LEBANON — School officials will review nearly $4 million in proposed cuts to the Lebanon School District’s building modernization plans during a meeting Wednesday evening, and a high school auditorium doesn’t appear to be a priority.

Previous plans to upgrade Lebanon’s schools could be scaled back or altered to bring the overall price tag down to $17.6 million, according to a memo drafted by architects and Superintendent Joanne Roberts.

Their proposal would put off some favored construction efforts — such as a new cafeteria for the Hanover Street School — but could make the project more palatable to taxpayers, who rejected two past attempts to upgrade school buildings.

City residents voted, 893-713, in March to spend nearly $20 million on new school entrances, additional classroom and office space, and improved multipurpose spaces. But that vote fell short of the 60% approval needed to authorize long-term borrowing for the project.

“What’s difficult is when voters come to vote and you’re not sure why they’re voting ‘yes’ and why they’re voting ‘no’ specifically,” Roberts said on Tuesday.

The proposed cuts — the $4 million savings figure factors in rising construction costs — will be one of several options that the School Board considers in the coming months as it decides whether to bring another building project to voters, Roberts said.

The nine-member board will discuss costs and the scope of construction and attempt to reach out to community members, parents and teachers, she said.

Roberts worked over the summer with New Hampton, N.H.-based firm Marinace Architects to draft the building changes. The figures are a “ballpark,” she said, adding that more accurate estimates would come after School Board input.

Under the plans, construction at the Mount Lebanon School would no longer include a new entrance, administrative office spaces or a nurses’ office. Instead, the existing nurses’ room would expand into an existing corridor, and the current front entrance would be pulled forward to allow for more administrative office space and better security.

The district estimates those changes could save $1 million,

At the Hanover Street School, officials are looking into the possibility of maintaining a shared cafeteria with the neighboring high school for a savings of about $1.7 million.

Designs for Lebanon High School also would see cuts. A new band room would be smaller and students would have to go without a new lobby for $780,000 in overall savings.

The parking lot at the high school and Hanover Street School also could forgo the full overhaul previously called for. By skipping drainage improvements, paving and line painting, the district predicts it could save $550,000.

School Board Chairwoman Wendy Hall said Wednesday’s discussion will be a “preliminary” effort to gauge the board’s thoughts on future modernization plans, meaning it’s unlikely any decision will be made.

Because architects won’t be on hand to answer questions, “I am anticipating the conversation to be pretty superficial and general in nature,” Hall said in an email on Monday. “The first meeting in September is likely to be more in-depth.”

The proposal prepared by Roberts doesn’t include a 775-seat auditorium at Lebanon High School that some hoped would be built alongside the overall renovation effort, other than to mention that “one could be added to the design at a later date.”

A plan to spend $9.4 million on the auditorium lost at the polls, 960-648, in March, garnering only 40.2% support from voters. It also was part of the package defeated by voters in 2017.

Hall said she’s not sure whether the auditorium will be brought back to voters this spring, noting that it’s “not our main focus at this time.”

The School Board is scheduled to discuss the proposed building changes when it meets at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Lebanon Middle School.

Tim Camerato can be reached at tcamerato@vnews.com or 603-727-3223.