WISE "? At the very end of a three-hour meeting that included detailed presentations by four architecture firms, county schools Finance Director Ron Vicars gave school board members the price tag for renovating all six county high schools "? $109.4 million.

That number includes about $28.9 million in upgrades to J.J. Kelly High School, $19.9 million for Powell Valley, $18.5 million for Appalachia, $17.75 for Coeburn, $16 million for Pound and $7 million for the county's newest high school, St. Paul.

The audience of about 40 local officials, citizens, teachers and principals erupted in slight murmuring after the number was announced. Board members didn't discuss the plans or the price tag, adjourning the meeting immediately after the financial presentation.

Schools Superintendent Greg Killough said after the meeting that he expects board members to have a workshop meeting to discuss all of the details and prioritize the schools' needs, perhaps as soon as March. He added that he might hire a facilitator for those meetings, like the one the school system hired for a school board retreat in early 2006.

"I asked the architects to give me nothing that's a want, just needs,"? Killough said. "But there are levels of needs,"? he added, noting that board members still have a lot to think about.

During about three hours of back-to-back floor plan presentations, architects from Thompson & Litton Inc., Appalachian Technical Services, Beeson Lusk & Street and Oliver Webb Pappas & Rhudy all took special care to point out that the majority of the cost comes from renovating the existing buildings, not the new additions they're proposing.

School officials noted that a Power Point presentation, including floor plans for all schools, will be posted on the county schools Web site, at www.wise.k12.va.us.

NEEDS VS. WANTS
John Ponish of ATS, the firm that studied Appalachia High School, noted during his presentation that all of the architects were presenting the same thing "? renovations that are needed to keep the schools open and operating for 25-30 years.

"What you have here is a very thorough evaluation of what's needed for these schools,"? Ponish said. "What's actually put in comes next. Now you evaluate whether we can incorporate all of the needs, or re-evaluate the standards the board has set."?

Ponish, like several other architects who made presentations, stressed that all of the additions and improvements were based on a strict set of guidelines, approved by the school board in June 2006, and all were based on actual programs in the schools' needs.

Bill Thompson also noted that his firm, T&L, which studied Coeburn, J.J. Kelly and Pound, made a conscious effort to be conservative.

"Our goal was to be responsive to the programs, but not extravagant,"? Thompson said, noting that architects tried to build their recommendations around a scheduling system that would make the best use of each school's classrooms.

COST ANALYSIS, LONGVIEW
Architects also provided school administrators with percentage breakdowns of where the money will go, divided into categories of site development, building additions, renovations, plumbing, mechanical systems, electrical upgrades, sprinkler systems and contingency funds.

In addition, the school system provided a packet of information to media, board members and members of the public that included price projections for how much proposed improvements would cost in 2010 and 2012, at a six percent annual escalation in price. By 2010, the renovations would cost $122.9 million, and by 2012, the price would rise to an estimated $138 million.

(Information via Coalfield.com)