Agenda 12-12-23; 7-a - Discussion on School and County Capital Planning and Financing Scenarios

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27 responsiblyRecommendations that strategically and schoolimpact the greatest number of students. Investing in impacts student learning,student and staff health,and community vitality. 00 SUMMARY in�� This Long-Range Facilities Optimization Plan supports the This information was organized and analyzed in various mission of Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS) and options ranging from minimum viable repairs through Orange County Schools (OCS) to build an inclusive school potential renovations and replacement. The options were community that engages,empowers,and inspires students vetted through an iterative process with leadership from and provides an education that addresses the social,emo- Orange County,CHCCS,and OCS. Based on the feedback tional,intellectual,and physical needs of every student. received from the stakeholders,a final recommendation This plan provides guidance to county and district lead- was compiled for consideration. ership in making decisions to adequately fund facility improvements while working within fiscal realities. Invest- FINAL RECOMMENDATION ing in school facilities directly impacts student learning, Woolpert recommends that Orange County pursue a long- student and staff health,and community vitality. term plan that prioritizes replacing the oldest, smallest, least educationally adequate facilities with newer facili- APPROACH AND FINDINGS ties appropriately sized and arranged to support modern teaching and learning standards. The recommendation To understand existing conditions and create an action- recognizes that many facilities will never catch upon their able plan, Orange County engaged Woolpert to lead an backlog of deferred maintenance, and even if that was assessment and master planning program for CHCCS and feasible, it would not be advisable. Several of the oldest OCSschool districts.Facility condition assessments provide schools are not large enough to be financially self-sustain- the baseline for school district master planning to effec- ing given today's standards, nor are they designed with tively prioritize capital improvement projects that maxi- modern teaching and learning in mind. If a facility is inad- mize return on investment and the student environment. equate to continue educating students over the coming The components of the portfolio analysis included the facil- decades and has significant condition needs, planning to ity condition assessments, educational adequacy assess- replace the school when possible makes the best financial ments,enrollment,and capacity of 39 school and adminis- and educational sense. trative facilities in CHCCS and OCS.The data was compiled to understand the overall condition and needs of the indi- vidual facilities to develop options and a final recommen- over 15 years. While a significant sum of money by any dation. Assessment information can be found in the 2023 standard, the Facility Condition Assessment identified $1 State of Facilities Report. billion in total condition needs over the next ten years.Only addressing these facility condition needs would do noth- RECOMMENDEDOPTIONS ing to increase operational efficiency or educational ade- quacy.This plan prioritizes replacements and renovations Recommended options were developed after analyz- over merely addressing maintenance needs. ing components of each district's portfolio of schools, including grade configuration, geography, facility condi- PHASING. The plan can be best achieved through three five- tion, educational program needs, proximity of schools to year construction phases prioritized by district leadership one another, enrollment, utilization, and other relevant and designed to minimize student disruption and costs elements. during construction. 1