FLORENCE — A $1.7 million bid that keeps the cost of a state-of-the-art visitor center under $2 million as promised appears on the verge of getting approval from the Florence-Lauderdale Tourism board.

During a meeting Monday, the board heard budget figures associated with the construction bid submitted by Parallax Building Systems of Florence. Board members will take time to review the information and figures and vote later this week on accepting the bid.

The bids ranged from $1.7 million to just over $2 million.

“I’m well pleased with how the bids came in,” said board member David Abramson. “We’ve got to exist within our means and we know we’ve got some fundraising to do, but I’m pretty comfortable with this.”

The project’s director, Libby Jordan, who handles cultural tourism for the office, told board members that there are still cuts that can be made that will save money but not compromise the integrity of the project.

The group agreed that cutting the building size isn’t desirable, but changes could be made in hardware and fixtures that could mean savings.

The total cost with no cuts is figured at $2,413,378, which includes display costs at $513,955 and other extra costs at $146,623. The extras include remaining architect fees, a 7-foot aquarium, signage, furniture and computers.