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How much should a new high school cost? $20 million? $42 million? $88 million? How much is too much?

That question has sparked debate for the past couple of years as several Guilford County schools have been built.

Because of rising construction costs and design elements, some of those schools have cost more than originally thought.

As a result, some other school construction projects have been put on hold.

The debate over cost is heating up as the Board of Education moves toward asking the public next May for another $440 million for construction.

One target for cost critics has been Northern Guilford High School on Spencer Dixon Road just off N.C. 150.

Parents, county commissioners, and some school board members have balked at the school's $42.7 million price — twice the amount spent on construction recently on some high schools in other parts of the state.

As if that price weren't hard enough to swallow, consultants recently have said a new high school near Piedmont Triad International Airport could run more than $80 million.

A number of parents and county commissioners have accused the school system of botching recent construction jobs and some say they're not ready to turn over money yet.

"They (school officials) never really have good dialogue with the community about why things cost more here," said Martin Phillips, a High Point parent who is skeptical of a proposed bond passing next year. "So that builds a lot of mistrust."

School officials, however, say they've been hurt by inflation, an unforeseen price run-up in construction materials and a general lack of understanding.

Joe Hill, who works as a facilities consultant for Guilford County Schools, said the public perception about Guilford gold-plating its newest high school — or any other school — at taxpayers' expense is false.

And he doesn't want that perception to sabotage the bond referendum.

"The myth that we're building schools that cost a great deal more than what is being built in other districts is just not true," Hill said.

To get a better handle on the issue of cost and whether Guilford is overspending, the News & Record took a detailed look at the design, construction and cost of Northern and a high school in Forsyth County that it is frequently compared to: Ronald Reagan High.

Reagan, which opened two years ago in Pfafftown, cost $18.5 million to build, not including the price of land, furniture and equipment or design fees.

Match that against Northern's $42 million and the answer would seem obvious.

Throw in the per-square-foot cost — $96.76 for Reagan versus the expected $149.64 per square foot on Northern — and the evidence of overspending seemingly becomes convincing.

Except it doesn't.

Timing is everything in construction. Reagan went through the contractor bidding process in 2003, two years before Northern.

A lot happened in two years that sent prices soaring in the building industry, notably Hurricane Katrina. The hurricane sent prices for steel, glass, concrete and even gypsum sky-high.

By the time Guilford sought to build Northern in 2005, construction costs for high schools had risen by close to 50 percent. The inflation caught Guilford off guard, driving up the price of Northern — expected to open in January — by about $5 million, Hill said.

Northern's costs increased another $5 million when the district decided to add three features to the school: shell space for eight extra classrooms, student project labs and two large rooms for teacher offices. The unfinished classrooms can accommodate an additional 160 students when the need arises.

Northern also features larger classrooms and athletics facilities to meet district and community expectations. For example, Northern's stadium will seat 4,000 people to accommodate state football competitions.

Factor those issues in and the cost difference for the two high schools shrinks to about $5 a square foot.

That figure likely will contract further when taking into account that Forsyth school officials are now looking at spending $5.7 million to expand Reagan, whose enrollment now exceeds its space just two years after opening.

In the end, both schools came in under state cost averages for high schools during the years their contracts were bid.

Contact Morgan Josey Glover at 373-7078 or mjosey@news-record.com