PIERRE - The expansion project for Johnson Fine Arts Center at Northern State University doesn't yet have a guaranteed maximum price, school officials told the South Dakota Board of Regents building committee Wednesday.
"We are not quite there yet," NSU president Jim Smith said. The target is Jan. 9 for final pricing, he said.
That would be followed by a week for decisions on final plans, with the guaranteed maximum price to come Jan. 20 or shortly after.
A total of $13.8 million is now available, Smith said.
Veronica Paulson, the university's vice president for finance and administration, said the Legislature gave spending approval for $12 million, and additional money can be spent up to $15 million total.
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The committee briefly reviewed the latest changes to the plans Wednesday.
The box-office lobby and gallery are smaller in the latest version. The lobby space was reduced because the black-box theater with seating for 150 has been moved from the east side, where it was adjacent to the lobby, to the southwest corner.
The plans call for a cluster of four multi-use classrooms on the southwest corner but they could be eliminated or delayed until a later time. Smith said his hope is that at least two larger ones could be built. Smith said the multi-use classrooms on campus already are too few.
The adjustments are part of "value engineering" to get within the cost estimate for the project, Jack Warner said. He is the regents executive director.
"We've got some flexibility and backup plans I can see," Warner said.
