Regional School Unit 5 directors will consider a new charge for the Freeport High School Building Advisory Committee when the board meets Wednesday, Jan. 14.

The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m., at Freeport High School.

The Building Committee, which met for the first time Jan. 7, consists of 21 members. The committee did not pick a chairman during its meeting.

Board Chairman Nelson Larkins of Freeport has requested an amendment to the original charge of the Building Committee, which was created in 2013.

Larkins said that the school board has had discussions with town officials and other community members regarding the high school construction project.

“The board just wants to find out what happened at the first meeting and whether any changes or additions to the plan or committee membership should occur,” Larkins said, in regard to his request for an amended committee charge.

RSU 5 residents approved a $14.6 million renovation and enlargement of Freeport High School in the fall of 2013, but implementation of the project stalled while Freeport negotiated withdrawal from RSU 5, which also includes Durham and Pownal. In a close vote last November, Freeport residents rejected withdrawal, automatically setting the high school renovation plan back in motion.

Bill Michaud, co-superintendent, has asked architect Lyndon Keck of PDT architects to revise his plans downward a bit, because the $14.6 million is not worth what it was in 2013.

Tim Giddinge, a Building Committee member, said that Keck went over the new plans and heard suggestions on cost reductions during the Jan. 7 meeting.

Also on Wednesday night’s agenda, the RSU 5 board will conduct workshops on a timetable for the 2016 budget and “communication and bridge-building” – an effort to unify RSU 5 following the sometimes-divisive withdrawal negotiations.

The Freeport High School Building Advisory Committee is beginning its work on a renovation and enlargement project at the school. File photo