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<br />MEMORANDUM <br />TO: Rod Visser, Interim County Manager <br />FROM: Jeff Thompson, LEDAHF, Inc. <br />RE: Elementary #10 Budget and Funding Process Analysis <br />DATE: October 10, 2006 <br />Over the last several weeks, I have examined the processes and documentation <br />surrounding Elementary #10 project budgeting, historical budgeting, procedures <br />surrounding the last three elementary school projects (McDougle, Scroggs, and <br />Rashkis), and the existing and contemplated school construction standards. I have had <br />nothing short of the full support of both the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School System <br />staff (Steve Scroggs and Bill Mullin) as well as the Orange County staff (Donna Coffey, <br />Ken Chavious, and Pam Jones) through this process. <br />At this point, I~submit several relevant observations and recommendations to Orange <br />County Commissioners and Staff: <br />1. Conformance with existing construction standards. The Elementary #10 design <br />and pre-construction process is in conformance with the published County <br />policies and procedures. The County and CHCCS staffs enjoy a productive, <br />collegial relationship that fosters this conformance as well as the collective <br />attitude to improving the standards for higher efficiencies in cost and effort to <br />deliver optimal learning and instructional environments. <br />2. Necessity to authorize CHCCS to solicit bids for the construction of a 90,229 <br />square foot Elementary #10 facility and grounds. I strongly recommend that <br />CHCCS be allowed to solicit bids without disclosing to the public through apre- <br />bid construction and development budget to the marketplace. CHCCS loses <br />nothing in receiving bids for construction prior to the County Capital Project <br />Ordinance being presented, debated and acted upon. Orange County and <br />CHCCS must protect and defend their internal planning budgets and allocated <br />development and construction funds against a construction marketplace that will <br />"price" any budget expectation into its offered contract for services pricing at bid <br />time. The same is true .for "soft costs" such as design, engineering and other <br />professional fees. <br />3. Process improvement. On a policy and protocol level, I suggest several areas <br />that can be improved upon within the school standards, funding policies, and <br />accountability processes within the current system. I have presented various <br />themes for improvement with the joint County and CHCCS staffs over several <br />meetings. Both groups have embraced the notion of working together in <br />partnership to craft recommendations for the Board of County Commissioners <br />and the CHCCS Board of Education over the next several weeks. <br />