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12 <br /> Attachment C November 12, 2024 <br /> Orange County Board of Commissioners <br /> Major Project Planning Policy Addendum - Draft <br /> Background <br /> The County's ten-year capital plan is a planning document that is updated annually. During <br /> the budget process, the County appropriates the first year of funding, and accepts the ten- <br /> year plan. The County pursued a Bond Referendum in November 2024 as an effort to <br /> replace the oldest facilities in each district and improve the educational adequacy of school <br /> facilities. Due to the importance of these Major Projects to the districts and the county at <br /> large, the Board has specified additional considerations for design, planning, and location of <br /> Major Projects. These are established in the following policy document. <br /> Design and Planning <br /> The responsibility for design and construction of school facilities lies directly with the two <br /> Districts. However, the County has the responsibility for the funding of these facilities. <br /> Therefore, the Districts are responsible to demonstrate how their designed Major Projects <br /> would meet the following County priorities. <br /> • Educationally Adequate <br /> - New facilities should at a minimum meet all current Department of Public <br /> Instruction (DPI) space types and space size standards. These include adequate <br /> spaces for Exceptional Children and for Career and Technical Education. <br /> • Flexibly designed for Future Standards <br /> - Because schools are expected to be in use for long periods of time, and DPI <br /> standards will change in that period, new construction should prioritize flexible <br /> space in design. <br /> • Equitably between School Districts <br /> - As the County is responsible for funding educational opportunities for residents <br /> regardless of public school district, it expects districts to maintain equitability in <br /> scope and construction standards between them. The County can use various <br /> techniques to regulate this equitability, including joint project management, joint <br /> bidding of design and construction, prototype designs. <br /> • Sustainability & Life Cycle Costing <br /> - As part of the County's Climate Action Plan, the County establishes that new <br /> County funded construction should include climate mitigation and sustainability <br /> measures. To properly prioritize these investments, project designs should utilize <br /> life cycle costing techniques, for instance including the long-term savings of solar <br /> installation. However, consideration should be given to the training and <br /> qualifications required for school district operations staff. <br /> • Safety <br /> - New school facilities will meet all modern best practices around creating a safe <br /> school campus, and recommendations from the School Safety Taskforce. <br /> • Community Usage <br /> - School districts should coordinate with municipalities and County recreation staff <br /> to identify and pursue joint community use opportunities. <br /> • Capacity <br /> - District staff will identify how Major Projects would impact the student capacity of <br /> the district. Major Projects should only meaningfully increase capacity for two <br />