(COLORADO SPRINGS) — Inside the library of Palmer High School, the sound of progress and constructive feedback could be heard from the hallway as the final feedback from the community on the school’s renovation plan took place Tuesday night, April 22.

Feedback for the project has been gathered for months, with the plan being announced in September 2024. Colorado Springs School District 11 (D11) board president Parth Melpakam told FOX21 News the feedback has been positive from the conversations he’s had with folks in the community.

“We are listening to their feedback and trying to incorporate that feedback into the plans,” Melpakam said.

Courtesy: FOX21 Photojournalist Jack Young

But some Palmer High alum like Charles Johnson have concerns about certain aspects of the project. For Johnson, the financial concern is at the top of the list.

“I think that’s a concern that a lot of us need to look into,” Johnson said.

Johnson’s financial concerns stem from the bill taxpayers will have to take on in the years to come, with the project costing $100 million to complete.

“Is this going to be the long haul for us to be able to pay back into the worth of investment for kids and our community?” Johnson asked.

The plan set in place right now has the school becoming one unified campus, but Johnson is concerned uniting the two will change some of the experiences that he and other classmates had at Palmer High for future students.

“It takes away from the vibrancy of seeing the whole downtown and not just deflecting kids to one area, and I think that’s sort of my concern is keeping students bottled up in one area,” Johnson said.

But Melpakam said they have considered preserving some of the past while updating the building to have more modern features.

“What we design is going to integrate into the current Palmer architecture,” Melpakam said.

With construction around the corner, it may be too late to hold up or make drastic changes to the blueprint in place. According to the Palmer High School website, a groundbreaking ceremony is set to take place on May 12.