughter pointed out that BRCC did ask for a two-percent increase in funding than in prior years and that letters did go out to all county-funded agencies in February asking that any increase in funding for next year over that percentage also be accompanied by a resolution from their board affirming that they support a propety tax increase to pay for that additional request.
“We did get that letter,” Leatherwood said just before concluding her presentation. “Our board has absolutely no authority to ask the citizens of Transylvania County to approve a tax increase. That’s just not the role of the board.”
Budget discussions for the fiscal 2026-27 will continue with an anticipated final budget presentation made to the Board of Commissioners likely to be presented at the May 26 meeting. A final approved budget must be adopted by June 30 as the county’s budget ordinance goes into effect July 1, 2026.