Pocatello District reviews Highland High rebuild: designers show 118,700 sq ft program and $58M–$64M preliminary funding range

Designers and district staff presented the Pocatello District board with a preliminary Highland High School rebuild program of about 118,700 square feet and an early funding estimate that ranges between $58 million and $64 million.

Jonathan Balz, introduced to the board by the superintendent, said insurance proceeds for the rebuild total at least $22,000,000 now and "we anticipate it should be closer to $25,000,000," and that projected state allocations from House Bill 521 could add roughly $41,000,000 to $43,000,000 depending on enrollment. Balz also said the district is counting on a $2,000,000–$2,800,000 potential sale of Olympus Junction Lot 2 and a $2,500,000 allocation from the district SIP Fund 420 to help fund the project.

The presentation focused on nine program items that will materially affect cost. Kent Craven of Design West, the project architect, said the 118,700 sq ft program includes remodels and additions and highlighted major trade-offs: reducing a conceptual 990-seat auditorium to about 850 seats to permit a stage growth of roughly 800–900 sq ft; creating a separate roughly 1,900 sq ft orchestra room; doubling the baseline weight room from about 2,500 sq ft to 5,000 sq ft; adding a third girls' wrestling room; and combining two half gyms into two full courts while retaining close to 2,000 seats in the main gym. Craven noted, "there's not a space in this design that cannot be flooded with daylight," stressing the emphasis on daylighting across the plan.

Board members sought clarity about scope and cost. One member asked whether the published $58M–$64M included parking; Balz said the building estimate excludes parking, and reminded the board that $1,000,000 had already been allocated from the SIP fund for parking work. Members also pressed whether optional items — such as 1–6 additional classrooms (about 5,600 sq ft for six) or a small 2,000 sq ft auxiliary space for batting cages/pickleball — were part of the core program; Craven said those were shown on the concept but not included in the 118,700 sq ft base program and would increase costs if added.

The board discussed a working budget target. Craven and staff asked the board to give the committee direction on whether to aim toward the higher or more conservative end of the range; one trustee said having a concrete budget target would help the committee prioritize trade-offs in upcoming design iterations. Several board members said they supported the 850-seat auditorium to allow a larger stage and broader educational programming, while also urging caution about pushing to the high end of the budget range.

The district team said this is an initial "first-blush" package and that the design and cost estimates will be refined: the design team will deliver additional renditions and pricing exercises and the committee will meet again to provide more detailed direction. Craven and Balz said the firm will produce more detailed drawings and cost options for committee pricing and that staff will continue to reconcile insurance, HB 521 projections and other funding sources.

Next steps: the board and committee will receive second and third renditions of the design and more detailed cost estimates; the district will also bring a future report when staff has more certainty about proceeds from property sales and final HB 521 allocations.