001Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat up here. Heat up Heat. Heat. Heat up here. Down. Heat. Heat. All right. We ask for the courtesy of the board members, staff, and members of the public that you please silence your cell phones. Um, good afternoon everyone. Welcome to the Orange County School Board's work session, which has been scheduled today, Tuesday, May 5th, 2026, for the purpose of discussing the facilities update. The public will not have an opportunity to participate participate in this work session to provide public comment because it's not a regularly scheduled schoolboard meeting. No action will be taken and there will be no open open public comment period in which the public normally addresses the school board on any relevant topics that are related to the work of the board.
002Thank you so much for being with us this afternoon. Um I believe we have member forant Douglas Vano Gallow uh we have the chair on the call and then Bird and Father will be joining us shortly. Is that correct? Okay. and Chair Jacobs is on the phone. So, as a reminder, the board members will not be engaging in any outside electronic or digital communication during the meeting so we can focus on the matters immediately before us. To my fellow board members and district staff, when speaking, please make sure your microphone is on and speak directly into it so our YouTube and Orange TV viewers can hear you clearly, especially those microphones up there. Those tend to be extra sensitive, so make sure you are speaking close to them. Um we will now pause for a
003moment of silence and I invite you to join us in the page of allegations. And now for the pledge. >> To the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Just a schism up here. >> Okay. And with that, I will have to turn over to Dr. Rasquest to get us started. Uh thank you, Madame Chair. Um this afternoon we will hear from our chief executive officer for strategy and infrastructure and his team for our annual facilities update. Uh as a reminder to the board, we did um reorganize uh our our district and have moved uh facilities and procurement um after under Dr. border and he's been in that role for um a few months. Uh
004we are excited to hear the updates uh from his team. Uh I do want to commend them. They have been working uh with uh members of my cabinet and our principles as we were looking at um efficiency of our uh facilities. um they've provided some great insights into uh different ways that we might maximize capacity as well as u provide uh insights into some cost-saving measures that you will um hear about later um this afternoon. So with that, I'm going to turn it over to Dr. Border. >> Dr. Border. >> Thank you, Superintendent Vasquez. Good afternoon, Vice Chair Salamanca, members of the board. appreciate your time today to share the annual facilities update and capital program needs. Uh before we go forward, I want to stop for a moment and just thank all of the
005citizens for Orange County for their continued support of the district with the half penny sales sir tax. I also want to recognize the senior leadership that will be presenting here today alongside me, Jonathan Earles, Jezma Lambert, and Mike Wy for their continuous commitment to ensuring our teachers uh staff and students have what they need to be successful each and every day. And also for all of the facilities team members uh in the audience today and also tuning in. Uh the work that they do each and every day is truly felt at the classroom level for students and that's where they keep their focus. uh with their work each and every day. Also would be remiss if I didn't recognize our citizens construction oversight and value engineering committee which I think was instrumental in helping us
006gain the support of the community with the half penny sales tax. This group is made up of independent Orange County citizen volunteers with expertise in construction, engineering, finance, and auditing who review and have input into our OCPS building program. With us today is our chair of the Cove committee, Pat Knip, who has been the chair since 2021. Pat's also been a member of the Cove committee since 2002, and he's a retired partner with Price Waterhouse Coopers. So, if you would help me in acknowledging uh Mr. Pat Knight for all his volunteerism and support. The key elements of our strategy are focused on capital construction maintenance operational and operational elements. The list on the left describes our capital construction strategy and on the right right is our maintenance and operation strategy. This slide shows our planning
007model for renewing building building systems as they reach the end of useful life. A midcycle comprehensive renovation at 30 years and end of life replacement at 60 years. Our typical buildings are constructed with structure concrete tilt walls that can easily last 60 years and most of our building element renewal cycles are every 10 to 15 years. Because of these factors, we adopted the model shown here based on a 60-year building life cycle. This slide summarizes the capital program elements discussed in our strategy. We provide additional needed capacity through new relief schools and capacity enhancement projects that provide additional permanent classroom additions at campuses with long-term needs and no alternative for relief. Comprehensive needs is a broad category that includes the remaining priority of the list of the 136 sites. The 20 schools that were too
008new or recently renovated at the time the list was created to warrant inclusion on the list, which are denoted here as the pre-sales tax list. The renovation and remodeling requirements of facilities that are being repurposed for other needs. Additional comprehensive needs at schools where the previously completed project did not address all needs. And finally, the schools that were renovated or built in the early or mid 2000s that will reach 30 years of age during our planning period. Our program also accounts for system renewals that are accomplished via the capital renewal program and are required separate from a comprehensive renovation, the renovation needs of ancillary facilities, and the refresh of student technology devices and technology infrastructure. The capital needs for the eighth largest district in the nation are significant and growing. Again, we are fortunate to
009have that continued support of Orange County residents and visitors with a half cent sales tax that has provided the ability for OCPS to accommodate areas of growth and modernize our facilities. Since 2011, nearly three of every 10 new K12 public schools built in the state were built here in Orange County. and at least 136 schools will have been renovated or replaced since our voters approved the sales sir tax in 2002. Even new facilities eventually require modernization or replacement. The need for additional schools combined with the maintenance and renovation requirements of our existing schools and additional support facilities comprising approximately 30 million 34 million square ft of building space are estimated to require approximately $5 billion over the next 10 years to provide and sustain the quality educational facilities needed to support the OCPS vision. Construction
010costs have increased significantly post pandemic. The average cost to build a new elementary school today is more than double what it was in 2019. The same is true for new middle and high schools. While annual escalation rates have softened, there is little evidence suggesting that construction costs will return to prepandemic levels. The significant spikes in construction costs are not unique to Orange County Public Schools. According to the cost of construction reports published by the Florida Department of Education, similar increases occurred across the state, starting with schools opening in 2024. This is highlighted by the statewide average for an elementary school, increasing from $27,51 for students station in 2022 to 47,484 just two years later. Recognizing this, the state has paused cost per student station limits through July of 2028. We will continue to evaluate our
011new construction costs against other school districts across the state to ensure we are providing costeffective new schools. We've made significant progress in addressing capacity needs since the inception of the half cent sales sax. This combined with the growth areas on the previous slide result in a program that is less focused on new schools. This slide compares the number of new schools completed over the past 10 years with the projected needs for the next 10-year period. Based on declining enrollment projections, only two new schools are required, eight less than what was projected last year. I would mention to the board here that the volatility right now with enrollment is unlike anything that we've seen. And so what is great about our plan is we will have the ability to continue to evaluate our plan each year
012with advanced planning and make other considerations. In addition, the need for replacement facilities and building additions within the comprehensive renovation program has been reduced. Historically, the majority of program resources were dedicated to constructing prototypical schools to address both capacity growth and facility replacement. Moving forward, a greater share of resources will be focused on renovations and modernization of existing facilities, enabling us to extend the useful life of our assets while responding to changing enrollment needs. This slide helps to illustrate the changing project environment. The blue bar depicts the cost of new school comprehensive renovation and capital renewal projects in progress at the same point each year as reported to Cove. The dashed orange line tracks the number of projects while the solid orange line indicates the number of sites impacted by those projects. We have almost
013twice as many projects at three times as many sites as we were managing in 2015. And this chart doesn't include several district-wide initiatives such as expanding card reader access at schools, providing shade covers for all elementary school youth lots and other similar initiatives. We'll follow this agenda to review recent accomplishments and communicate program needs. First, we'll review our new schools capacity program enhancements and real estate and land planning. Then we'll discuss current and planned projects in each of the program elements followed by an update on maintenance and custodial services. We'll stop after each one of those sections to answer questions. I'll now turn the presentation over to facilities director of construction planning Jess Lambert. >> Good afternoon. Today I'll be presenting on planning related items beginning with an update on new school recommendations followed by
014capacity and program enhancement projects that are currently underway or recommended. I'll also provide a brief update on portable classroom reduction efforts and impact fees. The focus is to show how these recommendations align with current enrollment trends, growth data, and our long range facilities plan and framework. Several new elementary relief schools have recently opened or will open for the 2627 school year. To respond to evolving educational sustainability and safety and security requirements, the district developed updated school prototypes across all grade levels. The district's new elementary school prototype began with the opening of Atwater Bay Elementary in 2024. And this was followed by the up opening of Luminary Elementary School in 2025 and two additional elementary relief schools, Innovation Elementary and Ovation Elementary, which are scheduled to open in August 2026. OCPS is projected to experience continued
015decline in enrollment. We are projecting a decrease of more than 10,000 students over the next 5 years. Even with this overall decline, some areas of our district continue to grow due to new residential construction. According to data from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, more than 13,000 residential building permits have been issued across all jurisdictions in Orange County. In 2025, in January of 2026, there were building permits issued for new residential units. We will know the full 2026 year of building permits by March 2024. This slide highlights where the growth is occurring in our residential GIS database. Each year, the advanced planning committee evaluates districtwide capacity needs using enrollment trends, growth projections, and development activity to inform long range planning. Over the past seven months, the committee conducted a detailed and methodical review
016of enrollment projections, development data, and school capacity to ensure the 10-year capital improvement plan aligns with current conditions and anticipated future growth. The chart before you reflects updated recommended opening dates for schools currently included in the 10-year CIP. As shown, many of the currently recommended opening years identified in the FY26 CIP column have been shifted beyond the 10-year planning window into the on deck category with most relief schools now reflected with a 2B determined opening date. Placement in the on deck category means these relief sites remain part of the district's long-term planning horizon and will continue to be monitored as enrollment data is updated. They have not been removed from consideration. This shift reflects updated enrollment data and a reassessment of timing, not the removal of these schools from long-term planning consideration. At this time,
017only two relief schools are recommended to open within the next 10 years, both located in the Apopka area. Site 134 K87 to relief three elementary schools and one middle school. site 92E7 to provide additional elementary relief in the air in the same area. Each relive school is identified in the table by a unique site identification number along with the currently adopted budget year opening date, the newly recommended FY27 opening year, site acquisition status, and schools anticipated to receive relief with the school zone where the relief site is shown in bold. Adjustments resulting from this review are highlighted in red font. This bar graph shows a clear shift in the district's relief school planning for the next 10 years. Earlier projections anticipated up to 10 new relief schools, but updated enrollment and growth data reduced that
018to two. Projects to the left are completed or on the way. Opening in 20 one opening in 2025, two to open in 2026 with only two additional relief schools planned beyond that in 2031 and 2035. In addition to new relief schools, the district manages growth by enhancing capacity at existing schools through permanent classroom additions. Be before reviewing our active projects, it's important to briefly explain how a capacity enhancement candidates are identified. The advanced planning committee evaluates schools where 10-year projected enrollment exceeds permanent capacity and where relief from a new relief school is not available. Capacity enhancement projects provide permanent classroom additions such as the example shown here at Westridge Middle School to eliminate long-term reliance on portable classrooms. During planning, we also look for opportunities to remodel existing spaces alongside the classroom addition to better
019support instructional and programmatic needs. In some cases, the classroom addition is designed to exceed the standard prototype capacity to fully accommodate projected enrollment and reduce future capacity pressures. These projects represent a coste effective sightspecific solution that allows us to address growth while maximizing the use of existing school facilities. With that overview in mind, this slide summarizes our active capacity enhancement projects where permanent classroom additions are being used to address long-term overcrowding at campuses without relief planned in the 10-year CIP. Classroom additions at Hunters Creek Elementary, Woods Oak Elementary, College Park Middle, Hunters Creek Middle, and Westridge Middle are have been completed. Dr. Phillips Elementary is currently under construction and scheduled to be ready for the start of the 2627 school year. with the previously planned relief high schools. Site 135H4 for Horizon High School and
020site 82H7 for Papka High School, now recommended outside the 10-year improvement plan. The revised recommendation is to pursue an additional building at Horizon High School coupled with a multiple schools resoning and a resoning for Apakka High School. You can see the costs in the table above for the projected cost of an additional building at each site. It is important to note that the building at Horizon High School would be larger. It is also important to note that the two new high schools would c would cost approximately half a billion dollars. With enrollment flat or declining at many campuses, broad capacity expansion is no longer warranted. In response, the district is shifting from capacity enhancement to program enhancement with a focus on better utilizing existing facilities rather than adding space. Program enhancement projects are not intended
021to increase overall student capacity. Instead, they rebalance and improve programmatic space to better support instruction. In many schools, classrooms are currently used for flexible needs such as testing, itinerant staff, technical resource centers, or planning. This approach allows those uses to be reassigned where appropriate, returning spaces to classrooms, and when needed, adding targeted capacity aligned with enrollment projections. The floor plan shown illustrates how classrooms how spaces like classrooms and technical resource centers are often comparable in size and can be repurposed with minimal modification. The next slide shows how this strategy is being applied to projects now in planning. Building on the previous discussion of flex spaces and program enhancement, these high school recommendations reflect the shift in how the district evaluates the originally built capacity, available flex capacity, and the needed recommended capacity at each campus.
022In prior planning cycles, broader capacity enhancements were recommended. However, updated enrollment projections now indicate slower growth and at some campuses continue decline at Oakidge and Cypress Creek high schools. The recommendations do not increase the originally built capacity. Based on enrollment projections, the plan and assumption is that enrollment at these campuses is expected to remain flat or continue to decline, allowing program and space needs to be addressed through better alignment and use of existing facilities. At University High School and Dr. Phillips High School recommendations are limited to small targeted additions which may include the replacement of older existing buildings at Dr. Phillips. The district's building program has been highly effective in significantly reducing the number of portable classrooms and shifting instruction into permanent facilities. This slide highlights both long-term progress and near-term actions that continue to
023shrink the district's portable footprint. Over the past 20 years, the district has reduced portable classrooms by 70% from 4,337 to 1,295, reflecting sustained investment in permanent capacity. Today's inventory of 1,295 portables split between 617 district-owned and 678 leased units. By the end of this calendar year, an additional 74 lease portables will be removed and 32 owned portables demolished. Strategy and infrastructure continues to work closely with teaching and learning to further reduce reliance on portables through targeted reviews of classroom utilization and alignment with instructional needs and enrollment projections. This chart shows the status of concurrency mitigation agreements Cas with the district. Cas offset the cost of additional student stations required when residential developments do not meet concurrency standards with payments credited towards school impact fees. FY23 reflects the impact of the postcoid housing boom. Since then,
024CMA activities have has declined due to lower enrollment projections. I'm sorry. Due to lower enrollment, 2019 legislation reduced the effectiveness of capacity enhancement agreements as a mitigation tool. The decline in CA prepayments likely reflects projects advancing to development and fulfilling their obligations. While prepayments increased in FY23 25, this was driven entirely by two large projects, Bobby Boggy Creek Woods and Waterly Phase 5, both in Orange County. Overall CA revenues are expected to continue decreasing as remaining agreements are completed, eventually phasing out. The school impact fee update began last year. However, the advisory committee was not fully appointed until late fall with its first meeting held in February. State legislation requires that each study be adopted within one year of commencement to ensure it reflects the most current data. School impact fees were last updated in
0252021. This slide outlines the current study schedule. facilities has been working with county staff on the issue of school impact fees for affordable housing developments. County ordinance allows for these waiverss and the county has developed a rubric to to guide discussions. Under this rubric, most projects qualify for a 50% waiver. Few will receive the maximum of 75%. Now that the county has adopted an impact fee waiver rubric for application to future projects, we will be bringing options to the board at a later date. I'll pause here for any questions or comments on this section. >> Thank you so much. Um, we have member Gallo and member Bird. Thank you, member Gallo. >> Um, thank you, Madam Chair. Um, so I want to let me look through all my notes. Hang on. See if I had
026anything. So, as of at currently, we're we're projecting a decrease of 10,000 students over the next five years. That's correct. >> That's correct, Miss Gallo. Yes. >> I only ask because I thought that um I thought we were projecting a 5,000 student decrease just this next coming year. >> Uh the next school year, I believe, is three 30 3,000. Um I believe is the the number. >> Yes. And I'm looking uh to Dorian Conalino. Um the numbers have been uh revised. Uh is it 3,00 >> 3,355 is the FT down from the current year. >> Thank you. So 3,355 is our projected decline in enrollment for the next school year. our FTE forecast >> FT FTE forecast >> which is tied to >> enrollment. Thank you. Um so really then our projections is showing that
027after next year if we're it's only going to be 10,000 we're kind of projected a slowdown. Is that accurate? Is that an accurate statement that we're projected it to kind of be less impactful than it has this year and possibly next year? >> Uh that's the hope. Miss Gallow, I think some of the challenges we're having right now with the forecasting is the volatility and the educational landscape that we're in. But yes, that is the hope from the projections we see. >> Okay, great. And and I do understand the complexity in these projections and how hard it is um to create them with all the variables that we're we're currently dealing with. Um, and and I want to commend you for looking at the projections, looking at the decline, and really being thoughtful about moving
028forward with building buildings and looking at alternatives to what we could do versus building a building that could be half full in 10 years. So, I commend um I commend you for that work because that's not easy. um especially in communities that really want that relief school and happen to look at alternative ways to um to meet the needs of those students that may not include a school that they thought was coming sooner rather than later. So I appreciate that. Um and then there are they're in D7 so I remember B's going to be discussing that in a minute. Um and and per us per the usual, there's nothing in district one. Hasn't been anything in district one since I've been elected. No new schools, nothing really going on there except comprehensive redo. Um and
029I would imagine after the grow is um has been completed, I don't know really how many big large developments we're going to have in that area due to the rural boundary because I live right there on that rural boundary. So, I'm not expecting I'm expecting D1 to be quiet for for some time. Um, I do want to talk about a little bit about the CMAs and the CAS. So, I know that the legislation that passed in 2019 restricted our ability to collect CAS and I thought it also spoke to Cas. So my question is how are we still collecting specifically CAS and the payments that we get from CAS do those go as a credit towards the impact fees as the CAS do? >> Thanks Miss Galler for that question. Um we're gonna have Chris
030Mills come up from real estate and planning to help answer that. Thanks. >> Of course. >> Hello. Is this on? It's on. >> Yes. >> Um, so I Christopher Mills, uh, real estate and land planning. Um, I can't speak directly to contract law, but as I understand it, those CAS are are are viable existing contracts and then as such, the the the monies, you know, spelled out and in the agreements are still collect. We're still collecting those. um they are not credited towards impact fees. Um that that was um that the idea was that that was bridge the gap between the impact fees and our actual costs, you know, but they are they are in addition to our impact fees. >> Okay. And they're they're gone, right? Unless we had an existing contract prior to
0312019, we we're no longer authorized to collect CAS. Is that >> we do collect CA? We are not cuz like I said those are existing contracts. >> But I'm saying if if there's a new contract >> there are no new CA. So any any development that we're collecting CAS on presently would have had to have been >> done prior to 2019. The contract would have been done prior to Yes. >> That's what I thought. Um >> I and I've had this conversation with the superintendent and with Mr. for Pomearini and it really I'm just I'm talking strictly about district one because there is no new growment and the new growth real growth other than the grow and the grow is going to take so long to really build out and with our current capacity that
032we have in district one I have seats at at every single one of my schools even the schools that we place students in still have room and so I really and I know that we are I really want us to look at the CAS and where possible um give that money back if we've already collected it or not collect that money at all only because if we don't need the money if we're not using it to increase student stations I feel it's disingenuous to take money that isn't going towards the purpose and I think it kind of erodess trust and us in the community to collect even impact fees if if it's not going to generate student stases in the area that it's for And I get that we we use them across the county.
033I just feel like as a homeowner um and somebody who is is very fiscally conservative. Um I just feel like that we we need to be cautious moving forward as we're continuing to look at schools, close schools. um looking at the capacity that we currently have and moving forward when we look at CAS and we look at impact fees if if it's not going to directly and proportionately generate the student stations that are in the area that the houses are built in, I really want us to look thoughtfully and strategically at that and really be good stewards of those money and really be good partners with with the developers because and I've said this for a housing is not affordable. It costs like $50,000 before they even open up the door of a home due
034to all the fees. And I understand that us waving the impact fees if we don't need it for student stations is there's no guarantee that the developer will lower their cost. I understand that. Um but from where I'm sitting, that's not my job. My job on what the developer does or doesn't do doesn't belong to me. My job is what's best for the districts, what's best for the constituents that I serve. and if I have student stations available in my district, I do feel it's disingenuous to collect money when we don't need it. Um, so I just wanted and we've had these conversations so I know this is not a shock to anybody. >> No, no shock except CFO every time she hears it. Um so absolutely um we have had conversations around this and
035uh we are going to do uh more in-depth analysis uh and initially my thoughts are and I'll use the grow as an example um that if we were looking to return any type of money we would first want to see what that reszoning is. So, let's say we would reszone the Grove to Colombia where there are seats um and then have that approval before moving forward because it may be that the decision of the board would be well families are not wanting to be reszoned and so then we will need to add additional seats. And so that's where we are right now conversationwise um is how can we um do it in a strategic manner because there are areas um that are growing uh Horizon's West is one that comes to mind uh where we
036will need uh to add seats but we do have situations um across the district aka is another area where there is growth but there are seats available and so I I we'll we'll continue to have that conversation but that is where uh we we thought would be in the best interest of all the stakeholders is if we are going to return dollars that they're done after the resoning has been approved. >> Thank you Dr. Vasquez and I appreciate that. Um, hasn't resoning already been done for I mean the grow has already been reszoned. Those resonings were >> correct. But we're talking about that. So we would probably come back and revisit the resoning for that area because that's that's where the growth is. So we would come back if the recommendation is that we would
037give back the money currently. If there aren't seats to where the students are zoned, then we would come back to the board to say this is our proposal for the reszoning in lie of accepting or we plan to return the the dollars. >> Okay. Thank you. Um I appreciate that. um returning the CAS does not preclude us from collecting the impact fees at the CO. So I guess I can tell you between now and when we collect impact fees for the CO. I don't I don't foresee us having the need to reszone East Lake or Columbia. So, I guess I'm just a little help me understand why would I mean because now I'm thinking we'll be holding on to that money for a long time. So, help me understand why we would hold on to
038the money when we clearly have room in both schools right now. The grow is going to take 10 years minimum to really build out in its entire capacity. So, are are we saying we're going to hold on to this CE to those for 10 years? >> No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that part of the conversation is uh around the capacity and if where the the subdivision currently is and what its projected growth is we are not going to build we need to have a plan as to where those students are going to go. And so for us to be not be in a position where well the the subdivision is at capacity. We don't or we don't have the room and now we're going to have to resone. We want to be
039able to have a plan not that we would have given back the dollars and then be in a position where we don't have the dollars to to use to um build onto the school. So we're there's no final decision. Just letting you know that we are thinking about it, but that it's not as easy as us saying we're going to give the money back. We want to make sure that we have looked at every impact it could have before we come back to the board to say this is what we're going to use in evaluating CAS that have been um received and further impact fees. >> Thank you. Um, a question about the CAS. Do they have to be used in the district? Do they have to generate student stations in the district that they're
040they're collected? So, if we're collecting CAS from the grow, do they have to be used in district one or that surrounding area? >> The the schools are identified in the agreement. The schools or or the district. Correct. Correct. So they so CAS can only be used within the within the area that they are collected, >> right? Typically it'll say, you know, it'll mention the schools that are that that need capacity and then the the mitigation will go towards those schools or relief for those schools. So So no, you can't you can't, you know, collect money on the east side and use it on the west side if that's what you're asking. >> Yeah, that was what I'm asking. >> Yes. So thank you. And so I'm just I understand that we need to be thoughtful
041in our approach. Um but we've already collected the CAS from the grow and I still have room at East Lake even with the students from Bonnieville going over there. There's plenty of room at Columbia. There's room at Castle Creek. There's room at Camelot. I could go on and on about the spaces that I have available within District 1. And so I don't think we're going to need that money for student stations. And so I'm just I I'm going to let it go, but it just I I feel I I feel like it's disingenuous to have money that we don't need and we won't be using in the near future for student stations to collect those dollars. I just I I feel I feel strongly about that. I just I wouldn't if that was my money
042and you and a government agency was collecting it and I could prove that there was room in all these other schools. That would upset me. That would that would upset me because I would feel like you're collecting dollars just to collect dollars that aren't going to be used anytime soon in district one. Um but I will move on from that. Um the um where are we on the school impact fee study? Who can answer that? Like I know that it says we're going to have a draft report in July. Is are are we currently >> uh on track for that? >> Yeah, thanks Mscala for that question. I'll turn it over to Chris for some details. Um there were some issues in the county committee getting situated. Um but we are on track for that
043review this year, but I'll let Chris answer more on that. >> Thank you. >> Like I said, we we had our our first meeting in February. we we set the the school advisory committee and then we had our first meeting in person in February. Uh we were planning on having uh another meeting uh this week actually, but it's it's uh part of the process is is we're refreshing the data. Um the the state says, you know, we have to use the most current data and then so we have to have our study approved one year after we start. And then so we weren't going to make our our our previous deadline. And then so we are currently in the process of refreshing the data, making everything current. And then we we will be having our
044second in-person school impact advisory committee meeting I believe in June. >> In June. And at that time will they see a draft report or they do will they not see anything until July. So the draft report is that for the board or is that for the committee? >> That would be for the committee and then the committee provides input and then we'll bring it before the board the school board here in in September I believe. Yes. >> So we don't have any indication on what that draft report looks like to this point. >> Currently. No ma'am. And impact fees, do they have to be used in the area that they're collected? >> Those are those are districtwide. >> They are districtwide. >> Yes, ma'am. >> Okay. Um, that's all my questions. Thank you so much.
045I appreciate you. >> Thanks. >> Thank you, member G. Um, member Bird. >> Thank you. Um, so a couple things. I I have a question first about the portables. Um you have we've done a great job with this especially I could tell you in my district it's been tremendous the reduction in portables. Um it says we have currently 1,295 portables. Do we have a count as to how many of those are used as classroom space for students and how many are other uses district uses or whatever storage. >> Yes we do. We have close to 900 that's being used as classrooms currently, but every day we're reducing portables. We're removing portables. There's projects ongoing, so that number will decrease significantly by the end of the year. >> Terrific. And then out of those 900, I'm
046assuming some of those are possibly um swing sites, correct, for construction. Like at Papaka High School, we have like 15 there for construction going on. Do you happen to have a number of that? I'm trying to find out at the core of this how many are actually being used every day. >> Thanks, Miss Bird for asking about this. So, um just to provide a little more context on this, uh Dr. Vasquez has been inquiring about this uh regularly, every every meeting I have with her. uh we are on a schedule to provide her a detailed list of every single portable what it is being used for. Uh we're working in collaboratively collaboratively with the division of learning right now and the principal leaders who are assessing the information that we have on every portable to
047verify and make sure of its use and need moving forward. Um but yes, we will have a comprehensive report soon that we can share with the board after I review with the superintendent because there may be additional reductions from the information that we have. Um but yes, there are sites that need those for renovation. Endeavor Elementary School, for example. Um, don't want to get too far ahead in the presentation, but we have identified using a consolidated site for a swing site down the road that will also save us almost $4 million and having to put portables at a school while renovation is going on. So, that's also will be part of the strategy when we can incorporate. >> Terrific. I I love that idea. I love anytime we can get kids obviously out of portables.
048Um, but it also is very efficient for when we are doing renovations on schools and >> it's necessary, right? I mean, you've got to move the kids out so you can do the work, get it done quick, so you don't have to do it even longer period of time at nights or on the weekends. It's it's an easier, more efficient way to do it. But I think what would be helpful in the future too on this slide is to be able to see that breakout. That would that would be helpful because as a community, you know, I share sometimes these slides and if I share this 1,200, it's great, but it gives the impression that there's 1,200 classrooms of portables and that's just not the case. So that would be helpful to have that. Um,
049and then as far as uh I I don't I don't have any more questions and I spoke to the team this morning. Um, they're aware of, you know, my concerns in District 7. Um, you know, District 7 is an area that is a lot of, um, agricultural, um, nurseries, sites that every, every every turn you make up in north of Popka, there is land that it either has a for sale sign or it has a development coming. Every road up there. And so, um, and we've got a huge, huge, massive development coming, um, in the next, you know, 10 years. uh which we have now a charter school that's going to be opening there, a K12. Um so when you talk about the volatility of enrollment projections, I don't even know how we project at
050this point. Um there's just no way to project. There's no way to future to plan for the future anymore because every year we're seeing something different. And actually, it's within a year we're seeing changes um to our to our enrollment, to what parents are choosing to, you know, there's just there is no way to look at all that planning, all that development, all those homes that are being built and assume that it's going to produce this many students like we used to, right? You guys know that now. Um, and it's obvious because in our conversation today about Apakka High School has not seen any growth for the past what what did you tell me, Tommy? Five years, six years. >> Six years. >> No enrollment growth. When I got on the board eight years ago,
051we assumed it was going to be busting at the seams every year. And my community is shocked when I tell them, um, no, actually, we don't know what's happening. where these kids are going. We know developments are being are being um built, but they're not showing up at a popa high school. So, how are we supposed to as a district be able to plan and how am I supposed to tell my district when when we can build this relief high school? So, I understand this this presentation this morning very clearly from your point of view. There's no way to plan for that. What I would say um and we talked about this a little bit is that we have to communicate very clearly with families and I think this is the perfect time because everyone
052has seen everything going on with schools and that families are choosing different ways to educate their kids and they have that right and that's the environment we're in now. So we have to share with them where that leaves us. That leaves us in my town in Apopka with one high school that is still 700 students under capacity has room for 700 more students and one high school over here that is a few hundred over capacity. Um and for years I've been avoiding this question with my community about what do we do about that, right? and and it was always well we're going to get those students and we're going to fill up that high school that has those seats and we're going to fill up a popka and it's going to be over capacity and
053then we're going to build that relief high school. Well, it's not like that anymore. So now we are limited with what we can do and and I we've got to answer that question to the community. Well, what do you think we should do? and any reasonable person will say, "Well, you've got to move some of those kids into that space." And I think that now is the time that um you know, we can't justify going and building a half, you know, a $250 million high school. Um when there's all those empty seats in another high school. Um and those are tough conversations. I understand. But all of these are tough conversations. Um, so I think we just have to be open and honest and I think the more open and honest we are, the better.
054And I love the that the presentation today is doing that. Um, I don't have a problem going to my community with that. Um, I would also still like us to um to, you know, you talked about the very beginning I was listening in on the way in um about the half penny sales tax and thanking the community, but um I think what we have to do is also show them um that we're thinking differently about things. We don't need to build, and I told you this today when we talked, we don't need to build a $250 million high school. Maybe maybe we take that relief plot of land up in Apakka that we have for this huge footprint high school and get rid of half of it and make a smaller footprint high school and
055open up a specialty high school with some kind of special study that's maybe only 700 kids or 500 kids or who knows like a thousand even. Um, I think that that's the kind of programming that families are craving, that students are craving, something different. Kids don't want to sit in a classroom for seven hours a day. So, let's not let's put them in a specialty high school where they can go use their hands half a day and then take their core classes or like our um performing or our art school that we're talking about where they're doing their online classes for all their core classes and then all their inperson classes are these great hands-on innovative classes that keep them excited to go to school. Um, so I think there's so many possibilities. I think
056we just have to be open-minded. I love that that the district and and you guys and your team, you're looking at these new ideas and you just this presentation looks completely different than the one we had last year and I appreciate that. That was a lot of this is a lot of hard work to just pull back and rethink how we've been doing things forever. for as long as I can remember that we've always been worried about growth, growth, growth in this district and now it's just a totally different ballgame. And um I I like that we're thinking outside the box and I appreciate that and um that's it. But thank you for the the work on this. I appreciate it. >> Thank you, Member Bird. Uh member Fant. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. I
057am going to echo a lot of what member Bird just said. uh we really have to think outside of the box. Uh so I do appreciate this. There are some um that you know kind of is a gut punch. The Boone High School, we've been working on that for several years. Um this year it was supposed to start in September and has taken us all year. It's just kind of been uh like we're dragging our feet and now it looks like we it wouldn't go into effect until 2028. Um which I still I would love to push for it to start sooner. Um there are several buildings within Boone High School um that don't even have bathrooms within them. And yet the school board in years past, we've um it's been voted on to assign
058$14 million in renovating bathrooms throughout the district to accommodate students who are gender confused and would prefer to use uh a single stall bathroom. Um, so I think like that kind of thing I would like to stop that um and reassign those funds to help with the fund, you know, funding things that are necessary like buildings that don't have bathrooms period. Um, so I I think we really do need to really re-evaluate. I like how we, you know, you are looking at everything, re-evaluating. Um, another one that I looked at was on the same slide, the Sunshine Elementary. Um, so that one, it is interesting. That one was over capacity. I think they're they can house about nine a little over 900 students. They were at at one point like 1250 um and now they
059are uh just just above capacity something like that. Um, however, there are some schools in the surrounding areas where we could move kids from Sunshine into those surrounding schools instead of creating a brand new school. So again, um, you know, echoing some of the other board members, really being fiscally responsible, and making sure that every dollar is being utilized in in a way that's going to, um, benefit the taxpayers, the families, um, and not just making a school just to to make a school because at this point, we really don't know how the cards are going to go. Um, so for myself as well, just some statements. I don't really have a ton of questions. I feel like most of them have been answered. Um, I think we need to think differently. We have to
060think differently. Every parent I talk to who has removed their child from our public schools, they are looking for smaller schools. They're looking for K8s, K12s, more of a structure, a smaller environment. Um, a lot of middle school parents are pulling their kids uh because the middle schools are very large. They feel like it's uh things are unruly. This is parents talking to me, right? Not every middle school is this way. Uh but this is how parents feel. And if we don't start shifting and accommodating what the majority of the public is wanting, um, we're just going to continue to lose students and then questioning why everybody's leaving. Uh, we can't continue doing the same thing and then expect different results, right? Um, so I do think in the future I would love to see
061some of these, um, you know, if we look at doing new buildings, can we do a K12? Can we do a K8? Um or the other idea would be to consider um magnet school or the um charter school district creating that where we can create our own charter schools um that would accommodate for instance let's say um College Park is a great example. A lot of families that I talked to have said that they would love for a K8 to be in that area. However, to create a K8, it causes quite a mess, right? There's a lot of schools, a lot of moving parts. If you only make one elementary school and combine it with College Park, u middle, for instance, then where do kids from other elementary schools in that zone go to middle
062school? Um, so there's a lot of moving parts, but if we could create a magnet school where parents in that area would like to send their child to a K8, um, without it having to be within a certain zone, but it's more of a magnet program. Um, I think we could get parents to, um, come on board and and come back with us. Um, because parents really want to make sure that it they're small community schools, that they have a stake in it. um that they know that there's quality academics. Um, so for me, just being fiscally responsible, I do want to make sure that, you know, anything that we have uh decided to do before, including those bathrooms, that we make sure that that those types of funds are put into good use um
063to uh really help with um the the dynamics right now that is um that is happening not just in Orlando, not just in uh you know, Orange County, all over Florida and really across the nation with um education as parents um start to make choices for their kids. Thank you. >> Thank you, board member FR. >> Thank you, Member FR. I have member Douglas. >> Thank you for a great presentation again. I mean, it's very clear and I appreciate that. Um I'm still um I just want to talk about the portable and member Burr started with portable. Um, what um what do we do with the removed portables? And uh I know I probably asked that question before, but where do they end up? And and and moneywise if we get rid of of these
064portables, how much revenue do we get back? Is there >> some revenue from this? Yes, I have some history of um portable lease costs and reduction over the years. Um I looked recently at the last five years or so, we have re we have reduced our lease cost by 18% since 20 um 22. So when we remove portables, if they're leased, they go back to the vendor. And um as I spoke of earlier, the owned OCPS owned portables that have reached their useful life, we're now beginning a program to demolish them, to get rid of them. We've used them, they've reached their useful life. The state um allows us to remove um portables um beyond 20 years, and some of these portables have been there long beyond that lifespan. So, um, so yes, since um
0652022, um, we've reduced our lease cost by 18%. And we've recently, um, had a a rate increase on, um, some of the newer portables that we're installing. So, we're trying to be very cognizant and intentional as to where we we put portables. We want to make sure the need is there. the best the best um solution is to remove all of them, right? Make sure that we >> and that's the goal. That is definitely the goal. >> Spend extra money. Thank you so much. >> Thanks, board member Douglas. >> All right. And last before we go on to the next section, u member Vanos. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. Um agree with so many things um that my fellow board members have said. Appreciate your work and just knowing that you are being um fiscally
066responsible with taxpayer money. Um, I really appreciate that. I did want to ask a question about um the slide with the new relief schools and there are two that are I guess um not on deck in the Apka area. Um, so I don't know when you start having conversations about what you're planning to do and whether those schools will move forward, but my question is, can you just talk a little bit about how you decide whether to build a new relief school or whether you decide to just um maybe transport students farther away from their home in order to utilize an existing school even if it's not in their community? Like how you go about making those decisions? Thanks, board member Vanos. I'll kick it off and then um Jessa can add on, but we
067have an advanced planning committee that meets uh throughout the year to look at uh a lot of information uh led with student enrollment data. We have a incredible student an incredible demographer who provides information on uh what the projections are um really with a high level of accuracy. um and um even with the volatility right now um still uh has been very close to to accurate. So that's a big part and then advance of planning um that information comes to chiefs for discussion. Uh and then we um we have a conversation about that plan and if there's any recommended changes and then that's what you see presented here. Uh I would suspect that in the next few years there's going to be continued changes uh with the 10-year plan based upon what we're seeing. But
068JZ, do you want to add additional information on that? >> Um yes. Um the the the data really stems from our enrollment. We every year we look at the 10-year enrollment um projections from our student enrollment um department and we look to see where we measure that enrollment against the current capacity at the schools that need relief. And when we um we look to see when that capacity when that need is going to exceed the threshold of the size of a school we want to build open for an elementary school we want it to be 600 plus students. Um you know the the financial threshold that we have to to use. We use that threshold to make sure there are enough students available at the schools that need relief before we project a time in
069to open. Um, one thing with our plan, we we annually review the plan. Um, there are there's a school um site 48 M4 that's listed um as um priority number nine. that relief school. We've had an eye on that relief school for years. It has been in the plan, but the good thing about the plan and having to look at it, we can move it up or down depending on where we are with um enrollment and the need at at the the schools that are going to be relieved. So again, we we look at the data every year. We we make adjustments as needed and we keep in mind what's fiscally responsible. How many kids do we need before we open a relief school? We don't want there to be a need for five 400
070kids. It has to grow. So, one of the other things we've looked at this year is looking at what's the portable threshold at the schools that will need relief. How many portables can they sustain before they're out of space. So, we look at a lot of data before coming to um coming with a final decision. >> Okay. Thank you so much for sharing that. Um I appreciate it. And then I just wanted to also speak to member Ferrant's comment about um the single-use bathrooms. And you know, I I understand um you know, I understand and I I agree with her that we need to be um responsible with our taxpayer money, but also just want to point out that you know, there's all kinds of students who might need to use a single-use bathroom. Maybe
071a student from the LGBTQ plus community, maybe a student who doesn't want to deal with vaping in the bathroom. And I know we're working hard to um to crack down on that, but it still happens. Um it might be a student who needs privacy for another reason. And I have heard from, you know, parents who share that their students are afraid to use the bathroom all day. And so I do think it is important for um many many students that that those bathrooms are available. So I I just wanted to speak to that as well. Thank you. >> Thanks, board member Vanos. >> Thank you. Um I do have I was uh thinking about this as as Mora was talking about which was I know we're doing a lot more pushing on the open enrollment
072of our schools right so schools that are under capacity um trying to have other families who might not know that hey we're under capacity you can't as long as transportation is provided by the family um enroll your student in different schools that have different programming right how does that like how how active are we seeing our families use that option. In comparison, does that impact at all what our enrollment projections look like? Uh, board chair Salamanca, thanks for that question. I'll follow up with the board on how often that is being used. I'll get with um Stacy Neil and get the exact information. Um, I would just say it's a it's a different era, right, where schools are now focusing on their enrollment. Um, you know, of course the challenge with that is we're all
073Orange County public schools. Um, but we also have a lot of schools with enrollment challenges. So, um, you know, families have choice and so that's that's part of the balance is, um, respecting that families have choice and we want them to choose OCPS. Um, but then, you know, we have schools that >> I don't want to say are competing with each other. Yeah. um because you know that's not really what what we're looking for. >> But at the end of the day, it it's an open market when it comes to open capacity for parents to choose. And at the end of the day, we want families to choose Orange County Public Schools. We also know we have great offerings at every single one of our schools. And so continuing to market those efforts and making
074sure all of our families know about the great opportunities at every one of our schools. >> Got it. Yeah. I think it's an important conversation for us to have. I think this board has said um consistently we want our underenrolled schools to be outspoken about open enrollment and the opportunity for parents across the district to have choice to go to a variety of schools in our district. Um, I know for example in some of the schools uh in my district that were consolidated, some parents were going to schools because of their gifted program for their K through5 student or because they had a particular type of interest or teacher that aligned with that. And if these schools um have open enrollment, the parents can can go there and many of them already provide transportation. So
075it's not a huge difference. But I did notice a lot of parents, especially as we were having the consolidation conversations, they didn't know that this was an option. It's like, we're consolidating this school. Here's the school that you're now zoned for. And I it was through a lot of these conversations that many of them were like, "Oh, I didn't know I didn't have to go to that school that I was zoned for, I could actually, as long as I provide transportation or find it, could go to any of these other great open enrollment schools." So maybe we have some internal conflict as well. Obviously, we don't want our schools competing against each other, and it's it's a hard thing to balance, but I think our parents um I don't know that they are as aware
076uh of how much choice they do have, especially as some of these things start to happen, which is consolidation or just different programs. Um because our parents do appreciate choice. I just don't know that they know that they can have that type of choice. Um, and I think it it we just as we think about projections, I think it's even harder. I think if as as a district we lean more into more choice amongst our schools, it's also harder to predict where these families are going to end up going or not going because we do have so many different programs. Um, so it's it's hard. I do think this the projections just get harder and if we move move in that direction even more. the number you had on there was 13,000 permits that have
077been issued. Is that right? Something like that. >> Yes. >> For new residential construction. So how how does that usually I get this question a lot. So how does that usually map out to number that call it convert into students in our classroom? So like 13,000 or is there a delay in on how often it takes for them to be issued versus builds versus actual students? Like how do we think about that? >> The student generation rate. >> Thanks Chair Som Walker. Chris Tommy >> Tommy's here. Tommy's here. >> There he is. >> Tommy might clean up for me. Um so that with our with our school impact fee study, you know, they'll they'll look at generation rates for a given type of um dwelling unit. apartments generate, you know, at one rate. Uh, houses
078generate at a different rate. Um, as a rule of thumb, I typically look at, you know, it's about a third a third of a student out of each house, but that that's just that's not exact. That's just when I'm estimating in my head, but we we each dwelling type has a different student generation rate. >> Got it. Okay. Helpful. And that number is a building permit number. And it's something I pull every year from the um HUD database just to give an idea if that pace of construction is continues to moving forward at a pace. There's a lag period between when that building permit is issued and when they actually build the home and uh complete it and have a cert certification of occupancy. But 13,000 is a shows that we're still having an act
079active construction going on right now. Um last year was slightly less than that. So despite that, we we we didn't we had a decrease, >> right? >> So it's just it's just one of the many things we look at to help us indicate if if if we're still growing um as far as new construction. Yeah, I think it's the the the 13K permits issued is a helpful number, but not really because there is a delay and sometimes those projects never actually get started or we're trying to project out 5 to 10 years on that being a child that goes into a classroom and that is just a really large range. >> But correct me if I'm wrong, Chris, there is a time there's a period of time where they actually have to start construction once
080that building permit gets issued. >> Correct. >> How long is that? Um it could two years. I can't speak to that. I'm sorry. >> Yeah. Yeah. But there is I think there is a >> couple years is my guess. >> Yeah. Right. So you are correct. Yeah. >> Um got it. And then the other thing and I know this came up which was more you know I obviously hear from our parents as well. They like smaller schools. They want more specialization. They want more career uh focus opportunities. Um, and then also looking at our budget, so much of our financial math breaks when we go too small because we just need the number, right, for for how much it costs for us to run a school. There's only so small Orange County can go. And
081a lot of this has to do with how unfair truly how unfair it is that we have so much more requirements, regulations, and demands on us on what we have to pay, what we have to report, how much overhead the state puts on a public school system versus not. Um, and so I think that that's one thing that I think makes it really hard. I try to explain to parents as well that of course we would want a school, a neighborhood school that's 30 kids with one or two teachers and and all of that. It just the the math the financial math of that absolutely doesn't work because there's a minimum call it break even amount um of how much it costs for us to run a school because we still need certain administrators certain
082folks for ESC certain folks on safety I mean it is just call it the fixed cost of overhead of running any school for or public school system like us um is so much higher than call it the fixed cost or flexibility that it would be for a charter school or someone net new to do this. Um, so I am um also been very intrigued by the idea of what does it look like for Orange County to be able to have more flexibility with us having our own charter opportunities within the district because I don't know how else we meet parents and families where they want to be met as a school as a public school system if we don't start thinking creatively um about how do we get that math to work um otherwise if
083we don't have the math working. We can offer so many schools that are smaller and specialized, but that means we are running shorter on funds, and that means that comes at the cost of something. It's the same pool of money. And so, um, that that's kind of the trade-off that we have to make as a board when we think about the budget. And I I try to explain that um to families because it's it's a difficult one, obviously, one that the superintendent knows very well. But, um, we know what families want and we just can't meet them unless we get really creative. And so I do get excited about some of the conversations we've been having. Um Dr. Voder, you've been thinking about this a lot as well. Um and I think I I'm I'm
084eager to continue those. I think that's going to be great. >> Thanks, Chair Salamanca. And I'll talk a little bit later on that in the presentation when we talk about space optimization. >> All right. Uh on to you for the next part. >> Next we have Mike Winter. >> Good afternoon board. I'll be providing an update on comprehensive renovations, capital renewal, and district-wide capital program initiatives. A significant portion of our capital program involves the upgrade of older facilities to meet current codes, design guidelines, and educational program requirements. These comprehensive needs may be addressed by either renovation or replacement of existing facilities. A custoaldi analysis prescribed by the Florida Department of Education is used to determine when replacement is more economical than renovation and remodeling. Comprehensive needs projects can include either full or partial replacement of
085a campus. When replacement is warranted, we use a current prototype for the replacement when feasible. Panar Elementary depicted here provides an el an example of a comprehensive renovation where a portion of the campus was replaced with an existing prototype while other buildings not meeting the criteria for for replacement were renovated. When enrollment projections exceed the existing permanent capacity and real estate and land entitlements allow, permanent capacity may be added as part of a comprehensive needs project. During a comprehensive renovation, all systems with less than 5 years remaining useful life are considered for renovation or replacement. Comprehensive renovations also include a refresh of furniture and equipment. Active comprehensive needs projects include the last of the 136 list of projects. At the start of this school year, Orange Technical College East Campus opened, leaving only one remaining
086school from the original list of 136 projects, which is Orange Technical College South Campus Replacement. The school is currently in design with construction commencement anticipated in 2027 and completion scheduled in 2029. At the time the list was created back in the early 2000s, 20 schools were excluded because they were either too new or recently renovated. Now, as we near the conclusion of the original list, these 20 schools have significant capital needs that have been prioritized through comprehensive renovation projects. The project status of 10 of the 20 schools is shown on this slide. All 10 are in construction with completion projected in 2026 and 2027. As a reminder, these projects commence planning, design, and in some cases, construction before the recent extension of the sales tax program. During design, the project scopes were focused on addressing
087critical needs and expired systems due to potential funding constraints if the sales tax program was not renewed. The remaining 10 schools in this group are showed on this slide. Of the 10 projects, two are in construction and six are in design with construction completion dates projected in 2027, 2028 and 2029. One project is in planning nearing design commencement with completion projected in 2031. Lastly, one project, Oakshshire Elementary School, has completed design, but is currently on hold due to declining enrollment projections. As these projects are being designed after the extension of the sales tax program, the scope will not only address critical needs and system replacements, but will address programmatic deficiencies when compared to prototypical standards. The next round of comprehensive renovations has commenced for campuses nearing the midway mark of our 60-year building life cycle
088model. This slide represents the first of the next round of renovations, including seven schools that received limited renovations early in the sales tax program. two choice magnet school projects repurposing the former Cherokee School into a digital school of arts and entertainment and a full replacement of Orlando gifted academy. Also included is a is a replacement facility for the steam academy ESC transition hospital homebound and adaptive PE programs which was in design. Um however in coordination with space optim optimization opportunities around the district a new um a new location will be determined in the very near future. The design and construction schedule uh for this project will be revised accordingly. Also included is consolidation of transportation and maintenance operational facilities on the hanging moss bus compound site. Of the 11 projects, five are in design and
089the other six are projected to start design later this year. Construction is projected to be complete in 2028 and 2029. This fiscal year, planning activities have commenced on seven more comprehensive renovation projects with AE and CM selections to be complete by the end of the calendar year. Colonial 9th grade center was advanced to accommodate consolidation of 9th grade students with the main campus. Subsequently, the existing facility will be repurposed and options for reuse are being evaluated. Considerations include replacing Colonial 9th with a middle school after all of the high school students are on Colonial main campus. Additionally, a project has commenced to support the conversion of Orange Center Elementary School to a K8 school in coordination with the Lyft Orlando charter school conversion. As new or newly renovated facilities won't stay new forever, the board
090has has established and funded a capital renewal program to ensure the availability of funds to maintain the safe and efficient operation of the new replacement and renovated facilities. The program relies on a special renewal fund that is funded at an annual rate of 2.4% 4% of cumulative capital expenditures. Funds for the program are derived exclusively from sales tax and and continuation of the program is dependent upon future renewals of the sales tax program. Unlike comprehensive renovations which holistically address building and program requirements, the capital renewal program is limited to the renovation and replacement of individual building systems and equipment costing $50,000 or more. Similar to the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, also known as HVAC system replacement depicted on this slide. The primary tool that we use to identify kappa renewal requirements is a comprehensive
091facilities condition assessment. Now like to quickly review some typical capital renewal projects. Shown here is a multi-system renovation of a middle school gymnasium. The before and after aerials highlight the energy efficiency improvements that result from many Kalper renewal projects. In this case, the project replace existing roof with an energyefficient cool roof meeting our current design guideline requirements and also replace existing HVAC equipment with new significantly more efficient units. A significant number of capital renewal projects are accomplished behind the scenes as the two project examples shown here illustrate. These projects reduce maintenance cost and increase reliability of existing systems, but are largely invisible to students and staff. Additional benefits of the two projects shown here include the additional safety features associated with voice evacuation required with new fire alarm systems and better student and staff comfort
092and energy savings that are realized through the upgrade of building HVAC system controls. This slide represents four examples of previous low priority elements of capital renewal systems that we are now including as part of the capital renewal program. This affords us the ability to the ability to address deficiencies like auditorium refresh needs, playground replacements, carpet exceeding 15 years of age, and painting on a refresh cycle except for campuses with upcoming comprehensive renovations. There were no capital renewal projects during the first 11 years of the sales tax program. In 2014, the CAP renewal program began to ramp up, completing 269 projects at 163 sites for a total cost of $536 million through FY25. Currently, we have 85 pro active projects at 176 sites with projected expenditures summing to $37 million this fiscal year. As mentioned previously,
093the Kalpa renewal program is funded solely from a portion of the sales sir tax. The current sir tax runs from January 1, 2026 through December 30 31st, 2035. Thanks again for Orange County voters for supporting the cirax extension. As our district shifts from rapid expansion to maintaining and optimizing our current portfolio, modernizing existing schools becomes the most impactful strategy for improving performance, reliability, and long-term cost control. Through our Kappa renewal program and comprehensive renovations, we routinely routinely bring older facilities up to current design and performance standards. These upgrades are not only cosmetic, they focus on building systems that have the largest influence on operational cost, comfort, and longevity. Key areas of focus include HVAC renovations, LED lighting conversions, roof replacements, and full building renovations or replacements where existing structures can no longer be efficiently upgraded.
094Now, I will discuss several district-wide initiatives being accomplished at our schools. The district has initiated a district-wide program to install vape detection devices in student restrooms at high, middle, and K8 schools grades 6 through 8, plus alternative and exceptional educational schools grades 6 through 12. Approximately 3,000 restrooms will receive tamperresistant vape detection devices as part of this program. The program is planned to be complete this year. We are making progress on the installation of youth lot shade structures at elementary and K8 schools. The district previously installed shades over tot lots. Installation at all schools are anticipated to be complete this summer. A pilot project providing at least one single occupancy restroom for students and staff per building at three high schools is complete. A study of remaining high, middle, and K8 schools is underway. The
095district has authorized a program to install card readers on exterior doors opening into opening into interior areas of the campus. This will facilitate movement of students between classroom buildings, including gymnasiums and performing arts centers, media center, and the main office. Improvements at all high schools are nearly complete. Security enhancement includes projects like the replacement of door hardware with automatic locking hardware. A pilot has been completed at 13 schools. Planning has commenced for improvements at all elementary, K8, middle, and high schools. Being a governmental entity, the district is exempt from paying sales tax on the purchase of construction materials associated with our projects through an owner direct purchase, also known as ODP program. We work with our construction managers and their respective subcontractors on all projects to identify materials that can be purchased directly to take
096advantage of this exemption and generate sales tax savings. Our target is is uh to directly purchase equipment with costs exceeding 25% of the total project construction cost. As shown here, the d the the direct purchase program has generated nearly $40 million in sales tax savings since 2011 with a direct purchases average exceeding the goal of 25%. Looking ahead to the next 10 years, opportunities for ODP savings will be negatively impacted by fewer new schools and more renovations. I'll pause here for any questions or comments on this section. >> Thank you. Uh we have a couple of folks online. Uh member Gallo first. >> Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. Um first I want to say how beautiful the Orange Technical Colleges on the East Campus because that is the one new building that I've gotten
097in District 1 and it is absolutely an amazing um a building that sits adjacent to um University High School. It's just it's phenomenal. So, thank you for that. Um I want to turn to page 29 Timber Creek High School. And maybe I'm just confused. Um but the construction start date says November 26. I thought we were starting it this summer. I thought we were doing the elevator and we were trying to get into the PAC or the gymnasium this summer to do the renovations. >> So, we have a couple smaller projects. Jonathan, you want to expand on those? >> So, we do have an early package for the elevator and some work in the PAC that's happening outside of the main comprehensive project. So, there is work coming this summer. It's just not the full
098project, >> the full scope. Correct. But the the elevator for anybody who might be listening, the elevator this summer will be fixed. >> Yeah. >> All right. I just I wanted that on record. >> That'll make so many people happy. Um, and then um on page 32. Um, I I I want to I want to commend you for this presentation. Um, you guys always do a great job in discussing what's going on because I don't think the general public has any idea how many projects we are working on at any one given time. whether that's new construction or the comprehensive renovations or just placing replacing an HVAC. Um, and we've seen firsthand, I have in my district this year, and it's not unique to this year. I think it's every year around this time when
099we have to crank up those ACs because it start gets hot, you see our older buildings, the ones that are in the middle of being renovated, their chillers and whatnot start to fail. And so I just want to highlight how important it is. It's not as fancy, right? It's not as fancy as a new build. It's not as fancy as opening up like a new school. But the money that we spend on these comprehensive renovations absolutely positively matter. Not just within the efficiency of the building, but ensuring that our air is working. Um, you mentioned like fire alarms, security, all the things that keep our kids safe and our staff safe on a daily basis is just as important as a new build, even though that's a lot fancier. So, I just want to I
100just wanted to throw that out there that I'm so glad that you highlighted that because I think moving forward with the the half penny sales tax since enrollment is declining and we may not be opening um as many schools as we have in the past, the money is still vastly needed to continue to have great brick and mortar schools here in Orange County. And really the only other than impact fees, which I'm not talking about again, um the only way that we receive money is through the millillage for capital and through the sales tax. We receive no other dollars from Tallahassee for any type of capital improvement. She laughed at me. And so, um, it's important that our school, you can see the pride within the schools when they're renovated just by the students and
101the staff. And it's not always fancy. It always doesn't look good. When I walked into Corner Lake, I don't know what I was expecting after their comprehensive re renovation. But I was like looking around going, "What did we do?" And it's all those things you don't see that really matter the most, like the chillers and like the tops of the building, like painting them white to make them more, you know, heat resistant, heat efficient. So, it's all those things that aren't aren't fancy that people like, what did you really do? And it cost us so much money, but it's every time you walk into a school and the toilets are working, the water's working, it's cool in that school, and everything else is including the tech is working appropriately. it's in large part due to
102your department and ensuring that everything runs smoothly. So, thank you for that. Um, and then I wanted um to talk about I already talked about that. Um, I talked about that. I talked about us being more efficient. So, I appreciate that. And then finally, I'll just say that um the um I I think that what we've done so far is fantastic. The vape and detection in the restrooms is so needed. It's still the number one complaint when I'm out at schools. What I hear from teachers and even other students is the amount of vaping that happens in our schools. The youth lot shade structures has been a game changer. It is so bloody hot in Florida, especially in August and September. To have those shades so that the children can go out and enjoy without
103roasting is so great. Um, the card reader has been a gamecher because people can move more freely through our campuses. And the automatic locking door hardware. I was at Lot and Child's um, and they're being renovated and so they have the automatic locking and that's so much better. You don't have to worry about it. teachers don't have to worry about people coming in and out of their classroom and locking it back. It's just it's so much more safer. So, thank you for that. Um I like the single occupancy restrooms. You know, I I raised two girls and they would not go to the restroom. So, to have a place that's private um where they can go and feel safe and and not be embarrassed, I think is a fantastic thing. And um I also wanted
104to mention that um I love and I just maybe you probably told us and I forgot but I um I was at a new school and so I saw the way you're designating the safe areas within the elementary and I love it's a different color carpet and so I saw that for the first time and I thought that was a great idea because there's no it leaves nothing up to the imagination. You know immediately where to go for drills. Um you know im immediately where your safe area is. you don't have to worry about a sign dropping or anything like that. So, I just wanted to give you a shout out. That was a great addition. So, thank you very much for all that you do. >> Thanks, board member Gallo. >> Thank you, member
105Gallo. Um, I'm up next and a couple things. I thank you so much for the presentation. I didn't say it before, but it is very comprehensive uh about some of the areas specifically I think in having the public understand how much of our focus we're shifting away from just building and more renovating comprehensive needs uh making the schools that we do have because of enrollment better. Um which is me to my my other point. Uh when I got on the school board, I also remember walking to a couple of schools that had just finished their comprehensives or were in line for a comprehensive um and feeling like that was not enough to what the school needed. Um and I understood that there was a lot of resources from call it the capital budget going to
106the net new schools. We had a lot of growth which was great. So it felt like there was a different mentality about comprehensives on what we would go in and and do bring it up to a standard on efficiency on safety which all incredibly important. That being said, I'd love for a conversation to shift as well on now comprehensives since that's going to be a larger percentage of the total capital money. Um what do we how do we have to think different about it? uh if the goal is enrollment's going down, the schools that remain, how do we make them more competitive on the program side, on the facility side, so that when you do walk in, it does feel like the school got a glow up um and not just a, you know, new
107carpet, new roof, new AC, which is all great, but those are kind of musthaves, not some of the additional things that I think our families and students want um from programs and facilities. And so I know we're starting to have that conversation, but I do want us to be more explicit about it because I it was a frustration for me to walk into some of comprehensives. Um Pinar is a good example, Roberto Clemente, Colonial where when we would just do, okay, we're going to keep these buildings the same, but we're going to get one new building or one PAC. And you walk into the school and it kind of feels choppy or like it's like some new buildings, some not, some are older. and there is no cohesion in the design and the structure. And
108as a student over time, you really start to feel that where it's just like you're at the school where every building feels different and some is upgraded, some of them is not. Um, and I understand why we did that in the past, but I I as we move forward and and the budget is reallocated this way, um, I don't want it to feel that way anymore. Uh, because that's absolutely the way it feels in some of our schools. Yeah, thanks thanks Chair Salamaka for that. Um, every moment in time presents opportunity and um I love this team because they're embracing the moment and that is something that we're going to look at moving forward if we have dollars um set aside for two sites that maybe are not enrollment where we would want them to
109be or they're projected to be over the next 10 years. then it may be looking at how those dollars can be used at a different site. Yeah. Um to maybe create something that is in the same budget, but to your point, maybe it's a a a new building. Um and so those are the kind of things that we will be looking at moving forward as well. uh certainly makes it tricky uh for the team with the planning um because you know these projects take multiple years. Um but we are embracing that conversation and really um looking at the student enrollment information and what's happening to drive what we're doing with the decisions and how we may reallocate plan dollars um for the best environments for our students and staff. >> Yeah. And and I think
110especially in programming, right? So like if some of our schools have since the last renov uh comprehensive or since the last school really become very competitive in certain programs. So I'm thinking colonial and uh FFA, right? Or um some of your schools in culinary, right? Right. Like but it's true. So that school has things that are clearly a strength and if they're up for comprehensive and we know enrollment isn't going to have all this new net new schools around them, what can we do to make those programs even more competitive from a facilities perspective. Um, and it's okay for not all of our schools to look the same or feel the same because it it is ultimately that our programs are different and there are some strengths and some are not and that's okay. Um,
111and so that that's kind of where where I'm coming from where it's I'm excited that we're being very responsible with taxpayer money. We're not building just for the sake of building. That's never been the intention. That's never been what we have. We always adapt according to enrollment. But shifting to comprehensive, I think let's let's start getting creative and meeting our families and parents and students where we are and building some really exciting programs and facilities when we do have the opportunity to do that. Um, so yeah. Yeah. just just think it's been an observation that I've had where comprehensives maybe we just need a bit of a refresh on our thinking on it since the budget is moving that way. Um and then the other thing and this is this came up earlier which was
112around obviously district two I don't know I want to say I take up half of these projects and district two from our growth. Uh finally things are slowing down but I have noticed how much easier it is when we go into a comprehensive and we do have portables available. Um, and so I know that we are going down on portables and all that, but as we increase in comprehensive needs, that portable conversation, I think we just have to give ourselves the buffer and the flexibility to have that because it is hard to do a comprehensive in a school where we now have like two portables running around. It's just it's much much more difficult. Um, and so that is something that I will flag that I've noticed on how much more logistically difficult and how
113much longer the projects take at the schools where a portable might not be an option and we just have to shift students and teachers around in between classrooms. Um, thinking of North Lake Park that doesn't allow portables uh because of the HOA. It really makes things very complicated to not have that optionality in space. So um the number on portables decreasing is great but to I think it was member Bur's point when we can show what of what those portables are being used for instructional versus maybe transitional uh needs versus maybe more administrative or operational. I think that that will help the community also understand that it's not their students sitting there or if they are sitting there it's because we're doing something great to their school next. Um okay that's all I have. Thank
114you so much uh member for Thank you, Madam Chair. All right. Um I would like just a quick question. How are we when we're looking at um enhancements, uh renovations and we're also looking at schools that are potentially are underenrolled. Um we had to close seven schools uh this year. there's potential for more in the in the years to come. How are we looking at renovations to ensure that we're not renovating a school that within a year or two has to close down? >> Yeah, thanks uh board member Front for that question. So, that that is part of what we're doing uh all the time in our planning with student enrollment numbers. Uh we have um looked at the schedule for some projects. we've postponed some projects until we can see clearer information. Um so
115that that is the focus of the schedule that you've seen here today and what's in planning, what's in design, uh some some that have been paused till we can have further information uh on what's happening with enrollment and what decisions uh we may make as a district moving forward. And so, um, it's it's an ongoing conversation. Um, and it has to be ongoing right now just for the moment we're in. We have to continue to to look at that, um, and make the best decisions we can for these projects, which, you know, have money tied to them. Um we we will continue to be great stewards of taxpayer dollars um and making sure that as we put renovations out there for RFP that you know we we're going to be able to have the students
116uh in that space to make it worth um the spend. >> Okay. Thank you. Um, I'd love to see if I mean, I don't know, I'm kind of throwing a number out there, but if it's let's say a school is um less than 75% capacity that we really look at the the schools that are around the area and say um because just looking at like the slide that's up right now, there's um at least one or two schools there that are less than 75%. Um, but possibly there's schools in the area that are at 50% capacity. Um, so maybe this it makes more sense to renovate this school versus a different one. Um, so I don't know the the full scope there, but just kind of seeing um, you know, really looking at that and
117maybe having a number in mind as we're looking at that. I don't know if that's something to consider. >> Uh, may I, Madam Chair? >> Oh. Um so the the teams discussed um looking at uh capacity uh as an element of determining whether we move forward with uh a renovation. Um the number 75% is probably not one that we're we're going to um land on uh because uh we have over a 100 schools that are not at 75% capacity. Um but the um the team is doing just a phenomenal job trying to be creative um and also understanding that we need uh to plan differently than we have in the past uh because of the issues we face with um enrollment but absolutely um they have already actually they made adjustments based on projections for
118renovations. >> Okay, thank you. Um, another question I had, um, for instance with Boone High School, Boone was originally built in 1952, uh, which means there's three buildings on there that are 74 years old. Um, they did get some sort of renovations like four or five years ago, which I agree with member Gallow. I walked in after our kids were it was super inconvenient to be in that space while those buildings were being renovated. We walked in, everybody just kind of said, "What was what even happened? What did we do?" Nothing looked different. I'm sure that there was, you know, AC maybe was different. Um, supposedly plumbing, but major plumbing issues in that school. Um, so when we even look at that, that's another question of why is this school now being bumped to 2028
119when this was projected to start at the fall of this year. >> Yeah. Thanks, board member FR. We'll we'll follow up with details on everything that happened. Um with that change in in timeline, there was several variables in that process. I mean, ideally, we would love to have a swing high school like right beside every every high school if we could. Um that's what makes the the work challenging. Um at elementary schools a lot of times we can bring in enough portables and it's cost effective for us to relocate the students and then work on an entire building or in some cases um the entire school. Um, high schools uh provide um more opportunity for us in the planning and design and so the timelines tend to be longer as we have to work our
120way around campuses and try to do so in a way that also ensures the campus is still safe and manageable for supervision for for the school site. So um but I will get you the details on all those delays uh with Boone High School. >> Thank you. I know we've rec corresponded a bit. Um, but I I definitely feel like we like we go out for the RFPs, like we we're going out asking for architects to come on board to help us. Um, we get the architects and then sometimes it can take two or three years. Um, and then I see a charter school in my area that gets an architect and within months they're starting a renovation. They're building new buildings. Um, I know charter schools have different rules um, building codes in the
121sense not I mean there's just different stipulations um, versus the public schools. Uh, which I would love to get changed. Um, you know that would be awesome. However, >> great please. We would love the flexibility that is given to the charter schools. Not only would it provide for a quicker timeline, but you would see significant um cost reduction. Um I've heard as much as 25% less. So that would be fabulous. >> It really would be fabulous. Um just with that charter school, three buildings, three stories high, um plus an auditorium. Um they're building that for $50 million. And then one right across the street that we were projecting to build, but thankfully we have put a halt on that and using different spaces. Um that was also a $50 million. It was going to be
122um I believe two stories for minimal students. Uh so really you see the difference. Um that is something I'd love to put on our agenda for um you know I know this is maybe a little off topic but for our um agenda for legislative um you know pushing that forward. Um but the other thing that I'd love to say is just really making the spaces unique. Um I think um member Salamanca alluded to this as well. Not every building has to look alike and maybe that saves money in some way, but sometimes it just the space doesn't work. Um, I walk into uh Freedom Middle School for instance, it took me the very first time I got on the board and in my very first visit, it took me probably 20 minutes to figure out
123where the front door was because it is nowhere near the parking lot. It is all the way around. But because that was the middle school of the year design, then it had to be there. And that's just the way it was. I think that we need to really think creatively and decide what is best for the community. Is this a community that most of the kids want to do trade schools? Let's put that in a middle school. Let's put that in our high schools. Um and really provide that for families. It draws families in. Um, and I think as we're looking at the comprehensive renovations as well, um, looking at how we can provide more of those trade school where kids are walking away with literally like a a diploma, something where they can walk
124away and start at a great paying job um, and have something to fall back on if they decide not to go to um, college. Maybe that's their endgame is to be uh, in a trade and own their own company, which would be amazing. Um, so I think we really need to be uh thinking outside of the box as always, but um I appreciate it. >> Thanks, board member FRA. >> All right, so we have member Vonos next. >> Thank you so much, Madam Chair. And I just want to say that I I definitely agree with member Ferrant, and I think we need to be doing whatever we can to ensure that our public schools are following the same standards and requirements um that our our charter schools are. And if they have the flexibility that
125we all need, then that's the that's the move that we should be making. And if it's going to save us money, that would also be a fiscally responsible move for the legislature to make as well. Um, and so I would definitely support adding that onto our legislative platform. >> Ma, Madam Chair, >> may I real quick? So, um, actually after our last meeting, I was researching the, um, facilities code, and it's, don't ask me why, it's a whole other story, but we ran across 10:13.385, which says as follows. A district school board may with a majority vote at a public meeting that begins no earlier than 5:00 PM adopt a resolution to implement one or more exceptions to the educational facilities construction requirement to provide a school with the ability to operate in a facility
126on the same basis as a charter school pursuant to 102.33 subsection 18. Now it is relatively new and I would say the last few years Dr. Border and his team have after after we discovered this provision, they went up there and said, "Are there things there's a list of things we can have exceptions to and a thing a list of things we cannot have exceptions to." So, we going to have to investigate what can and can't be done along with considerations of whether or not doing these things will still leave our buildings in a condition we believe to be safe and meet safety requirements. So, we're in the midst of figuring out what can we wave versus what we can't wave. And I think the plan is to come back to you once we come
127up with that list to say, okay, this is what we think we can do while still maintaining the safety we want to maintain at the schools. And then have you guys vote to wave the provisions that we can't. So, sorry I just now found this last month, but we found it. I know I'm my bad, but we have some flexibility that I don't think we need to put it on the platform. You know, unless we think that what we don't what we can't wave is something that we think we should be able to wave. That may be something we have to put on the platform. But we're going to work through this statute and bring something back to you all to say this is what we think we can wave while maintaining safety. >> That's
128amazing. Thank you so much. And I I hope and and so when we bring it just to have a chart of what is allowed to be waved, what isn't allowed to be waved so that we have a really good understanding and you know what cost savings I could have because that's that's huge. So thank you for that. Um, I also wanted to speak to we talked a little bit about communicating with our families for some of the comprehensive projects and comprehensive renovations and I just want to say um I have two schools um that I believe we've been um very active um in communicating with our communities and is it always easy? No. Um will everyone always be happy? No. But I am really proud that the district has been out there and has been
129um taking the initiative to have even more communication with the surrounding community and neighborhoods um as we go through this this process. So just um and I know it's a lot. I was talking to someone um and she told me that there were I think 30 uh 30 meetings scheduled for August. >> It's a lot. It's a lot of work for um for the district staff and I appreciate that. Um and we get some interesting ideas. And I was at um the the community meeting for Orlando Gifted Academy and some of the parents were asking for like sinks in the cafeteria so students can come in and wash their hands before they eat and just things that we just wouldn't think about. So um get some some good ideas. Um my question is on um
130I guess page 37, but when you're talking about efficiency upgrades um through renovations when you are and and sort of the desire to improve performance, reliability, and long-term cost control. So when you are looking at an HVAC or lighting or roof, um are how are you evaluating how those decisions are made? For example, is it just the lowest bid that comes in and kind of gets that replacement or is there a more um comprehensive evaluation of okay, what are how can we um make decisions that will really impact the long-term investment and reliability versus maybe and that might not be the lowest bid that comes in. So, as part of our design process, once we've engaged with an architect and engineer, and I'll hand this off to Mike afterwards, but um you know, their task
131is to provide us, you know, their recommendation based on where we are uh in the current building code on uh systems that provide us the best uh life cycle costs. So, looking at initial construction costs, what the ongoing maintenance cost is, what the eventual replacement cost is. um you know because we're looking at a a 60-year perspective when we build a building. So we want to put in uh the most efficient system we can uh to provide reliable service over that that lifespan. I know now with Orlando gifted uh as a new school um there's a specific effort in that project to ensure that we are keeping up and we're at the cutting edge of of you know what's efficient but where there still is an ROI and and we're getting the payback um for
132for the investments we're making during construction. >> Yeah. Uh in addition um we utilize various contract vehicles. So on a project like Orlando gifted uh that'll be uh bid out through the construction manager. So they'll qualify all the bids received uh for the various scopes of work. Um and then so we internally review uh what they supply and if we feel that it's adequate or it's a good coverage of bid. Uh then we we're supportive of what they turn in. If it's a little light, we'll ask for additional information or maybe even additional bids. Uh but we also do a lot of district-wide initiatives where we utilize um our contracts that are bid out directly through procurement. Um and a lot of those are based on lowest price uh based on the technical specifications that
133were included in the bid and the procurement team um evaluates those cost um and then as long as the vendors meet all the other specifications with insurance um licenses and so forth then that's how that bid tabulation sheet uh is actually created for uh various staff to use uh on individual projects. not not associated with a comprehensive project. >> Okay. So, for those individual projects, they would be looking at things other maybe than just the very lowest price when they're making that determination. >> Yeah. A lot of our district term service bids are based on lowest cost for the scope of services that were advertised. Uh so with that there's an actual performance specification that calls out that exact scope of work. Uh it has very limited uh assembly or labor that goes with that.
134So it's relatively easier to quantify. Um so you should be able to base it off price. >> Got it. Okay. Thank you for that explanation. Um, and then my last question is, I believe at this meeting last year, we talked a bit about OTC and we were talking about the solar uh rooftop there. And I know it's just a pilot project we're evaluating, but I'm just wondering if you have any updates on that specific piece from last year. >> And you may not, but I just >> You know what? Uh, we'll bring that back to you. We did just receive something uh from environmental. Um, I did not bring it with me here. Um, I do have some follow-on questions with that. I believe the information was good up through either January um or March
135of this year. Uh, but let me get that uh to Dr. Border so that could be followed up on. >> Wonderful. Thank you so much. >> Yep. >> Thanks, Bo Vanos. >> Thank you, chair. I want to go back to first of all, thank you for your work. I always enjoy your presentations. You're always very colorful and also you uh try to attend to all of our concerns and it what you do is really it's a lot of work and uh I I'm just so appreciative and the fact that all of the questions that I have you try you answer them and allow me to reask them again and so forth. So, I thank you for that. I do want to look at if you go to page 29, ask you about Jones High School.
136And um first of all, I'm so grateful that the district and of course facilities with the uh renovation Dr. Phillips baseball, softball field. A lot of people don't know that when we when the school opened in 1987, I mean, a lot of things were going on, but we had she's now the principal, but she was uh assistant AD uh Miss Ramsay and uh the uh I keep I don't know her last name. I know it's Diane we call her. But anyway, they built the dugout for the softball team, the girls softball team because we didn't really have one. There was a lot of things going on. Dr. Phillips, they opened. We didn't have locker rooms. It was a lot of things going on. So, I appreciate looking at the fact that the school was built
137in 1987. And we are going to get uh brand new baseball field. I I'm so impressed with the lights because we had complaints some years ago with parent with family living in College Park with the lights at uh Edgewaters baseball field. And it was like the children got to have light. I mean, you know, they got to have light, but we have been able to secure a lighting company to get those LED lights and that it's not obtrusive to the community, but yet the field is lit up, looks good. So, thank you for that effort, especially with the consolidation of schools and just lack of funds to do a lot of things. I'm just so appreciative that that got on the board, that got on the books, and it was done. Now my question on
13830 on 29 with Jones High School. Now say the the construction. Okay. The con because we got a meeting Monday to discuss that, right? The 12th. >> We do. >> Yes. Yes ma'am. >> We do. So the construction Okay. Construction will start in 2027. But design we're still going through that right now. Okay. Okay. I'm good cuz I was like what? 2027. So we're doing something right now. Let me ask you a question. Is there any uh renovation going on right now yet? Because remember we were talking about some things we were doing with Jonestown now. Have you started anything? We just still doing the design. We're in the design uh phase. >> Um I think we have a food and nutrition uh systems uh upgrade project. Uh but let me verify the list and
139uh we'll follow up with you with >> you can call me and we can talk about that you know you know uh you know at my office or whatever. But I want to I want to get that. All right. And because I am I'm appreciative of the museum, all of the things that you're doing and Dr. Vasquez knows I'm gonna say this, the football field. I want a new football field. They need one. So, I'm working on some things and Dr. Border, I've shared some things Dr. Border. So, you know, it's a lot going on with our monies and a lot of things, but I'm just so grateful that we are still pressing on as a district to get the things done and trying to find ways to use whatever revenue that we have and
140of course invite outside business partners to partner in with us to do some stuff to try to my my purpose and it's going to always be my motus operandi from this board. I want to do whatever I can to draw kid children back into the public school uh sector because I'm a product of the public schools and I know I'm probably singing the praises of people on this board, but I know it works. I'm a I know it works because I'm a prime example of it of working and uh I just want us to keep pressing even though it seems difficult. I want to also talk about Orange Center now on page 31. Okay. Even though we're converting it, it's it's already charter, but we we have the jurisdiction. So, are we still able to
141build stuff and because it's charter under us or help me understand how that's working, >> Madam Chair? May I? >> Yes. >> Uh, member Felder. Um, yes, we can still build stuff because it's a conversion charter school. We still are the owner of the building. >> Oh, okay. >> So, from that standpoint, it's still under our control. We also have to enter into a mutual management plan with respect to how the building's going to be maintained during the terms of Orange Center's um uh charter. And if you remember under the memorandum of of >> of understanding yeah agreement or understanding under the memorandum of understanding we also committed that what we would do is if they got within 10 of the fish capacity at that school we would build the expansion to from 6 to
1428. So I remember that discussion. >> Yeah. So yes this is all perfectly permissible in my view under the statutes because is a conversion charter that we still own and we still can we still have ownership of it. >> All right. Thank you so much. And that's the good thing about the um the school district, our school district, if we're opening charters, that we can control what goes on and make sure things are done correctly. So, I just really wanted to come on to commend you with the promisary note, the promise you told me about Jones and uh I forgot about Dr. Phillips. I was so concerned with some other stuff, but you took care of the other stuff and you saw that the baseball and softball field was in dire need of, you know,
143I'm so appreciative of that. So, uh, well, I I'm a happy camper right now. So, unless something crazy comes up, but no, but I I thank you so much the district and board members for agreeing to let that happen. And thank you guys so much. Thank you. Thanks board member Felder. >> Thank you member Felder. Um I queued up next just for quick clarification on the OPD program. So the owner direct purchase program. There was a statement you made there that looking ahead for the next 10 years the ODP savings will be negatively impacted because we have newer schools and more renovations. What like how does that work? We're still renovating. We're still buying materials for comprehensives. >> Yeah, it's just less there's more labor involved on a comprehensive project. So less materials as there
144are in a brand new school. Uh so we'll see on a comprehensive project um the ODP percentage rates could be as low of uh four 5% maybe up to the low teens uh as opposed you know um as opposed to 25% or more on a brand new school. Um but then because there's uh depend on the comprehensive project um and the length of time so much of that cost goes to labor uh not just the material. So that reduces the overall pool for the total savings realized. >> Okay. Thank you. I was just curious why the >> the large gap but that makes sense. Um okay. Member Font. >> Thank you. I just wanted to follow up as well. Um, as far as meetings, when we do a a brand new build or a renovation,
145I know we do quite a few meetings prior to, somebody else might have mentioned this as well, but um, I would say the majority of these meetings are not well attended. Um, maybe five people from the public will come. Uh, they're definitely well like advertised. I think the schools do a good job of informing parents. Uh what would be the possibility of making meetings virtual where our staff could be on virtually um and the members of the public could jump on virtually, ask questions in that sense. Maybe not all of them, but at least some. I think it would be beneficial to our staff who have to drive all the way to a facility uh for just a handful of parents, which obviously we love every parent, but a lot of parents tell me, "I
146wish I could have gone. I wish I could have jumped on. I was at a baseball game for my child. Um they're usually held at like six o'clock when everybody's out doing things." So, um what what would be the possibility of that? >> Yeah, thanks, Miss Fant. Um and I thanks to um several board members also that have have been asking about this. I think it was mentioned earlier today there's like 80 um some 80 community meetings um that are coming up and so uh we we agree. So the attendance we think we do a great job in getting the word out about the meetings. We wish there was greater attendance. Um, our goal is to make sure that the feedback we get really represents what that community wants us to have. And so to
147that regard, the more we can amplify feedback, the better. We are having great traction with the use of thought exchange and several other areas that have helped us do that through the years. And so currently the facilities team and the communications team and stakeholder feedback are in the process of looking at um schoolboard policy, looking at the meetings we have and we will be um at the will of the board uh bringing back recommendations for consideration on what the community meeting process potentially looks like um starting uh next school year. And um we do believe there needs to be some flexibility where you know if if we and a board member feel that a meeting needs to be face to face that we have that option. Um and then also there may be a time
148within the necessary meetings like five meetings for new school that maybe one of those should be face to face. And so the team is working on that with recommendation and uh at the will of the board we will bring that back for further um discussion and uh look at moving forward with a way that we believe we can exponentially amplify community voice uh so that it's really helping us make the best decisions. >> Wonderful. I love it. I'd love to as well um as we relook at that and visit that um making sure that we're going out to the community prior to even really coming up with a an idea ourselves. Um because I think there's a lot of things we go out to the community, we already kind of have our idea set and
149then the community comes back and says, "Well, that's not going to work at all. We need to redo this. We need to move that building." had this happen in several of my schools. Uh which then we did move the building, but that does cost the district to redo that. So, I would love to see if we could um do even if it's a a I don't know how we can do that because sometimes the thought exchanges, parents aren't really unless they hear somebody else say it, it kind of, you know, sparks the idea. Um but somehow go out to the public prior to really coming up with an idea ourselves. >> Yeah. Thanks, Miss Fra. We um again we'll at the will of the board we'll bring this back but we we're envisioning um videos
150uh presentations with graphics like you would see at a face toface meeting and then also with the thought exchange not only um live participation that evening but then also keeping it open for some time to allow um additional feedback because one of the powerful parts of thought exchange is the rating of ideas that you see from other people as Well, so then that allows um things to come to the surface that are the majority of what people are looking at uh and vice versa. So appreciate that. >> Wonderful. I appreciate it. I know in the last year or so we've really kind of renovated that and and you know already a little bit um and really helping to communicate to our best uh ability. But I think in an um in a climate right now
151where choice is uh at our fingertips, uh we really want to make sure that we are um doing our very best to um be proactive and engage the community in a way that they can join in. So I appreciate it. Thank you. >> Thanks, board member FR. >> Thank you, member Gallo. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. Um I'll be quick. I I will say that I have Timber Creek who's asking for extra meetings. Like they want more than just the ones that we offer for um for the comprehensive renovation renovation. They wanted to have a 90% instead of waiting for the 100%. Um so it's just it's interesting. Every school is just so vastly different. Um I also want to mention that on our our legislative platform, we we do have something that already speaks
152to SRAF. just says support legislation that eliminates unnecessary regulations to enhance efficiency and f and flexibility for um public school districts. So that would give um Maris the ability to talk about SSRF on our behalf. We don't need to change anything. Thank you. >> Thanks, Bo. >> Dr. Ros, you wanted to >> Thank you. I I was going to comment um that the last few uh community meetings involving construction have been full. I mean I I so I think we probably need to find a balance >> um because I do know um some have had standing room only uh I know the uh the one with Cherokee also OGA I think they've had two or three where there's been a lot uh of involvement there. So I don't want to do away with the face
153tof face because I think that is um it it meets some people's needs but I do agree that we need to well we need to take into consideration that um people have very busy schedules and then the other pieces um I was thinking about um board member Ferrron's comments about getting input before that maybe we could send out a survey about what are their wishes for the school, but remember uh we cannot build BMWs, MercedesBenz. Um, and so that's part that's part of my angst sometimes when you go out is that they want certain things that we just the costs are prohibitive but um and we've been very um very good about um sharing uh with some of the recent meetings where parents did we had architects that had ideas of what to do and
154we said we're happy to look at that but it has to be within budget. Um and then what h how we got to the place where we have similar schools is equity in the sense that we had principles that maybe didn't want a certain program um and then the principal was moved and maybe 3 years later four years later now the principal does want the program and now we cost actually more to build or we couldn't build. So I think there has to be a balance between what are we saying are the basic requirements within um the school building and then where there's flexibility to do that. We're seeing that more and more of our schools want to expand our CTE programming. >> So they want um facilities that have kitchens where the students are
155able to cook and explore. They want better um a facilities. And so I think we have to um put our heads together to see where that flexibility could exist while not um putting future students interest at risk because there was an individual that was driving. We didn't want this particular program. So just wanted to make sure that was clear. >> Yeah, absolutely. Um I had North Lake Park I think they wanted a meeting every 10% of the district too. It's uh awesome. Um member Douglas. Yeah, since everybody's mentioning their schools, I just wanted to say big thanks to you for Olympia High School and the renovation that we're starting and um and I'm so excited about you building schools that are very appealing and welcoming to parents. So, that's just the view of it. It's
156wonderful that people can be welcome in our Orange County public schools. Um, I just want to mention the lockers at over at at Olympia High School. Thank you so much. If you could start with that, that would be fantastic. Why Mr. Michael? Right. Okay. Thank you so much. And um regarding um the the the virtual meetings for renovation, for construction, whatever you call it, I I'm a little bit is hesitant about going only uh you know, virtual. Uh just like the uh superintendent said, for me it's an opportunity to meet the parents and to be able to talk to them face to face and listen to their concern instead of just being virtual and out there. So that face to face to us as board member I think they see us and they can talk
157to us and I think it's important. >> Yeah. Thanks board member Douglas and I think what I didn't convey there is we're looking at the add-on for thought exchange. So, um, yes, I've had the pleasure to of attending, um, some, um, very collaborative community meetings and, um, and then when there's not, I think that by including thought exchange, we can make sure that we get more voice to help guide decision if there's only a few attendees. So, thanks, Miss Douglas. >> Do a link >> in case they want to reach out. Yep. Correct. >> A link. >> Correct. And and we're looking forward to the team, you know, with the will of the board coming back for considerations on uh things we might add to amplify that voice. So, thank you. >> Okay. >> Yeah.
158Uh I know that we're not doing as many one-on-one meetings prior to some of that stuff, but I think that's one where you could get individual input from the board on all of our experiences at community meetings, and I think you would get a robust set of of examples of a lot of different things. um because really it's it's a huge spectrum of what works and doesn't work. Um okay, I have member Fant and then we will move forward with the last piece of uh the presentation which is maintenance and custodial services unless someone else clicks. Perfect. Thank you. I just wanted to clarify when I said virtual it was really just for um maybe one or two of the meetings, not for every single meeting because I do agree it is nice to be
159out in the community, have them see us face to face, be able to talk. So not every meeting would be virtual, but just giving that oper uh you know option um because um some of the meetings are redundant. It's the exact same thing that we went over before and we're just stating it again uh with maybe an update of where we're at in the process, but no new news. Um so I've had parents say to me, "Wow, I had to get a babysitter and came out here and it's literally the same thing we talked about at the 10% meeting." So, for that reason, I'm saying let's really think of um our parents, but um also I think each board member understands Cherokee School is a great example. Um that community is very vocal. They love
160being in person and so that's a a community that will most likely prefer to be in person at every meeting. So you do that, but I think every board member knows their area and knows their constituents and who, you know, would be able to be there in person and not and what would work best. So just wanted to throw that out there. >> Thanks, board member FR. >> Okay, on to the next section. >> Great. Uh, next will be Jonathan Earles, uh, senior facilities director, maintenance. >> Good afternoon, board. I'll be providing an update on our maintenance and custodial operation and how we support over 200 schools every day. With more than 34 million square feet of facilities, our responsibility is to keep building safe, clean, and fully operational for students and staff. Our focus
161is on maintaining reliable building systems, responding quickly to issues, and delivering consistent service across all schools. I'll walk through how we're structured to deliver these services, our current performance, and the steps we're taking to improve. Maintenance and custodial services are organized into three geographic service areas: Northeast, Northwest, and South, supported by centralized grounds and asset protection teams. This structure allows us to provide responsive local support to schools while maintaining consistent standards across the district. Our goal is to balance day-to-day service needs with systemwide coordination so we can deploy resources efficiently and maintain reliable operations. Staffing continues to be a challenge specifically within our maintenance team. This graph does not include custodial services. These vacancies impact response times and our ability to consistently serve schools. To maintain service levels, we supplement our in-house team with contracted
162services, which allows us to fill gaps and continue meeting the needs of the district. This slide shows our maintenance costs per gross square foot compared to peer districts across the state. This metric helps us evaluate how efficiently we're operating relative to systems of similar size and complexity as well as local districts. Our focus is to maintain cost-effective operations while continuing to provide reliable service across all schools. This slide shows the volume of maintenance work orders completed across the district. This reflects our ability to respond to the needs of schools and maintain a consistent level of service. Our focus is not only on completing a high volume of work, but also on prioritizing critical issues and improving response times while managing increasing fiscal constraints. We continue working to strengthen consistency and ensure timely service across all
163schools. Our median work order completion time has improved from around 12 days last year to around 7 days so far this year. This reflects the day-to-day experience of schools, excluding the impacts of longerterm projects. In custodial services, we focused on improving efficiency, consistency, and overall support to schools. This past year, we invested $1.7 million in equipment across 173 schools, including transitioning to battery powered leaf blowers to reduce noise and maintenance requirements. We also implemented a new consumables procurement strategy to improve cost control and supply consistency along with an integrated preventive maintenance program for custodial equipment. In addition, all crew leaders are now FM FSPMA certified, strengthening frontline leadership and overall service quality. Beginning next school year, custodial services will transition to a centralized reporting structure. This change is designed to provide more consistent service across
164all schools and strengthen day-to-day field support, allowing principles to focus on students and teachers. Principles will continue to have input on the needs of their campus while our central team takes on more of the coordination and oversight. Overall, this allows us to better align resources, improve accountability, and deliver a more consistent level of service districtwide. I'll now turn the presentation over to Dr. Border. >> Uh we'll pause here, chair, for any questions regarding maintenance and custodial services. >> Um so we have this next bit is shore. My recommendation would be let's go through it and then we collect the questions at the end unless folks have something very urgent on this bit. >> Okay. Member Felder, go ahead and if anyone else has something pressing, let me know. >> Okay. I just want to ask
165a question and you probably kind of answered it uh as you were going through your presentation. And let me let me u prerequisite my comment with this custodial services are difficult to have and to maintain. I'm fully aware uh based on my experience in this district as a teacher over 40ome years knowing it's a constant struggle to try to maintain the custodial services you need and the equipment and the supplies. So, let me just ask this question. Um mops and buckets and things of that nature, who purchases that? So currently today at the elementary and middle school level those are school managed. So those schools secretary bookkeepers would be making those purchases at an element. >> So the principal has a budget. >> Correct. >> Am I correct? >> Correct. uh that they utilize it,
166you know, for the uh custodial services uh to have. Um and is is it expected that when the budget is divided out through schools through the principal and uh a bookkeeper that monies are extended toward custodial services so that our schools can remain clean and sanitized? Am I correct? >> That's correct. And and that's the model we're operating today at the elementary and middle schools. The uh high schools and ancillary sites are currently district managed and then come July 1st, the elementary and middle schools are moving to the district managed model. So our office will then be responsible for providing all the tools, supplies, equipment districtwide. >> Explain to me what's district managed model. What's that? So, our custodial services department, um, we've got a a director, an office staff, and, uh, a team of
167managers, and a team of, uh, inspectors that that go out and essentially support the custodial teams in the field. uh you know, everything from hiring custodians, training custodians, uh procuring all of the materials and supplies and cleaning products that they're using, uh managing the equipment repair and rental, excuse me, the equipment repair program and replacement. Um essentially everything that that has to happen to support the custodians in the school is is what they're responsible for. Um, and with the centralization transition, uh, we're taking some of those responsibilities away from the elementary and middle schools, uh, and managing that with with our district team. >> It appears you have a great model in in place and how things are to be done and what's supposed to happen. Uh do you know the percentage or if there's
168a number where you've had uh concerns where some of the custodial services uh were not done to the expectation of this district. I will say part of our program is with our custodians and ongoing inspection and monitoring. Um and as we looked at centralization and taken on responsibility for more schools, um there's also a corresponding increase in in positions that are being planned to be able to support that successfully so that we can take on uh the responsibilities from those elementary middle schools and and not just maintain service levels but really improve. Um so we do track uh custodial inspection scores and we can get some of that information uh provided to you. Okay. And this is my last comment. First of all, thank you and I know the effort is there. I I do
169I clearly understand. And in closing, you know, we do a lot uh in this district as it relates to uh education and vocational services. And we try to offer our students um just a variety of ways they can learn skills. And because everybody done learn the same way, everybody's not interested in the same type of education. And I think we do a good job, for lack of a better word, an excellent job providing for our students a variety of ways you can learn a skill and make money. And hopefully maybe I can talk to maybe uh the superintendent and and the um persons in charge of some of the uh uh vocational schools in my district that we can begin to train young people like if they decide they don't want to go to school
170or they just are getting bored, we can teach them something that they can learn how to do this and perhaps develop their own businesses, you know, because uh I I just I know the problem has always been not being able to keep custodians and they're being overworked and humans are humans. You just tired. You just it's a lot. So we could utilize some of these young people, get them trained in some of these vocational uh schools so that we can have enough bodies in place at our schools to maintain the sanitary um cleaning that we expect for our schools. And I just wanted to share that and I I'm going to be talking with the superintendent later and she will I'll share some other specific things, but I want to tell you thank you for
171your response. And I knew that we had some in place, but I needed to say it so I can hear it and and know that um we do our best. I know we do, but I know sometimes things fall in the cracks and everything, but you've answered my question the way that I I needed to. >> Thank you for the question. Thank you, Member Felder. Uh, member Gallard, >> wait, she want to say so. I'm sorry. >> Go ahead. >> I just wanted to clarify. Um, our CTE programs do not currently have any um certification programs for that area. >> Okay. >> Um, there's other there's many that um could lead to jobs within OCPS like HVAC full one. >> We do that. That's correct. >> But but I just want to clarify we not
172for custodial services. >> Okay. and thank you for telling me. And the only reason why I suggested that uh superintendent and board is because I know that we have the HVAC and we have all of those kinds of trades. And uh I just want us to not have an excuse for why we can't be expert in every area in terms of how we maintain this district. And uh and I know I may get criticized. I want J. Listen, baby. Everybody's job is significant. Everybody's job is significant. So, I just wanted to make sure that if we didn't have it, okay, I understand. But we just I guess we have to just work a little harder in keeping our custodials uh people, the people that work in custodial services, keep them happy so that we can
173get the maximum uh work from them. Thank you so much. >> Thanks, Bober. I'm sorry. Okay, member G member road before or after this last section questions. >> Okay, why don't we cover the next section and then we'll wrap up with the last set of questions. >> Thanks board. I'm going to cover the remaining topics in our presentation starting with space optimization. As we discussed in December 2025, the district space optimization work supports several priorities. Specifically, the primary objectives of this work are to reduce excess seating capacity and for the district to maintain control of long-term capital assets. To the extent we can also accomplish secondary objectives while meeting these goals, we also seek to lower our overall operating cost ratios, build neighborhood networks of support, maximize facility efficiency, and account for growing areas of
174the county. Many ancillary functions are housed in repurposed schools that were re were previously deemed not economical for renovation. Others, such as those at the John T. Morris facilities complex, are housed in aging facilities or portables. These provide poor conditions for staff and have higher maintenance and energy costs that adversely impact our operating budget. all have significant and in some cases urgent renovation needs. We want to provide a long range solution for these aging and outdated facilities that provides for more efficient space utilization and a reduced building footprint with reduced energy consumption and other maintenance and operating costs. Consistent with our facility's goals, we want to provide an efficient and high quality work environment to support employee satisfaction and retention. The capital needs we have outlined today are summarized in this slide. The delay in
175new schools and capacity enhancements due to declining enrollment reduces the budget requirement for this portion of the plan when compared to last year. Additionally, by transitioning to a 60-year building life cycle instead of 50 years, a significant reduction in comprehensive needs and projects over the next 10 years. Overall, we are focus forecasting a reduction in 10-year needs when compared to last year's funding projections due largely to the delayed needs for additional capacity. We will continue collaboration with budget and finance on the development of an updated capital budget for board consideration during the annual budget adoption process. Our program has significant impact on the local economy both in terms of employment and economic output. This slide depicts estimated employment and economic output resulting from program expenditures during the period 2014 to 20125. Most significantly, dollars invested
176in construction labor are returned to the community through the goods and services required to support the labor force, generating a local economic output that exceeds the initial construction labor investment. During the period, our construction expenditures of almost three billion dollars generate an average of 3,000 jobs each year and a local economic output estimated to exceed $4.5 billion. The local design and construction community is the lifeblood of our program. This slide depicts the number of architectural, engineering, construction management, and trade subcontractors engaged in our program. 30 60 different firms were engaged in our work at some point over the past year, including many local veteran, minority, and womenowned firms. Although both numbers are significant, so are our program requirements and additional firms are needed and welcomed. I want to assure the board that you have a
177facilities team that is committed to ensuring our students and staff have a safe and clean learning and working environment every day. I want to personally thank each of them for their dedication and it is a true pleasure to see the pride they take in their work each day. I'll now turn the presentation back to Superintendent Vasquez. We look forward to the conversation and questions from the board. >> Thank you. That was um a wonderful presentation. It didn't feel like 500 slides. Um, seriously, we do appreciate all the support that you um have been giving our schools, the thoughtfulness um that you have um demonstrated as we are navigating uh new territory with capacity, uh use of our facilities, um con rising construction cost. Um, and I I also want to personally thank um uh Mr.
178Knight, the chair of Cove um for his continued um service and making sure um that we stay within the boundaries. Um Madame Chair, um any other comments uh from the board or questions? We're happy to take >> we have member Gallo. Sorry. Sorry. You know, we gone so many times when you were gonna go that I'll finally allow it. >> You're speak. >> I'm glad you were paying attention. That's all. >> Not listen to you. >> Go ahead. Um, all right. I want to start with the custodial. I just have a question. um on page slide cuz if memory serves me at one time all we placed all the custodians in made them centralized and then we broke it out and they weren't centralized anymore and now we're going back to centralized. So, can you
179explain a little bit about the why behind that and why? I mean, because I feel like it was just a couple years ago that we we decentralized. >> Uh, yeah, I'll start and then I'll I'll leave it to the team. Um, so you're you're right. Um, it's been more than a few years because I thought the same thing, but um several years ago um we uh we did um centralize. The great need at that time was uh lack of personnel. Many um schools were experiencing gaps um in personnel and so um you saw vast differences in the cleanliness of the school. Additionally, um we know from um the OESPA that there were concerns that um some of the individuals that were supervising um the custodians were not following the contract and actually asking them uh
180to do things that were not part of their job description. And so um they they did centralize um and um it it did work and we um remained centralized for the high schools. Um and that um now um really has been tweaked to the point where um uh the custodians have been trained. They have the equipment. um they have the personnel that is able to go out uh verify that the work is being done um the way it should be and that um if there are any concerns from the principal those are addressed. Um we have since um giving the set putting the custodians back under the principal and the elementary principles and middle school principles. We again have begun to hear and see inconsistencies um with job duties, responsibilities um and with conversations with
181the team um with administrators and with Mr. Pard. We felt that this was again the best way to maximize the resources and ensure consistency so that um our our buildings are kept up to this. I think um board member I forgot one of the one of you said the standard um for OCPS. Um so Jonathan I'm sure you can add to that. >> No. Yeah, I think that largely captures it. And you know, in addition, um, over the last few years, we've continued, even with the elementary and middle schools managing the custodians, uh, the district support has increased year-over-year with with the district taking on equipment repair and replacement, uh, the district taking on a a centralized paper product, uh, procurement program. So, this is kind of the last piece is is to really formally
182shift the supervision over uh to the district and and allow principles to focus on on instructional leadership and the students. Um, and you know, our track record with the high schools and kind of where we're at today, this is kind of the next step for us to to really improve service and and allow the schools to focus on what they need to do. >> Okay. Thank you. because I I believe if I remember it was it was the high schools really wanted control over the custodians which >> I mean I listen at East River I I haven't been to every high school but I would argue that East River has to be the absolute cleanest high school I've ever been to in my life. >> Um it it really um was pretty um close to
18350/50 split. Um, and when they dug into the data, if you were staffed and your uh team was effective, you were very happy with your custodian. Um, if you had absentee problems, if you had individuals that maybe were not completing the duties and responsibilities, you were happy to turn it over to the district. >> Okay, that's fair. Thank you. Mhm. >> And then um on page or slide 49, do on the space optimization opportunities, what are we doing with these buildings? Thanks. Um thanks, Miss Galla. So the buildings that you see uh listed here uh will, you know, we'll be having further conversations. Um nothing to share here other than to say these are opportunities for us to look at. >> Okay. um and begin thinking about and and having conversations. Um one of the
184activities that um currently the team is working on that we're going to be bringing to the superintendent is an analysis of all the property that we own. Um that includes ancillary sites but also is land and uh that way we can have recommendations uh to the superintendent on what we think are the ones uh that we're going to need. the other ones um that maybe we need to think about uh putting on the market etc. And so um with our ancillary spaces uh we have more ability to maneuver as a school district um and as we consolidate schools um it may be in our best interest to use those sites for ancillary services. >> Okay, I appreciate that. I have some suggestions since I'm going to assume we're taking suggestions. Of course, um, you know,
185we still have an affordability crisis in Orange County. So, anytime that we could take one of these buildings and and turn it into some type of affordable housing for our employees, that would be fabulous. Um, we have aging employees, so a an affordable senior housing project would be awesome. Uh we still have um more homeless or unhoused people in Orlando and Orange County than we have shelters. Um that might be a possible use. Maybe a homeless shelter, especially since some of these buildings would have um facilities that would work well within a shelter. So those are just some of my my suggestions. Um, the only thing I would like not to see happen is to see these buildings stay for a very long time unused and get decrepit and really be an eyes sore on
186the the surrounding communities. That's, you know, anything we could do to prevent that I would really appreciate. Um, and then finally on page 51, all I have to say is wow. Like this should be a highlight reel when we talk about that we're collecting sales tax locally and we're going to spend them locally. Every bit of that half penny sales tax was funded locally and spent locally which means we just to you said $4.5 billion we contributed back to our local economy and we and that was 3,000 jobs that we provided for our local economy. So, if we don't put that on a highlight highlight reel, I don't know what goes on a highlight reel because that really speaks to the economic impact of Orange County Public Schools within this community. Thank you guys. This
187was a great presentation. >> Thanks, board member Gallo. >> Thank you, Member Gallo. Uh, member Berg. So, um, I'll I'll be quick as well. I just want to um I want to kind of piggyback on what member Felder was discussing. And um well, first before I do that, let me ask a question. On page 42, you said that there are um that maintenance staff vacancies are continue to be a problem, but you said this graph does not show your custodial um correct vacancies. Okay. So, can you tell us kind of generally what the vacancy level in custodial services is? typically around 1%. >> It's low. >> Oh. >> Yeah. >> Wow. Okay. >> Since the since the board moved to the $15 minimum, uh, we no longer have a problem staffing custodians. >> Okay. Well,
188>> I was wondering where >> Yeah. Well, okay. Well, that kind of puts a dent in my little plan because I was gonna say, why can't we? This is a good question for John, and I'm sure risk management is gonna not love this idea, but why can't we hire our 16-year-olds for employment? And let me say, let me ask you why. Let me tell you why. Because constantly on Apaka Rants and Raves or Winter Garden Rants and Raves are parents asking, "Does anyone know where there's part-time work for my high schooler? He's looking for jobs. Is he can't get hired anywhere? Wouldn't it be cool if we had OCPS student employment program for our 16 and up that they could click on and put their resume in and it could be for 16 17 year
189old high school students to go work at maybe at an elementary school subbing custodial services or whatever we can put them where we need them. I'm thinking off the top of my head, custodial, even food service at elementary schools. They could leave high school, go work a couple hours at an elementary school, come back. Technology, I'm thinking all the tech tickets of, you know, when teachers computers aren't working. I think students could probably fix those problems pretty quick. Um, after school programs, that's another place I'm thinking we could maybe put some to work. Just a thought. Great way to give them some work experience, get them some money, help the economy, and teach them possibly a new trade. >> So, so I'm glad that everybody loves it. >> I'm I I think there's I think
190there's a requirement under state law that you have to be 18 to work for a school district. >> I will check that to make sure, >> but yes, >> pretty sure. I think there's a law that allows them to work in construction at 16. >> I I Well, I'm sure they did, but that they didn't make the change in the school code. And is there a way to get around it? >> Yeah. >> Um, of course, I like evading clearly written state laws. That always makes me feel good. Um, I'll have to see if there is some leeway on that, but I will also tell you, you know, there you raised risk management concerns. There will be risk management concerns when you have younger kids working there, especially if they're working with elementary age kids
191and whether or not they're going to be able to supervise them and do those kinds of. So, there's questions to be answered here, >> but my memory and it's been a long time since I looked at it, but you have to be 18 to work for school district. So, I'll check. Yes, ma'am. >> About program some years ago when I was teaching at Edgewater during the summer. Oh, I'm sorry. >> Oh, I'm sorry. Okay, let me get Let me get on talking. >> It's not on. >> It was my turn. >> I didn't even wait for charms. >> Okay. Well, I put it out there in the universe. I would love to explore it. I think that um I think parents would love the idea. If I was a parent and my kids looking for
192employment like here's a perfect example. My daughter has a job at a mall. Last night she had closed the mall. I was at home worried to death about her safety, thinking in my bed. I was laying in my bed like watching my phone if she's on her way home thinking how worried I was. As a parent, I would love for my child to be working in a very safe, secure >> school facility where, you know, there's locked gates and I know that they're they're there with other adults that are going to help keep them safe. So, just a thought. Um, >> so 101232 subsection 1. To be eligible for appointment in any position in any district school system, a person must be of good moral character must have attained the age of 18 years. >>
193Okay. Well, maybe we could maybe we could talk to legislators about that though because if they're not working, maybe I could understand, you know, possibly in a classroom um or a one-on-one supervisory, but if we're talking about serving lunches or >> cleaning a school facility where other students are having after school practice or something like they're not that's not the same thing. And I would think that there would be room to have that >> adjusted in the legislation. Um, and then my last thing was just going to thank you guys for this. It's always a big job, but this this is just like I said earlier, totally on a whole new level of of rethinking everything. And um I've been preaching this a lot the past few weeks, but um especially with all the comments
194about our our district um and finding money and about the district being, you know, comments about it being over bloated, but you know, when you've got 34 million square feet of facilities to manage, it takes a lot of people to do that. and um the work that you guys are doing every day for these for our buildings, our facilities, and keeping everything working smoothly um shows and um we appreciate you. Thank you. >> Thanks, board member Bird. >> Thank you, member. Um member Fant. >> Thank you. That is a brilliant idea, Member Bird. I seriously love it. I love it. I love it. Um we do work in Guatemala and El Salvador. Um they actually don't have custodians over there. It's all students who clean every every once a week. All students are sweeping, mopping,
195doing all the the cleaning the bathrooms. It's just part of chores. It's like >> I'm pretty sure we wouldn't have like soap dispenser problems and bathrooms being gutted and all the craziness if the kids themselves had to put in the work. I also think it gives good work ethic and makes you appreciate where you're at and what you're doing. Um, but just a quick when I was looking at Florida Department of Education, child labor laws and information, um, John, maybe you could look into it. Uh, it said chapter 450.161. Um, talking, but this might just be about career education of children. I don't know. But maybe there is a way um to be able to allow them to come in. It's not they wouldn't be there to be a teacher, right? They're there to have
196a kind of a side job within a school system. So maybe those um being 18 and up would be more towards um like actually having like an educated role of you know what I'm saying like a teacher or in in that sense um a parah whatever it might be. So, I would love that. I think it would be amazing uh if we could get I mean, this says 14 to 17 year olds. I think it'd be awesome. What a great experience for our kids. I think it's a great opportunity for them to be able to have a um a job after school or even if they do the work program and they're able to uh like you said, go from high school, go over to an elementary school and be helping um in that area.
197So, something to look at. Um, as far as the maintenance supervisors, uh, custodial supervisors, I know you said we're going to be moving to, um, a centralized. As far as cost effectiveness, how much is that going to cost us to do that or do we end up saving in the long run? How does that look? Um so any uh changes that were made um for the redistribution of these services was all done under the cost savings. Uh and um Jonathan can speak to the specifics. >> Yeah, we can get you the exact figure, but um as Dr. Vaso said, we had to present a uh proposal that you know met our fiscal requirements uh for the upcoming year, which we did. uh and there's also you know some significant advantages to centralization scale. I mean
198one example from this year was uh switching our procurement strategy for our uh paper products soap. Um I think we are looking at like projected roughly an $800,000 savings districtwide by changing how that was procured and how we were managing that. Um, you know, that's a lot harder to do when 130 schools are making individual purchases, but by managing it at the district level, we're able to we have additional levers to kind of uh make decisions and and control costs that way. >> Awesome. I love to see that. Um, I have here I don't know why I wrote down Cherokee School. I don't know why. You can come back to you for that. >> We'll come back. I don't know what I I I took notes and I I had >> sparked again at some
199point, I'm sure. >> Sounds good. Thank you. >> Thanks, Member Fra. >> Member Vonos. Oh, I don't know if Dr. Anything else? >> No, I was just saying thank you, >> Bonos. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. I am giggling thinking about my 17-year-old who can't keep her room clean or her bathroom clean in charge of cleaning a classroom. But maybe that's just what she needs. So, you know, let's let's explore it. Um, but I what I appreciate about the conversation up here, um, is just is there ideas and maybe some of them work and maybe some of them don't, but I I appreciate thinking about things in a different way. So, I appreciate my board members comments on that. Um, also wanted to I'm looking at the slide about completed maintenance work orders. Um, and
200just want to give you kudos for improving that time um, response time from 12 days to 7 days. You know, a lot of my comments um have to do with just the the community's perception of that OCPS on top of things that they're responding and I think not only is it important for our teachers and our students who are in our schools, but I think for parents too who um you know who I I get lots of emails and texts from. So, I really appreciate your work decreasing that time. And then um on page 46 talking about centralizing some of the work. Um, I mean, great great comments have been made and and I understand why that's happening. I just want to add another I think another benefit to that is I and maybe it's
201just because I'm in the downtown area, but I do hear a lot from the community about some of the maintenance of our ex, you know, the exterior of our building and sometimes I think maybe principles aren't as in tune with what's happening in the outside of their building. Um, and and that really comes to the districts or schoolboard members. And so I can also see one advantage to centralizing more of that is that we have sort of better control of that and making sure that we are being really good community members and partners with our communities like we need them. And I think it's I think that is another benefit to centralizing some of the work. Just wanted to voice my support for that. Um let's see. Oh, and then just another quick comment on
202page 49 for space optimization. Um, I know it is not my district, but I'm just going to put a plug for Kaylee. Please don't destroy that school. Please don't demolish it. It is an amazing historic building, and I would hate to see that not um be there. Hopefully, we can find a use for that particular building. Um, and then my last comment and and thanks to my board members. You've asked so many questions that that I also had, but last comment is um on page 52 just talking about the different firms that you're working with. Um, and I'll I'll share that when I am out in the community or honestly even just at my own kids school volunteering and I'm talking to other parents who happen to be in involved with these industries, some of
203the things I hear are they feel that or there's a perception that the district has like favored construction companies or or favored vendors and it's if you're not one of those kind of you know one of those companies that's hard to break in. I I can't I don't know whether that is true or not, but um but maybe just making sure that you know our entire community understands kind of the process to um and you know to becoming you to to just maybe some transparency into that process into how that works and how um how those decisions are made. >> Thanks board member Vanos. Um, I just put out there for anyone tuning in and listening, we have the trade fair at Jones High School coming up on May 29th. Uh, so we will be
204having uh sessions talking about uh planned architectural engineering and construction uh work ahead with Orange County Public Schools. Uh we're also uh furthering our um collaboration with um Michelle Dhorty and um affiliated uh building contractors. Uh we're also working on um having space with the architectural and engineer uh central Florida association as well. And so uh we will continue those engagements and further those engagements. Um and yeah, we are open for business and um our recent council reviews of facilities construction and procurement are also leading us to a path of looking at performance evaluation tied to contracts uh which will also then down the road enter into those selection processes. And so um those who are doing in scope on time in budget great work um that will be part of the selection process >>
205and if not well I won't say um but I would just say if you and I will ask I'll follow up with you but I would love to share some of those opportunities so that our community does know that they exist and and just try to help help share um and bring awareness to that. So thank you. >> Thanks board member Vanos. >> Okay. Um I have Felder but Felder stepped out. So, member Frank, >> thank you. Um, I do not remember why I wrote that school down, but I do have another question. Um, I know I've brought this up before, but I just want to bring it up again. Um, I've had certain schools that say that they have um parents who own like a plumbing business or um they might have an HVAC
206business that want to help to provide a service to the school if that that company were to be vetted by the school because I know I think that was a a concern last time that it's you know nobody knows who they are. Obviously, they would be vetted. Um, but could that be something where they just say, "Hey, we would like to just work specifically with um, you know, I'll just put Blankner. Um, you know, we work specifically with Blankner School. Not really interested in working with any other school. My kids go to this school. We own this business. We want to really give back and help. U maybe do it at cost or do it at a minimal. um if it's something that's competitive, is that something that we could consider? >> Uh thanks for
207that question, board member Front. I would I want to further vet that conversation with procurement. Um and we'll get some information back to you on that. >> Perfect. Thank you. I know principles have asked me because uh there's certain things I know we have been a little more efficient with uh getting work orders done in a timely manner, which is great. Um, and then there are some instances where they say, "Hey, we've got a parent right here. They say they can come tomorrow instead of in two weeks." Um, and if it is something that we could work hand in hand, that would be uh, pretty awesome. But thank you for looking into it. I appreciate it. >> Thanks, board member FRA. >> All right. Uh, member Fer's not back, so we're wait for that. But
208I'll I'll queue up next. Um, one, uh, I think the superintendent mentioned this, but thank you for the presentation. Honestly, I feel like we got to go deep and and broad at the same time, but it did not feel like it was 500 slides. So, uh that something something felt different on this presentation. So, I appreciate it. Um and to this industry engagement, I echo memberos. I think I know we has been spending a lot of time in the past couple months thinking about procurement and how we engage with the community and other small and medium businesses. This is an area again continue to get a lot of feedback of how difficult it is to work with OCPS, how long it takes or how uh obscure it feels on why someone will get a contract
209or not or how long it takes to go from getting the contract, closing the all of I mean we've you know all of this um so and thank you one for making effort on this. I think we have now reports and reports on the diagnostics of what's happening. Um, but I think this is an opportunity on facilities and construction and everything that we're going to be doing to start engaging our partners who are also thinking creatively and want to help us uh tackle on kind of this new direction that the district is taking. Um, and so that that's great. Um the other question I had was a little bit on the maintenance work orders. Uh the average days to complete and and just how many work I I noticed that the work order numbers so
210that's 44 have gone up or kind of continued to go up. Um our vacancies seem kind of flat. I I just am curious here. Are we getting more efficient? Are people working overtime? Like where where is that coming from? So I'm seeing more work orders about the same days to complete but we still have about the same vacancies. >> Yes. So there's a lot going on. Um so in FY25 that was the first year we moved to our new work order system with Facilron. So with that we greatly expanded the pool of people submitting work orders. Um so we got a lot more of them. Uh which is great because things are being identified and they're being addressed. Um, so we're kind of in this transitional period now where you're looking at, you know, two
211years of data from the old system. We're halfway, we're 3/4 of the way through our second year in the new system. Um, as we finish out this year, we should be able to have like two full years of data uh in one system to make comparisons. But you know, we of course we see the benefit of uh the cap renewal program and the comprehensives and the you know, the investments and replacement systems are paying off. um you know, we continue to improve our work and and try to drive efficiencies and and look for opportunities to improve our practices. Um and but then at the same time, we have increasing fiscal constraints that are, you know, limiting our ability uh to uh to fund some of our activities. So, it's all kind of coming together where
212we've been able to kind of maintain service levels, maybe improve them a little bit. Yeah. >> Um but I know Dr. Border shared uh the previous work session, you know, some of the programs that we're not able to fund next year with pressure washing and gym floors and some of the landscape mulch. Uh so, you know, we are seeing the impacts in those areas. >> Yeah. When we talked about things that are getting cut, uh I think member Vanders, you mentioned that, but the exterior given our budget cuts might be taking uh an unfortunate hit because we just are not going to be doing as much power washing and mulching and all that stuff. Um but I do think uh really exciting to see this is one of those things that I think we don't
213maybe talk about as much how much work we are doing to get more efficient and with the same resources not increasing the average days to complete something. Work orders keep going up. Um but clearly something is working whether it's our comprehensives or our vendors that are getting things done right. um the district really does do a lot uh in this area with not as much and every day so less. Um and so I think that's one area that we can talk about. Um and I bring this up every year on the custodial side of things. I want OCPS to be a great place to work for for everyone, not just our instructional staff. Um and so I always um and I I remember when I got on the board, I one of the KPIs we
214had was on kind of efficiency per custodial worker. And I really push back on that that they are uh working really hard with our students to keep uh the place clean and and organized so that they can have a great place to learn. And so to the degree that centralization also standardizes a bit of how the average custodial worker um gets treated, what's expected of them, uh access to supplies because it used to be really inconsistent of some schools having the new supplies or not. And many times the custodial's fault because they were not the ones putting in the orders. There was all these inconsistencies that I started to see at the school level um that sometimes would impact just like the quality of work and and the dignity of their jobs. And so I
215um always remind in this facilities conversation that that it's a lot of goodwill out there we put on how we treat them. >> So thank you. >> Thank you. >> Um member Falder, I believe you had queued up. Not sure. I saw you got back off. Okay. >> I just Thank you so much, chair. I just wanted to sort of say and I think John probably kind of helped us with that. Um I remember some years ago when I was teaching at one of the high schools, uh either Edgewater or either Dr. Phillips during the summer, the city or either the county hired students and they were 15, 16, 17. Uh, and they worked with uh I I I was in charge of the students that worked at the uh old Warsaw building. That's the
216CR Smith building that's now owned by the Hope Ministries. And there were tutorial sessions going with children and they were doing they were going out doing all kinds of work. Uh and the reason why I said what I said is because I remembered that there were a variety a myriad of uh jobs that they were participating in that why couldn't one of those jobs be at one of our schools? and they were going to the schools, but they were not. I know I was at Lake View uh uh middle school uh supervising group of children and there were some at uh some of the elementary schools and I can't remember exactly, John, what it was, but they were working and they were being paid. They were paying like back then like $1,200 a month or
217whatever. I mean, it was enough money for them to have to prepare to go to college or to prepare to do whatever they needed to do. But maybe, you know, I I I can't remember all the logistics, but I do know they were in a lot of our schools. In fact, that's what the job was. It was going to the elementary and middle schools. So, again, I was back in the uh early 90s, late 80s when I was teaching. So, I don't know. A lot of the rules perhaps have changed, but again, and I know the board members have said it, we I'm just trying to find ways that we can curtail some of the problems we're having and then not have to cost us so much money, but still get what we need uh
218without having to do that. So, you said that we pursuant to that stature that we can hire children to do. So, that's my read on it. But here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to see if anybody else does it, and I will report back if anybody else does it. Now, I may report back and say somebody else is doing it, and I completely disagree with their rationale. However, I will report back. >> No, no, no. It and it may not be it. You know, I could be missing a statute. I mean, but I will look back and see if I I will look and see if there's anybody else doing it. And if somebody else is doing it, I'll let you all know. And if there's any pitfalls that I foresee in it,
219I'll let you all know. But then ultimately, if you all want to do it and there's a statutory basis to do it that's not clearly illegal, then we will have that discussion. >> All right. Thank you so much. >> Appreciate it, John. I mean, the state the state has changed uh child labor laws for very very uh significant ways. So, I don't know that we're we're not breaking state law here on on child labor. We're encouraging um what they want us to do. So, that's great. Um I don't have anyone else queued up here. Uh thank you so much uh team for this presentation and for everyone who came out to listen to this is one of our longest uh work sessions because it is so comprehensive on all the moving pieces. but a really
220important one and I think uh folks appreciate understanding how we are thinking uh strategically about this uh facilities and enrollment and how it all plays together. So um thank you so much um and the board as superintendent. Good to go. Okay then we are ajourned. Thank you. >> Thank you. Heat. Heat.