By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The Hays USD 489 superintendent said the capital outlay budget is not enough to keep up with the district’s building needs in a report to the school board Monday.
Superintendent John Thissen said the district has not neglected maintenance, saying the district simply does not have enough money to make all the needed repairs.
“The district this size with the number of buildings it has and the age of the buildings, you can’t conceivably tend to those needs with $2.5 million on a yearly basis. We disappoint our principals on a yearly basis because we can’t tend to what needs to be done because we are the ones trying to prioritize what is most important,” he said.
The last bond election for a new building was almost 40 years ago for Hays High School. Two bonds have failed in the last two years.
Thissen said there is a public misconception about the building needs in the district.
“When I first came in two years ago, people said there was a mistake that was made in this district of not fixing the needs every year as they came up. I would go so far as to say they have,” he said. “They have fixed things and made things work. It is actually very admirable you have people over time who have made the buildings work as they are and try to do it as effectively with the dollar amount as you possibly can.”
Thissen said a district of Hays’ size probably would have had another new building in that 40 years since the last major bond.
“We are at a spot that seems very dire. We are always talking about having a bond election to try to make some improvements, but I assure you it is not different from the districts I have come from. …
“The difficulty is there are some who think we can end up running our district on just the money that comes from the state. What is sad is that I don’t believe that is true. There is a push that (schools are funded) locally including the local option budget … and bond elections as well,” Thissen said.
The school district has estimated capital outlay revenue of $2.51 million in fiscal year 2018 and $2.85 million in 2019. With carry over, the available balance in the capital outlay fund would be about $5.66 million in 2018 and $4.48 million in 2019. Carry over numbers are estimates and may be reduced by unforeseen repair needs.
Thissen said he thought keeping a balance in the capital outlay fund is important in case of unforeseen expenses. A prime example is a recent water main break at the high school. The break closed school for a day last week.
The school is currently operating on one water source instead of two. The district plans to replace the broken main this summer. Thissen said he is unsure of the exact cost of the project, but was sure it would exceed the $20,000 mark the district has set to send projects out for bid. Insurance might pay part of the cost.
The district is also facing significant problems with plumbing at Roosevelt Elementary School and issues with windows at Wilson that have not been budgeted.
Among some of the larger line items in the capital outlay budget, $910,000 is budgeted in 2018 and 2019 for building repairs, parking lots, roofs, HVAC repairs and lighting. The budget has dedicated $520,000 in 2018 for repairs to the Hays High School HVAC system. Transportation will account for $317,000 in both 2018 and 2019.
If the district receives more funding under the state’s new funding plan, it could move $284,000 in salaries and benefits for maintenance staff from the capital outlay budget to the general fund budget. This would free up that money to be used on more deferred maintenance projects.
Board member Greg Schwartz asked Rusty Lindsay, buildings and grounds director, to give a broad estimate of the district’s deferred maintenance. Lindsay said he thought it was about $20 million.
Schwartz said, “Right now, it seems like we are trying to plug a few holes here and there and we are constantly behind, and I understand that we have tried to sell two bonds that have failed. If they continue to fail, we continue to be in that same boat. It just doesn’t seem like we make any progress.”
The board discussed technology spending Monday night as well, including a $335,750 expenditure on new computers for Hays High students. The district technology committee has recommended buying Dell two-in-one laptops. However, Schwartz and board president Lance Bickle have advocated purchasing Chromebooks, which would be cheaper than the Dells. The administration and the tech committee have argued the Chromebooks don’t meet the educational needs of he students.
“We have always been on the cutting edge, and some would argue the bleeding edge, of technology expenditures for the last 13 years,” Schwartz said. “I think one of the new areas that is coming in technology is bring-your-own device, but we don’t want to be on that. We don’t look at spending on a Google Chromebooks instead of a Dell.”
Schwartz said either plan could result in substantial savings, which could go to building projects or transportation.
The board is set to vote on the computer purchase at its next meeting on April 30.
The board approved a $42,541 bid from American Electric Co. to replace lighting at Roosevelt Elementary School. The district hopes to save on electricity costs and replacement bulbs by going to longer-lasting LED fixtures. Lindsay said he also hopes to purchase and install light controls, which will allow the district to use the networking capability of the lights. This will allow the school to use timers to dim the lights and use sunlight as much as possible for a further savings.
Lindsay bid specific lights that matched the lights that have been replaced at the high school and other buildings. He said he has attempted to standardize as many fixtures in the district as possible because it requires the district to keep fewer parts on hand and provides for more speedy repairs.
Bickle voted against the purchase, saying the district bidding specific parts and brand names has led to the district paying more for equipment. He favored the district using one of the other vendors who bid for the project, but who were disqualified because they did not meet specifications. Bickle argued some companies can’t meet bid specs because brand name parts are being requested.
The lights are set to replaced at Roosevelt this summer.
The district also heard a report on a bid for roof repairs at Hays Middle School. Staff is recommending the low bid with alternates of $189,204 from High Plains Roofing of Hays. Roosevelt and HMS are the oldest roofs in the district and where the district is experiencing the most roof leaks, Lindsay said. This repair would fix the roof over the classroom areas.
The board is set to vote on the bid at its next meeting.