Leander ISD considers second design forum for High School No. 6

Several board members noted campus design priorities could have changed since 2008, citing budget constraints and desires for efficiency. The board requested staff provide details from the previous charette and evidence a redesign would save the district more than the cost of the two charettes combined.

LISD Executive Director of Capital Improvements Jimmy Disler said a new charette could potentially save the district about $900,000, equal to 1 percent of the anticipated $90 million cost of construction. Savings culminate in decreased square footage and efficiently used space, he said.

An abridged design discussion without guidance from ThinkSMART Planning could hinder potential long-term savings and exclude key experts from the process, Disler said.

"We bring that perspective because we want that side of the team in that process," Disler said of the experts. "If you don't include them, the instructional side will go through this process and come up with a design, and they'll start cutting things when they don't know what happens after. You've got to educate everybody that is going to be involved because it will impact the functionality and efficiency."

The board also directed district staff to cipher additional costs excluded from the $62,500 proposal, including travel expenses for industry experts and charette facilitators.

The board will revisit the issue at its next meeting Jan. 19.