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19 <br /> 1 If both school boards and the County agree, and the County moves forward with the consulting <br /> 2 assessment, the work group should shift to an advisory role working with the consultant. School <br /> 3 districts and the County should appoint board and staff leaders to continue. <br /> 4 <br /> 5 Chair Price said this report would be discussed with the schools at the upcoming joint <br /> 6 work session. <br /> 7 Gary Donaldson, Chief Financial Officer, said that a consultant is recommended for <br /> 8 creating a matrix. He said they looked at funding sources. He said staff worked with the school <br /> 9 systems for a need-based capital grant. <br /> 10 Commissioner Hamilton said it was a pleasure to work with the work group, which <br /> 11 included commissioners, school representatives, and staff. She said that over the years, a <br /> 12 backlog has developed of buildings that need to be renovated or replaced. She said because of <br /> 13 the cost, the county needs to be smart about it and prioritize. She said it is a complex issue and <br /> 14 a consultant would help. <br /> 15 Commissioner Fowler asked if Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools already had a <br /> 16 consultant. <br /> 17 Commissioner Hamilton said they are doing a facilities review. <br /> 18 Commissioner Fowler asked how that would relate to this project. <br /> 19 Commissioner Hamilton said that a consultant would pull together all of the different <br /> 20 plans and help the county prioritize what schools would be done first and how it could be paid <br /> 21 for. <br /> 22 Chair Price said that Commissioner Hamilton had discussed how the funding could be <br /> 23 determined by the needs of the schools rather than a split in the total number of students. <br /> 24 Commissioner Greene clarified that the prioritization would cross school system lines to <br /> 25 determine which schools are in greatest need. <br /> 26 Commissioner Hamilton said yes. <br /> 27 Commissioner Greene asked what consultants would be qualified to make that <br /> 28 assessment about a county with multiple school districts. <br /> 29 Commissioner Hamilton said it does not matter if there is one district or two because this <br /> 30 examines school by school to determine the needs. <br /> 31 Commissioner Greene asked if there are consultants that can provide estimates on how <br /> 32 to remodel schools. <br /> 33 Commissioner Hamilton said yes, and that Greensboro schools recently used a <br /> 34 consultant to determine this. <br /> 35 Commissioner Richards asked for clarification on how the schools would be reviewed. <br /> 36 She asked who would prioritize the schools. <br /> 37 Commissioner Hamilton said the consultants would help determine the needs and then <br /> 38 priorities would come from that process. <br /> 39 Commissioner Richards said that a combined look at the facilities may be difficult <br /> 40 because of the culture of the two systems in place. <br /> 41 Commissioner Hamilton said she felt that the capital needs task force showed that the <br /> 42 school systems could work together. <br /> 43 Commissioner Richards asked if the districts could not figure it out, a third outside party <br /> 44 would be helpful. <br /> 45 Commissioner Hamilton said that existing maintenance staff are having difficulty <br /> 46 managing projects. <br /> 47 Commissioner Richards said a combined maintenance facility department across the <br /> 48 county could be more efficient. <br /> 49 Commissioner Hamilton said this is an opportunity to pull the districts together around <br /> 50 facilities and there would probably be a separate project manager to oversee this. She said that <br /> 51 they have to try something different, because what they are doing isn't getting where they need <br />