The final borrowing for a Palmerton Area School District building project won't exceed $10 million, according to a resolution passed by the school board Tuesday night.

Anything beyond $10 million, Business Manager Ryan Kish said, would take the district out of the bank qualified bond range, somewhere it doesn't want to go.A bank qualified bond is a tax-exempt obligation.The parameters resolution passed by the board actually authorizes Public Financial Management to secure a bond with a maximum aggregate principal amount of $12 million, although PFM officials said Tuesday that number only allows the company greater flexibility in locking in the best interest rate.Board members Sue Debski and Chuck Myers expressed concern over the $12 million figure, when the district had been planning for a $10 million borrowing all along."It allows us to enter the market on a day other than a board meeting date and we can structure the bonds on the day of pricing to achieve what the district wants to achieve," said Wesley Hall, of PFM. "It doesn't mean you actually borrow $12 million."The board previously committed to the borrowing being paid back over 19 years.The money would go toward a 13,420-square-foot addition to the existing Palmerton Junior High School building, and renovation to the track and football field with a synthetic turf and drainage system, among other improvements.Palmerton previously borrowed $9.6 million and plans on using $6 million from its capital reserve funds to help pay for the project.According to board member Barry Scherer, the total project grew from $21 million in 2015 to its current $25.8 million."Based on the money we agreed to borrow, plus what we have, we'll still be $800,000 short for the project," he said. "I just want everyone to keep that in mind."The district's current debt service is $1.8 million and with the newest borrowing, it will jump, at its highest point, to $2.18 million per year.PFM said last month that an interest rate for the borrowing could be in place by Thanksgiving.