As part of the district-wide 2018 movement to upgrade and enhance the existing school buildings, Detroit Lakes Middle School received renovations that increased site security and brought more natural daylight into the interior spaces. A growing concern for many older school buildings, security was a much-needed update for the school. A new secured main entrance was created to help administrative staff monitor and control people entering/exiting the school throughout the day.
Prior to the 2018 referendum that allowed the renovations, the school got a facelift through updated exterior facade finishes. This helped give the school more identity through the use of common finishes and colors to the other buildings within the district.