A single-story library, simplified bus entrance will shave project costs.

Amid the summer of hammer-swinging at the high school’s science wing, district pencils continue to shape the larger project that’s yet to come.

In response to budget constraints and criticism from the school board in June about the way foot traffic would flow through the new campus, architects revised their vision for the BHS of tomorrow by slimming things down.

Despite the cuts, this latest incarnation, according to district capital projects director Tamela VanWinkle, is not markedly different from its predecessor.

“I don’t feel like we lost anything,” VanWinkle said. “I never get concerned at this point because we’re still designing. Most of the changes are things no one would notice.”

In all, the revised plan by Mahlum Architects omits 40 elements that were part of the schematic design presented to the board in June.

The board reviewed and OK’d the revised plans at its meeting this past Friday.

Construction of the school’s new 300 building, which will house a new library, commons, administrative and counseling offices and classroom space, is set to begin next summer.

The design changes – among them a single-story library, a simplified bus entrance and the reduction of glazed surfaces – will save the district $3.55 million.

At $20.55 million, the project is still about $1.3 million over budget, though VanWinkle said the district is “comfortable” with the design for now.

The BHS project and other district-wide upgrades are being funded by a $45 million construction bond approved by voters earlier this year.

About 900 square feet have been cut from the planned 70,000-square-foot building, but no classroom or event space would be lost.

Reducing the paved surfaces around the campus and settling on a traffic management plan saved the district $1.7 million.

The revised plan would bring bus, student and faculty traffic in at the west end of the campus and route drop-off and pick-up traffic to the front of the school off High School Road.

The district had considered several more elaborate traffic plans, including a bus entrance via neighboring Commodore Lane to the west, but decided instead to keep things simple.

VanWinkle said the concern of neighbors on Commodore – who worried about noise and exhaust from bus traffic – played a role in that decision.

The planned two-story library has been reduced to one story to better accommodate those with disabilities, though the size of the building will remain the same.

Access and student flow were addressed by widening several staircases and including a new staircase that opens to a courtyard adjacent to the library. The courtyard was cut in half to make way for the new staircase.

Meanwhile, simplifying a staircase attached to the new commons saved $260,000.

Plants and shrubs have been reduced, and one of three planted roofs scheduled for inclusion will be omitted.

A bridge connecting the second-floor classrooms to the commons also was eliminated. Some hallways will be slightly narrower than before.

Meanwhile, renovation of the school’s new science wing continues across campus.

“Everything is going extremely well,” VanWinkle said of that effort. “It’s one of those projects where you hope things go smoothly, and it has.”

The school will receive two new portables this week that will house four math classrooms displaced by the science renovation.

Those classes will move to the new 300 building once it’s finished, but VanWinkle said the portables will remain on campus to accommodate those displaced by future renovations.

As for the 300 building, VanWinkle said she enjoys watching it evolve.

“It’s a process,” she said. “It’s becoming clearer what this building is really going to look like.”