Rising construction prices have brought a need for updated plans to the renovations and additions at Friendswood High School.

At the Nov. 8 Friendswood ISD school board meeting, PBK Architects and Satterfield & Pontikes Construction Company presented updated plans to the board of trustees to reduce the cost of construction. Despite having to make changes, no programs have been eliminated from the project, according to board documents.

The high school renovations come from the $128 million bond FISD voters approved in November 2020. Some of the major components of the bond are the adding of a new performance space for FHS and a new Cline Elementary School to replace the old one.

According to the board presentation, the budget for the renovations is $51.6 million and the estimated guaranteed maximum price is sitting at $59.8 million. As of Oct. 28, the cost was estimated to be about $67 million with all of the renovations, additions and maintenance items, according to the presentation.

To reduce the project cost, PBK Architects recommended the district make some major changes to renovations and additions, including reducing design elements in the high school courtyard, eliminating amphitheater seating in the black box theater and removing side balcony box seats in the auditorium, according to updated renderings.

Many of the other changes have to do with using different construction materials as well as different amounts of material to help bring the cost down.

However, trustee Robert McCabe said he was worried about what the reduced costs might mean for the quality of the projects.

“When you say a better way to do a foundation for cheaper, I don't understand that concept," he said. "We had a design of the foundation that I would think when we were getting [the designs] the first time was the best way at the cheapest price.”

Part of the reason for increased costs is that building materials prices have increased between 34% and 81% since 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Producer Price Index.

The final project cost estimate is due Dec. 1 and will be presented to the board for approval at the Dec. 13 board meeting.