Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Board of Education third and final work session for the recommended fiscal year 2026 capital budget and the fiscal year 2027 to 2032. Capital Improvement Program. I will begin today's
meeting by having my colleagues introduce themselves. For the record. Good morning. Natalie Zimmerman representing district two. Good morning. Carla Silvestre, school board member at large. Good morning. Buenos dias. Good. Rivera-Oven representing district one. Good
morning, Brenda Wolff. District five. Good morning. Rita montoya, board member at large. Good morning, Laura Stewart. District four. Good morning. I'm Julie Yang, district three. All right. Today's work session is the third and final one for
the board to ask questions and provide feedback on the superintendent's recommended plan prior to board action on November 20th. Our business meetings, the board really appreciate the community's
feedback through public comments, public hearings, and also additional emails and testimony that have been posted on the board docs. And we will take all these into consideration. And before we make our decisions and and I
will turn it to Doctor Taylor to start the presentation. And I know that it's another long one. So I want to schedule breaks in between. And I will let you know ahead of time and
my colleague ahead of time, so that we know when we're stopping for breaks. I just look through the packet that will take questions after the school security system. I will take questions after the restroom renovation, and then
we will do questions before the follow up information and then after the follow up information. All right. With that Doctor Taylor. Madam president, I'm an optimist. It's a lot of information, but let's hope it's not a long one. With that being said, let's dispense with the formalities. I'm going to
kick it to the experts. We've got a couple of new faces who will also be joining as subject matter experts on a couple of areas. As always, we have Andrea Sueoka, our deputy chief for facilities management, our
chief of district operations, Adnan Mamoun and DJ Conolly, our capital budget manager. They are going to be leading today's presentation, but we also have our Chief of Safety and Emergency Management, Marcus Jones, as well as a couple of folks in the audience.
I see Doctor Jeff Sullivan and Jamie who are also here to provide some additional support. Thank you. You may go ahead. Good morning. So we would start just going over the highlights of the recommended CIP. Our
request for major investment. It is a major request obviously more than we have done in the past. 2.77 billion is the total. We have a new prioritization framework based on condition utilization and adequacy, life
cycle, life cycle planning, countywide initiatives, sustainability, making sure our modernizations are energy efficient and choosing that over replacement in many cases, and then non-capital action. We have recommended a countywide
elementary boundary study to reduce split articulation and align with the new high school patterns. So just a quick reminder. In the first work session, we talked about the enrollment information and overview of the funding. And we talked about facility data and
prioritization, the rationale and the explanation for that as well. As we talked about individual large school projects and other educational facility projects. In our second work session, we did talk again, talked about enrollment review, and we went
over the countywide elementary school boundary study. And then Sims and Sligo Creek Elementary School Crown CSC replacement. And we talked about P3 as a potential alternative financing method. And then CIP prioritization data. We dove
into it last time, and then district wide infrastructure projects. Today we're going to be focusing on countywide in our CIP, which would include the security, HVAC and roofs, Ada compliance, peeler,
restroom renovations, BMP which is building modifications and programs improvement, and outdoor play space and athletic infrastructure. And then after the presentation is over, we will go over the follow up information requested during the work sessions. Just a quick
reminder to saying that our work always aligns with the, you know, goal three of M.C.P.S. strategic plan, and we want to make sure our capital investment ensure that modernized and accessible and sustainable facilities for everybody, and that provides
equitable opportunities for every student and a safe, healthy workplace for every student and staff member. And then very quickly going over the timeline. We have already had work sessions, and then the superintendent had virtual
listening sessions, as well as multiple public hearings. And then we're here for the last work session today, and then the we will be back in front of the board for the board's decision on November 20th. With that, I will pass it over to
Mr. Conolly to take us through the countywide projects. Sure. Thank you. So good morning. Today is all about countywide projects. So we will be presenting multiple different countywide projects, and we are happy to discuss any ones that we do not cover. So this is the
overall expenditure schedule for our countywide projects. They are broken into various buckets of money, whether it's Ada compliance, asbestos abatement, so on and so forth. We've already covered quite a few in previous presentations.
We've covered the alt ed programs, the CSC replacement, early childhood centers holding school improvements, our elementary and secondary major capital projects, our materials management building relocation, which is our warehouse, as well
as our transportation and regional support facilities. So these projects, we always get questions, what is a countywide project? It's really these various buckets of monies that can be used for multiple schools throughout the county. So some schools are going to
need some fire upgrades. Some schools need to be painted Ms. Yang. We brought that up under the peeler, which we'll go over. So these are just various buckets of money that we can address. Smaller but very important projects to our schools. Just like everything in our school system, safety is
first. So we thought it was appropriate to start with our school security systems. PDF these projects cover a variety of different security features within our school. Our infrastructure. When it comes to safety, you can see our FY
27 priorities, which are our crisis alert system, security, camera modernization, door sensors, and digital floor mapping. And I'll let the expert, Chief Jones, get into this a little bit deeper in a second. And you can also see
our six year plan here. So something we hear quite a bit from our MCC PTA leaders over the summer. They provide us comments from the clusters and administration is we need enhanced security, whether it's additional cameras, ACS card
readers. We've even heard it in this year's pubtestimony. So this bucket really takes care of ACS card readers cameras. Thankfully, we have security vestibules at every one of our schools. That was a big priority for us in years past. So that is not included
in this because we are now 100% completed. And if Chief Jones wants to elaborate a little bit more and we will take questions after this bucket of money. Thank you, Mr. Conolly, and good morning to the board and to Doctor Taylor. With Mr.
Conolly state is is absolutely correct, as we are really trying to look at a multi-year modernization plan for our schools. When we look at the world of security, and that comes in part with
collaboration from the Department of Business Information Services, who is a great partner in helping us to come up with the infrastructure and dealing with a lot of the technology centered around the different resources that we're we're that we're planning and
that we already have, as well as our facilities management team. As we look to shore up the security at our schools, one of the first things that I really want to highlight is that there is what I call a
aging infrastructure and M.C.P.S. for a variety of great tools and resources that we have, but they are really aging rapidly and they're really past their their time. When I say that, I talk about camera
security systems and servers that are actually that record the actual activities that are important for safe and secure schools. So as we talk about this, not only is it our security systems that need
updated, we're also in a need for access card readers, as noted that we have had on our schools for quite some time. And there's new technology and integrations that we need to upgrade that in order to have
more efficiency for our staff and our entry for our visitors, our visitors management systems and the like. So these are the things that we are actually looking to focus upon. And also our alarm systems for our schools and facilities. I have
noted that we've got some alarm systems that go back that were actually installed in the mid 90s, and these systems are now nearly 30 years old, if not older. And it does again, when we look at alarm systems that
have evolved in technology, the more efficient and that we can upgrade those and be more, more compatible where we are in today's environment, particularly with talking with our camera systems and the like,
those are the things that we're looking at upgrading in that aspect. And then when we look at our new projects that, again, are a part of this plan, first and foremost, I'll mention digital mapping. This is something that I know the state
has provided some guidelines for. For school districts we have been in. We have been in meetings with, in contact with the state in regards to those guidelines and creating and preparing for digital mapping
to work with our public safety partners for their responses. Knowing exactly the layout of our schools and understanding that that's available to them as they are responding. As an
example, it also provides more detailed information on exact room numbers. It also provides detail as it relates to exactly where our AEDs located in our schools. Where are fire extinguishers located in our
schools? These are the things that will help our public safety partners in their responses, as well as to help us from an emergency management standpoint, to help address situations that we have, and also speak about the door
sensors. Our door sensors, again, are something that I've I think I've presented before the board before, as we've talked about having the ability to have alarms on our doors, both secondary primary schools
for our lopers as an example, that many of our schools and I talk to principals often who have major issues with that. And these are things that would help us also with unauthorized entry into our schools, that we've had some incidents where
students have actually either opened doors and allowed other students who may not actually go to that school, who are there to actually to disrupt our, our school day. And these are these types of systems are compatible with our alarms that
would be able to notify school administration and school security immediately of the exact location of that door being opened. And so this is a major project that we would have at all of our schools at all. And to include our special
schools to make sure that there is adequate coverage. Now, all of the doors would not necessarily be alarmed. Not every door in every school that is humongous, but we identify
the main doors that the principals have identified, and we've already done that. We've had our cluster security coordinators do an assessment and an audit so that work has already been done. So we are really have been in the planning stages of this project. But then again, this is
something that I again reiterate that I, our principals are really asking for this as a as something that will help to help with them in their security related responses to their school events. And the last thing that
I'll note is what I think is very important, that I think that really for our system to be as large as it is and as many events that we have, again, to provide the actual real time
emergency notifications and better communications, which is a major challenge for us, is a crisis alert system that involves having a panic button type system that allows for immediate notification by by
staff and administration of events that are occurring real again, real time, exact location. The technology does exist, as we have been speaking with several vendors in this regard, but this is something I think is vitally important. And
we again, we really looking at this project as being at the top of, at the top of our, our ask for, for the coming fiscal year. But as you can see that, again, with it being major, I think again in the largest cost.
But this will be, I think, very fruitful in so many ways as I have described. So those are just some highlights of of the, of the request that we have for these projects for the CIP. Thank you. Thank you. Chief, I'm going to open up questions
for my colleagues. I know that school safety is really very, very high priority for the board. I am very pleased to see investment in this area. So I'm going to start with Miss Silvestri. Please go ahead.
Chief Jones, the crisis alert system that you just described, would this be a button that where who has access to it? How widespread would it be? So there are a couple of features that that are available. We
have not made any decision on which way we'll go yet, because there's a lot of testing in the light that we really need to look at research. But there's two ways to do it that's really formidable. One is a panic button option. It is a actually
button. It's a card that you would actually have. Example just like your ID, and you'd have the ability to press it multiple times for the different types of emergencies that you might have. And that is something again, it is geo
based. So wherever you're located at that particular time in your building, based upon the signals that, that are this, that are actually relayed, it would actually when you press that button, it would automatically notify emergency
management all of the necessary people to include the 911 system in the event of an emergency that so, for example, that requires a public safety response. So that's one way of doing it. There's also the technology that does exist that
involves our cell. It has cell phone app capabilities that allows you to do the same. I know, you know, there's a lot of discussion about cell phone coverage, right, about the availability of cell phones and
many of our schools, which is a real conversations. One thing I also say to folks, when I've talked to many of the vendors involved in the cell phone technology business, and we talk about cell phone coverage, one of the realities that
sometimes we miss is the fact that schools were built in many years ago, and then some. And again, my friends next to me probably have more to say about this, but they were built as bomb shelters, and when schools were built as bomb shelters,
they're really kind of like, don't give you that that flexibility in the world of technology that we have today that allows you to be able to have great cell phone coverage. And for some of the service
that we have. If I just to clarify, and I know there's a lot of questions, so I'll be brief, what kind of crises are we talking about that would warrant pressing it could be it co be a medical emergency. For example, you could have a
medical emergency of a student who might, you know, might be injured or fall out in the middle of a hallway or a class that allows, again, medical emergency. So a medical emergency, it could be an active shooter, right? It can be again, any incident that
requires again, notification for security for immediate response from what are we using right now if we don't have this you know what we what we utilize. We we really don't have that capability other than
our, our security teams and administration communicating either through cell phones or notifying people on radios of notifying our non 911 centers in order to get those responses
there. This would have an automatic notification to those to that without having to create that avenue of communication happens in the classroom. What tools does the teacher have right now in order to alert the school that there's a well, again, they
they would probably would probably at best would be probably like their cell phone. Right. And different schools have different mechanisms. Some have phones, phones in the classroom, some have intercom in the classroom. It really just depends on the school site.
Yeah. Thank you. Yelling yes miss Rivera, remind me again can I do two questions. One question. What was it? I want us to go one question. I think miss Miss Silvestri is the same question. That's. No, no that's fine, I just yeah because I
have three. But it's a follow up a question follow up is good. You can do the okay it's a conversation okay okay. Just we will be brief. So that to the point. Yes. Question for just a follow up is that chief is do
any jurisdictions comparable to us have this kind of technology currently? Yes. There are jurisdictions that utilize these type. There's a system like well I would say like one that I visited has been
Stafford County. I know that I believe Fairfax County and has has a system. Many of them are going to either what they call raptor technology. That is, again, this is that crisis alert system that is giving real time notification, camera
notifications, all of that. The one of the things that I'm concerned about is the cell, the cell I am as well. Yes. Although we're talking about old schools, I'm talking about new schools. Absolutely. Right. I was at Harriet Tubman last night. There was no reception
right anywhere in that school. Right. And so before we go investing a lot of money into things that might not actually be able to work, right. I would like us to look at various options. So, so understanding
that the that the when we talk about the panic button option that is not based on cell phone technology. Correct? Okay. So that's why we are and again some some companies are starting to really kind of expand their capabilities of
having both. But the reality is is that, you know, we we want to make sure that whatever we do is consistent across the entire district. Right. That's exactly right. And if we could look at our friends at HHS and other folks who use panic
buttons currently and who they use, right, I think that would also be a good idea. So my question, my number, the question that I have was just like we did the HVAC evaluations and roof evaluations in our schools. I'm
interested to know if we have done an evaluation on our alarm systems in our schools, and the age of our alarm system. So I would also like to know, just like I asked with the bleachers, what is the lifetime of the bleachers? What's a lifetime?
What is the lifetime of an alarm system? And not just in the sense of working, but also technology wise, right? When does it become that? Yes, we have an alarm system, but it's not adequate anymore, right? I
don't know, have we done anything like that I don't well, I know we've, we've done it. We are in the process, I should say this. My office, I gave direction for us to be able to start. We started with cameras. We've not yet arrived at the
alarms, but we know that we've got, you know, that we do have a an array of alarm systems that have been in place for quite some time. Our entire notification system, I would deem it to be outdated. Right? I mean, as technology goes,
generally when you talk to our experts, they generally say alarm systems. The life of an alarm is usually about ten years. So again, that's what we want to have these conversations with our the potential vendors as we talk
about what is the lifetime of the these types of systems that we put into place. And I guess Andrea, my, my you know, where I'm going with this. I, I think it would be great to have the same thing that we did with HVAC, like a ranking of that.
You would say, you know, this is definitely something that has to be at the top of the list and has to be looked at. And definitely we need to replace this year. That would that would be great. And I'll hold for my other like a ranking like rank the schools. Yes okay. Yes yes. That's
that's what I'm going just like we did with facilities with facilities. And just like we did with HVAC. I just think that's really, really important. These are things probably that we have not thought of. I mentioned you said that some of them have been since the 90s. I
would argue that some of them have been there since the 80s. And so I think it is really important for us to have a really good roadmap as we, you know, as we go forward. Thank you, Miss Montoya. Thank you.
I'm really happy to see the idea of a crisis alert system. I know we still have to look into it more and kind of work out the details, but I'm really happy to see that. My question is kind of a general one. So when we look at a lot of these,
these spreadsheet charts in other areas, it might say. Harriet Tubman Elementary, this item expected budget, this amount. But when we look at the school security systems line
items, we don't see that same specificity. And I know when we talk about school security, there's a lot of reasons why we are a little more vague in our details and information we provide, because it could actually be a security and safety threat. And so just I want to make sure for my
understanding and the community, why don't we see more specificity in terms of which schools might be getting these items? I think I have an idea, but I want to make sure. Yeah. Again, I the first thing, the first, the first thing I'll
focus on is like, you know, one of the things, like I said, we stayed we've done is to really go and look at each school to see when exactly their systems have been put into place. And I'm primarily focusing on
cameras. Right. And the one thing I can say is there's been a staggered approach over the many years, and I'm going back. I'll go back at least to like 2007. Right? I can tell you. Like, for example, we have
recently replaced camera systems that were put in place in around the 2007 to the 2010 year time frame in about 15 high schools. So we've replaced this year alone camera systems
in 15 year, 15 high schools. But we got a lot of work to do. When we look at the overall theme. And this is why I we could provide the board with right, our schedule of what we think is, you know, when we
look at a replacement schedule, moving that forward, because that's something that I think it's important for everyone to know when they should be anticipating new systems coming into place. Everybody has a camera. It's not that we, you know, we don't have that. Every
school has that. What we are looking at is to enhance and upgrade the cameras because of the age of them. Okay. So and whether it's here or not, because again, I don't want to necessarily highlight like, oh, this school has a security issue. And so right. We don't
want people to know that. But I just just so that we're clear that there is kind of a maybe the ranking is the right is the right word. Right. There is something that we're looking at to see who should be up next. And that's based on, on these kinds of factors. Yes. Right. Exactly. Wonderful. Thank you
so much. Thank you. Mr. Thank you for this information. And especially on modernization for schools. My question is, are there any pilot programs I should ask? What pilot programs do we have today or what are
you planning? For instance, I know there's new technology and cameras and AI, so are we looking into that or are we piloting? I mean, I know there was some snafus. A couple places also might have saved
lives. So yes, we are looking at some. We've got a pilot that we have on deck. I'm looking at utilizing AI with cameras. So so those are things we'll continuously research and report back out to the board.
There were things that we think could benefit the entire school district. And again, one of the things I've always you always hear from me, and I think it's for us to to make sure that we have a, a fair and a just
system, right. That covers everybody, that we're consistent in everything that we do from whatever for all of our schools. And so this is something that I'm really focusing on is like, if we can do it at this school, I want to make sure we can do it at that
school, because the way our schools are designed and that can be challenges. So that that's very important. Just a quick follow up on that. I actually talked to one of the vendors that they do this kind of work. And I was thinking after some of the issues we
have around our schools, certain intersections, etc. if we could capture near misses so we know better to keep our kids actually arriving to school safely. It's just things I've been thinking about how we could use that technology to
make to make sure our kids are safe. Part of our technology, I want to stress, is something that I'm also, I think it's important for us to to think about is to expand it beyond M.c.p.s. And we're working with, for example, the police
department and the county's emergency management. The police department has really developed a a system they call the real Time Crime Information Center that they're tying into cameras such as that. So the intersection cameras that are
near our schools. Right. And that that could be something, again, as we all tie in sort of that information that helps everyone, right? It can help us from a sy perspective and to work out challenges that we have that we can see real time.
So those are things that we are venturing into as we are talking about upgrading our technology, but bringing our public safety partners involved in that and seeing how we can all collaborate and make this more efficient. I appreciate that collaboration. Thank you.
Chief. Yes and no. Just for clarification, is the crisis alert system for all schools? Is the door sensor project for all schools? Is the security camera modernization that will sweep through like cover all
our schools in different phases? Yes or no? Yes. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Rivera. Evans, very quickly, you mentioned digital mapping, and it's my understanding that this was actually as part of a
law to do the digital mapping, am I correct? So it's a it's a it's a it's not a law to mandatorily do it. It's a law to follow the, the requirements that that the state has established the guidelines that
that if you institute a digital mapping system that you have to follow that it's not that, it's that you have to have a digital mapping system. But would you would you agree that it is necessary? Oh, absolutely. Okay. Oh yeah. We're way behind. We're on the same page then.
Yes. Because I do have to tell you, out of a lot of all these things, when you have an emergency, God forbid an active shooter and the police respond when you have a fire out of control and the fire department responds, digital mapping can
make the difference. Yes, because it is updated to real time. So you're talking about making sure because some schools, as we know, with a lot of crowd that are crowded, sometimes they turn a closet into a classroom or they turn,
you know, something else into something else. So whatever you intended originally to use that, it changes with time and with the with years. So to know exactly where everything is when there's an emergency, to me is absolutely crucial about
saving lives. So do you have an idea, a timeline, when we're going to be able to to achieve this? And I'll just give you very quickly. And Doctor Taylor knows, over the summer I was going home and there was a fire at Watkins Mill Elementary, and
I see all these fire trucks turning into Watkins Mill Elementary. My heart just stopped. So I going in. They were trying to look for because it's a very old school and the fire department and the folks there, they had a very old map. And I'm telling you, it was
like when they took it, it was falling apart trying to figure out where the box was for all the electricals. And they had changed with the with the time. And that took it took a while. Right. In an emergency. So, so that's my concern that it's not unique to Watkins Mill
Elementary, but that other schools might be in the same position. So. So the question is timeline. Yep. So I so I will tell you that we are ready to go. All we need is the funding. And how long would it take to do this. It would
literally I mean we could probably have this in place probably within about three months of the funding being approved. And have we to to Mrs. Stewart's point of piloting, have we done a piloting with digital mapping
with anyone. We. Yes. And we you know, we've worked with some of our emergency management just to kind of get an idea. We work with one vendor. They kind of gave us an idea of what this would look like. So but the reality is I think we the technology has
moved so forward and I think we're ready to go. I think we are really ready to go. More than half of the states in the United States actually require this. Maryland is a little bit behind the curve. And so this is not new technology. It
actually can be done relatively quickly. Yeah. We've already given vendors our our our our information and they're ready to upload it and ready to go. Thank you Miss Silvestre. Thank you. I don't see anything in the plan for weapons detection.
What what are we in our exploration of technology to help us detect weapons? So I would just say we're in the very early stages. I didn't think it would be really fair for us to put this information right now in the budget for us.
I think we need to really assess the different weapon detection systems that are out there for us to really come back to the board and Doctor Taylor to, to to provide some recommendations on what we see as what we think could be, I think by us doing some work
already with our cameras, with some AI that might give us some other options that could be inclusive, but I think we're I would just say we're at the very, very early stages of that. I'll just chime in on this very briefly. So in the short period
of time, in the last 450 days or so that I've just been in Montgomery County, the technology has evolved rapidly and there are expensive options, and there are are less expensive options that do
similar things. But this is also an idea that that needs some socialization. And we probably need to interact with this with a lot of community engagement before I think we're ready to to insert this as a
future CIP cost. I think that there are a couple corners that still need to be turned in terms of technology, before we're even ready for that. The school systems that have this have a mixed reaction of both positive and negative outcomes.
And so I think at this time, as pressing as that issue is, we have other safety measures that that seem to be a lot more pressing at the moment, that really would elevate our safety more tangibly than some of the solutions we see in weapons
detection right now doesn't mean we're not interested. We're very interested. We would love to see this take shape. We've talked to a number of vendors already. We would like to continue to explore that, but we think that the next critical step is really
socialization. Before we bring it with a dollar sign attached to it. Miss Wolff looking forward to that. Doctor Taylor. Yeah, I was just going to say, following up on that I don't think that the technologyy
car dealership saying, I want to trade in my car for an electric car. He said, not this year. Wait till next year and let's look at it. So I want to be sure that we investigate all kinds of weapons detection
systems, because those kind of mistakes do nothing but lead to liability for us. And just to give the community a little more context to miss Wolf's comment, there was another school district here in Maryland, actually, where a young high school student, a black high school student who had a bag of chips and that bag
somehow was detected by the technology as being a gun. The police came up. I believe they had guns pointed. You can obviously understand how traumatic of an experience that would be for that child and any peers that were around, as well as the family and the school system. So I think it's important to me as well that we
make sure that whatever we're using is accurate, is going to work, and does not just provide a false sense of safety to the detriment of our children and some of those instances. So we will have safety and security conversation coming up on the board. Work sessions today is
we are focusing on the budget item. I thank you for your sharing the information. I want to move on to the next session. Thank you, thank you. Excellent. I'm going to take us through the next couple sections. I do want to remind the board and
also the public that might be listening or listen to the recording. In chapter five of the book, we have short descriptions of all of our county wide. So that's a great resource for people that want a better understanding of what's included. And then for the first time ever, you know, we're showing snips in this
board work, doc. But if you go to the M.C.P.S. CIP web page at the very top, you will find the expenditure plan, the real ask, and in there, all of these are linked into an exhibit document. It's a Google Sheet document. I know many of you, probably all of you have accessed that, and
the public has been accessing that over the last couple of weeks. So while we've included snapshots in this presentation that is available, it's not in the formal book, but it is on the web page and available for the entire public to access. So that is a very different strategy. We've never shared this much before, and so
excited to sort of share our spend plan for FY 27 and the out years. So with that, I'm going to take us through HVAC. This is certainly a very important topic for many people on the screen. Right now we have FY 27 and our proposed
spend plan for that. This is one of the county wide where we have listed every single school for the six year plan. You know, we do want to caveat this may be subject to change. As facility conditions change. We might need to move a project forward depending on the
condition. But you will see a mixture of elementary schools in here that often range from anywhere from 7 to $8 million. You will also see middle schools and then the high schools and sort of the nuance difference with each of these. And we have a schedule that will show when we're asking for
an elementary school, we are asking for the entire funding for the whole project. That is also true for a middle school. So you can see MLK on here as well. You know, it's a $14 million project. That is the entire project. In lieu of asking for it across two
different fiscal years, we think it is better so we can get the same contractor, one design team as well. An elementary school typically takes us one summer, if not two summers, depending on the size of an elementary school. A middle school, at a minimum
will take at least two summers, if not three, depending on the size of the middle school. And a high school often takes us at least four. And so that is why you'll see in there, you know, Sherwood High School, we're asking for the first phase. So the first summer of construction. And then you'll
see that repeated. So you'll see phase two of three in FY 28 I'm going to flip to the next. I know this is really small. Again everyone's welcome to to look at it online and zoom in. Whoops. Stay here for a second. But you'll see the different
phases for the high school. And I just wanted to point that out for you all and for the public that the difference in the way that we are requesting funding, if we ask for a high school and one fiscal year, it will take the majority of the budget. And since we cannot complete in one summer anyways, we thought it was important to actually
spread that across the different fiscal years. Okay. So here is just to give you all in the public a sense of of how we work in terms of a timeline for HVAC. So, you know, this summer, using this as an example, we reviewed the work
orders, the data, we identified the priority of needs. Certainly, we have come to you all with our recommendation in October and November. We will anticipate receiving County council approval this coming May 2026. And the funding will load on July 1st. From there,
we hire the design team and the HVAC contractor. You know, we work through the design process, the permitting process, the state approval, because these are state funds, we do have an extensive state approval process. They need to receive all of our documents in order
for us to receive that 50% match at the state level, and then we need to finalize those permits and award the bid and procure the equipment. And often these are long lead times. So with FY 27 funding, we would imagine those schools would start construction in summer of
2028. And then in that last bullet we've listed, like I mentioned, typically an elementary school is 1 to 2 summers. Depends on the size of the elementary school. A middle school at a minimum is two summers, if not three. A smaller high school, we might be able to squeeze into three, but we are often seeing at
least four, sometimes even five. We'd like to really keep it to 4 or 5 is incredibly long, so on average we're seeing about four summers for a high school. HVAC. We've also taken a similar approach where we've listed out schools for all six
years. The budgets do range wildly because of how many additions we have done over the years. This roof replacement often includes just a portion of the building based on the oldest section of the roof. So they, you know, there might be
an addition that was built in 2001 and that funding, you know, that roof might still be in good standing condition. And so we are replacing the oldest section of the school. And so that is why you will see varying dollar amounts of each of the roof replacements here. And then we also have the six
year again that lists out each of the different schools that we are proposing. And 28 through 32 keep going to the next one. Ada, the Americans with Disability Act is an incredibly important one. We
shared this slide at the last work session, so just wanted to quickly highlight it and remind everyone that back in 2017, 2018, we did a complete assessment of all of our schools. We've provided the link here to our website. Those are all available for everyone to access. And in those reports,
it gave us a breakdown of priority one. Through priority five. We continue to work through those really focusing on priority one, making sure that the entrance is accessible, that parking is accessible, and then we're working our way through the different needs in
the facility as well. And so we've provided a list for FY 27 for this one. And then a sense of, you know, the funding for the FY 28 through 32 as we move
our way out. Pilar stands for the planned lifecycle asset replacement. We often say, Pilar, this has quite a few different items in here. So we take into consideration, you know, asphalt repair, concrete
repair on the exterior, interior, things like casework and locks. This is actually I'm going to jump to the next slide because it was so long for FY 27, we could not quite fit it all on the screen. So there's additional items in FY 27, we
often get asked about the interior painting of a facility. So there's a number of schools proposed on there as well. So it's quite all encompassing. We also have doors and windows, other things like gym flooring
replacement is used in this pilar bucket. And we'll go through one more and then we'll pause for questions. Restroom renovations is another big topic for us and this is a mixture. So you will see things like single occupancy restrooms.
So often that encompasses a number of those scattered. Those could be staff or student restrooms. And then where it says restroom renovation, that would mean the multi-user one. So where you have multiple stalls and sinks for for boys and girls in there. So again
depends on which ones we and sometimes it's all of them throughout the entire facility that we are focused on. And you can see the schools listed for FY 27. And then we have given you a sense of in the out years for 28 through 32, that we will
do a mixture of both the single occupancy and the multi user occupancy. So we will pause before we move on to the next section for questions. Sure. So we are covering a number of questions. I just want to say
that how pleased I am with the details that's providing. If we look at the take an example of the plan life cycle, what school is being painted, what schools elevators, work is being done. So I appreciate
what schools lighting is being done. I appreciate this level of of information for board member and for the public. I'm going to start with Miss Stewart for questions. Sure. So
I know we've talked about how when we do, I think it's called a renewal. You have five systems or more. Then you kind of package that together. Is that like reflected in any of these? Like I'm just want to
how is that intersecting with these charts. So the five multi system approach you're talking about is a renovation and or and or renewal. And though we don't we don't have them in the CIP right now. So it wouldn't be. But for instance if we were
to do a renovation or renewal, a renewal such as Sligo, it would. It's already wrapped up in the Sligo renewal. But for renovation, we would like to get to a point where there are, especially with roofs and HVAC, because they have the same life
expectancy, which is 20 years. So they should be sort of aging out at the same time. So wouldn't it make sense to do a roof and an HVAC project where you have cranes on site, and maybe move those schools to a holding school and it would be quicker and easier? We would we
could actually do it in one year instead of a multi summer phased approach, a high school, we could probably do over a year or two versus 4 or 5 summers. And I think the last phase, the last system that we did was Watkins Mill High School had five phases for HVAC,
so it can take five years, just to be clear. So this is a future strategy, a future point. We still need to do the work, right? Yes. We still have plumbing issues. We still have electrical issues. So absolutely. And then should I wait for the my next question.
That's fine. Okay. Thank you for checking. Mr. Miss Montoya, thank you. And this actually relates to something you just said because one thing that I noticed, and it sounds like maybe this is is the plan in 2032, it looks like though other high schools are getting
things in one phase at a time. Churchill High School is scheduled to get phases one and two at the same time. It seems, at least based on what we're being asked to approve, while simultaneously in that same year it looks like they're on schedule to get a roof
replacement. So is that kind of the idea here that if we're going to have all the big machines out there, let's do it all in one go. Is that something that's going to be completed then in a summer I recognize it's still, you know, six, seven years out. Yes. But also the thought with the
renovation strategy is ideally we would get to a point where we could actually move out the entire school. Not possible right now with Churchill, but in a year and do some of these so that we're not I mean, it's incredibly hard to do many of these in a short eight week. We
can do it over the course of a year. It's only a year that they might be in a holding. And let's knock out at least five of those and then we can get state funding, because right now we are only eligible for state funding for roofs and for HVAC. It is not eligible for restrooms and other things so
that if you package it together, then we can maximize more of the state funding. Okay, but then it sounds like whether it's this year or in a few years, we're going to be talking about where the Churchill students going to go during that time, I guess.
Right. These are the questions the community starts to ask when they start to see these things. And again, recognizing this is way out in time. None of us might even be here at that time. Who knows, right? But right. If we're looking at that, then I think those are kind of some of the questions
that people start to have. And I have other questions, but I'll wait. Wolff can I make a clarification? Yes. Just to piggyback off what miss was talking about with the the multi systems, as everyone knows, our enrollment is declining and a lot of our state aid for our replacement
and renewal and some of these other projects are enrollment driven. Their capacity projects. So we are envisioning and we are trending towards a lack of state aid for these capacity projects. So these replacement, these tear down and rebuilds
are most likely not going to be state eligible. Okay. The only way we could make them eligible is if we do these multi systemic approach where eligible enrollment eligibility is out of the window. So if we go with that approach we're actually eligible for more
state aid too. No. Absolutely. And that's why I wanted to make sure that we explained that whole thing so that people don't just look at one part that feels alarming to them. Thank you, Miss Wolff. Thank you. My question is on roof replacements, are these anticipated to be done over the
summer while the building is empty for all of them, correct? Yes. Okay. I just have another short one. You know, people want to know why we don't do more HVAC work. But I'm looking
at this and it looks like to do HVAC for one high school is $32 million. That should tell you why we can't do. But so many of them at once. That's my only comment. Thank you. Okay, Miss
Rivera Evans. Thank you. This this is a great list. I think this is very transparent. You know, we talk about transparency a lot, but sometimes we don't see it. This is really great. When I'm looking at your six year total
plan for HVAC I just want to one of the things you said about the the funding that we're not going to have state funding for a lot of these projects. The first two projects on there, Doctor Charles Drew and Matsunaga, they did get state funding
correct. However, what happened because are we was it not enough? And now we have to put in the difference, correct? Yeah. It wasn't a state aid issue. It was. We developed a scope of work and we got bids back and they were much higher. Just a lot of like a lot of
school construction. And so we are eligible to reapply for more. So that cost increase of so for Matsunaga was 2.15 in our state aid request and 1.2 million. That's reflective of the the overage that we saw. So
drew came back 2.4 million and Matsunaga came back 4.3 million more than we were were expecting. And so that is why you see that. And this is we've done this in the past. It's not just this year. Okay. Sorry. Did you say that we might be able to apply for more state
aid based on the amounts that came back in the bid? So this could change a little bit to obviously to offset if we end up getting that covered. And we did. It's on page 13 in our state table where we asked for additional state funding to match this cost increase. That's in the book. In the book.
Yes. Okay. Let's be clear. 13 of the book. Yes. There's a whole breakdown of which projects we asked. And you'll see all the FY 27 HVAC projects in addition to these two, where we're asking for more funding. And I guess thinking about these projects long term, as we
have less enrollment, I think we need to kind of revisit this to see what this really is going to look like on our dime, and maybe some of the rules of the state need to change a little bit to accommodate to
the needs of local school systems like ours. The only thing that I also had asked before was because people are going to be like, why is Matsunaga getting, you know, why, right? Because people are like, why? And at least I know
there was a lot of school interruption during the last couple of years where there was no learning going on because we had to close. That's one of the schools in my district. We had to close or not have school at all because there was no HVAC
during very hot days or during very cold days. So one of the things that I had asked and, and, and I know you have a lot on your plate, but maybe this is for later for transparency wise. Is that HVAC, roofing and
so on. Bursting pipes do have an effect in the learning environment and for education to go on, and it does take away time from the classroom. And I think something that's something we have not in the past. Got information on, but I
think that might be also something that is good for when we get when we go for state funding and so on, that those things are taken into account because I don't think they are currently. Yeah we do. I want to highlight in our countywide and our CIP that we do have a separate PDF for emergency
replacement of major building components. So this is what you're exactly talking about. Whereas Matsunaga we had planned on replacing anyway. But if something comes up and we need a temporary chiller or temporary boiler, we do have and we increased it significantly. This year was
1.5, I believe, in previous years. Now we're asking for 3.75. So we accounted for that because we know we're we're back. Backlog and miss. A page 13 that she referenced the page. We'll come back to the
community Silvestre that Miss Silvestre, I just wanted to reiterate Miss Rivera Evans point about just the changing nature of our schools and the funding that's coming from the state. So if it's dependent on
increased enrollment and enrollments not going up in most school systems in the DMV, so they need to kind of relook at the formula so that we are getting state funding that meets the needs of the school system. I mean, that you don't
fund a renovation of a bathroom that needs to be relooked at, because the bathroom is a critical component of every school. So just I think that Miss Yang, this needs to be part of our discussions with our legislators. I think we've talked about this already in
terms of relooking at how school construction dollars are allocated to meet the needs of our current school system. Thank you for that point, Miss Zimmerman. Thank you. My question is about HVAC and it's
about the phasing. So I'm looking at, for example, I see Montgomery Blair listed in FY 29 for that phase 7.5 million the following year in 2030, I see phase two at 8 million.
Then in 2031, phase three is 8 million. And then in 2020. I'm sorry, in 2032, 9.5 million for phase four. Can you explain like why like is it that each phase costs more? Are we like
why does the cost increase for each phase? Is that unique to Blair? It doesn't seem unique to Blair. I see it for other schools. But just to explain it a little bit further, yeah, we are taking into account cost escalation. Got it. That takes place each year in construction.
Okay. So inflation. Yeah I had a feeling that was why. But then that leads to another follow up to that. So each phase in theory should cost the same if we were to do it in one bundle. Correct. Okay. Thank
you. Thank you. My comment is less related to what project that is being scheduled, but more to Doctor Taylor and to our whole school system. If I just take a look at the HVAC
for for our school system each year for 2027 is projected $55 million. We are a huge system. How do we through procurement process? Because we have scale
that we can get as best a deal as possible for the school system. Do we have strategies because we want these dollars to go far? So scale is not really the the issue. And and economies of scale definitely
help here. And economies of scope also help here. The the issue that we confront is to twofold vendors that have the accessibility to do work exclusively in the summer, which is a limitation because we we cannot do this work
successfully when the buildings are in full utilization. And secondarily, you know, candidly, we need the dollars. And so it maybe isn't so much about procuring in bulk because, candidly, we are already doing that, but it's our our reach
and expansion to additional vendors who have the capacity to work exclusively in the summertime. Okay. It's good for us to think about these things because we want project to be done, but done at a rate that
that is is beneficial to us. Okay. Mr. my question is on the difference between we replacements and ventilation projects. We have two ventilation projects, New
Hampshire Estates and Goshen Elementary. And and how are we prioritizing this list? I mean, yes, we would love and I would like to prioritize HVAC
projects in our CIP for this year. But for some reason, we can't do the 55.6 million. How are we prioritizing and how does the difference between replacement and ventilation might even work into that
prioritization? And what's the difference? Well, ultimately it's going to come back to the board on how you want to prioritize what projects move forward. I'll defer to the team in terms of making some
recommendations and some suggestions, but my best advice, clearly, HVAC has elevated to the point where where we really do need to have a concrete plan over the next two decades on how we're going to get the train back on the tracks. But
to look at the CIP as a whole and look at other projects that are also going on in the CIP and what creates funding capacity so that you can you can cover more of this and maybe less of something else. But and I agree with that strategy, I just want to make
that clear. But I also want to have context here between the different projects. Let me just briefly explain the difference. So you are correct that we have New Hampshire Estates and Goshen are not a full HVAC replacement, meaning all of the heating and cooling elements
are not being proposed to be replaced. What's being added is what we often refer to as a doas unit, a dedicated outdoor air system that provides that ventilation. And in those particular schools, and like many, right, we have continued
to experience mold issues. And with the lack of ventilation in there, it creates a condition where moisture is more common. And so these projects are aiming to resolve some of those issues. If it's a replacement, like the Strawberry Knoll and Flower Valley, it would provide
both new heating and cooling along with the ventilation component. Okay. Thank you for clarifying, Miss Montoya. Thank you. Thank you for all of this information. I think it really helps the community to better understand. I really appreciate the timeline that you had a question I get all the time
about everything is why does it take so long? Right. So I just I appreciate that. I wanted to take us back to the question that Miss Rivera-Oven had about Drew and Matsunaga, and you were explaining how basically the bids came back way above what we would have anticipated, and that you did go back then
and ask for more state funding. So I just want to make sure so that the community can completely understand. You mentioned page 13 of the book. So for the community's benefit, this is the book we're talking about, right? The CIP proposed budget. And page 13, you're talking about chapter one, page 13. Right. Because the numbers
are a little different than we might typically notice. And specifically in this chart, we're looking at the fiscal year 27 state funding request. So for Matsunaga and Drew we can see that we got some funding previously. This is the cost of the bids the 9 million and the 8 million. We did
request more funding, but the amount of funding we got additionally really pales in comparison to what that overall cost is. So these numbers that are in here, the 2.4 million, the 4.3 million for Drew and Matsunaga, that's what's still left over. That needs to be covered. Right? Okay. So even
with the additional state funding request, we still have this amount that we need to fund to be able to get these in. Thank you so much. And that's at 50% correct. Yes. So it's 50% is what miss Wolff. My question is more of a comment. It's on Ada compliance. You
know, we started these projects before and we have not brought them up to code. I don't think we should be doing projects unless we're absolutely able to bring them up to code. And I think we need to admit which schools we just can't do that at. It's just not possible.
Which we know is a problem, and that it needs to be rebuilt to, to be accessible. Thank you. I just wanted to make that comment. So on these schools that you've listed here, they can all be brought up to code,
right? I will circle back with you on. Many of these are just touching the first 1 to 3 priorities. So again, really trying to prioritize what was done through the assessment. We
can take that strategy. But priority one is really making sure you have an accessible can't get into the school. The rest is sort of a moot point. And that was the recommendation that came out of these reports. Yeah, I looked at that. I saw that you were mostly doing
entrances and that's great. But if you're doing anything inside a building, it needs to be brought up to code. Thank you, Miss Wolff and Miss Rivera-Oven, just to follow up on Ada, I noticed my sentiments are the same. If we cannot bring them
up to code, it's really mute to do anything. And just like we're transparent with certain things, I think it is important to be transparent with with Ada compliance. I did not see Damascus Elementary here, so I'm a little nervous. So that's actually in the follow up. So
we'll get to that because that's not funded. It's using FY 26 funding okay okay. Because I know that's definitely a priority one okay. Thank you Damascus. Miss Zimmerman that was my question. Thank you. I also have an Ada question. In looking through, I
have to admit I don't see the slide number. This slide that's up here right now in clicking on the link provided there where we have the like the compliance data in scrolling through. When I look at two of the schools listed here, they
have the two gray dots which is saying not applicable due to recent or completed capital projects. Can you explain further why they're on the list? Can you share which ones you're looking at for the public? Yes.
Let's see. I saw now I lost it. Sorry, I could guess which ones you might be looking at, but like a stone gate might be an example that they have received their full major capital or replacement after these reports were complete or it was
happening at the time that this was right. So that, you know, this is seven years at this point. And so likely it was either something that was in construction at the time that this assessment was taking place that was about to start construction or that construction has happened after
this. So it's more of a statement about the data being old, correct, about why we're moving forward with these projects. Correct. Got it. Then. Do we have an opportunity to refresh this data? We can. It was something that, you know we discussed that I brought up. I
you know, there's so many different things that we do need to assess. I do think we have not gotten through everything by any stretch. So it all is still very applicable. So I think we just have to be mindful of using consultant time for something that we still haven't gone through the full list. So I think we'd like
to discuss that internally as a team and happy to circle back. Yeah. If it would be possible to find out what cost for that would be, that would be helpful. Sure. Thank you. My question to the team is about relocatable classrooms, as we are seeing a
lot of removal as the school enrollment plateau and decline on the spreadsheet. I see removal cost. Okay, that's a cost. Then I see allocation to say, hey, we need new placement.
So what? What happens when we remove something and do we reuse it? Or just walk me through a little bit because I see removal, but I also see re placement, you know, so anytime we remove a relocatable if it's
within we're still in active lease we can relocate it to another school that needs it. There obviously are costs associated with that, but the lease would continue with that relocatable. There are new fire codes that are if we are to
install a new relocatable, it's much more expensive to the tune of like another 50% of what we currently do. So while there will be pockets of enrollment growth, we do want to account for that. And we also want to account for relocating the relocatable to different
schools. I think you will see too, in the relocatable classroom. It's not one we're presenting here, but it's a county wide. If we go to the very beginning, it's towards the bottom of the overall list. We are showing a decline, so we start at 4.5 million of the request in FY 27 and sort of
work our way down. That is our hope and goal as we see the decline that we can start to remove more and more relocatable as and don't need to renew those. Correct. Okay. So so that's a good that help
us with our understanding. Mr. I'll pass for now. Sure. Miss Montoya, I have two more questions, but they're in two different categories. So let's go ahead and start with roofs or roofs. I'm not sure how that maybe someone, one of the teachers can correct my grammar.
Wooton and McGruder are still on the roof list, and so this is where things just get a little tricky to understand, both as a board member. I think for the community, we have various proposals on the table. We see that the CIP captures some parts of some of those proposals, even though we all
understand we still have to work through the process. But then for other proposals, it doesn't seem to be capturing. And then we still have. And these are millions of dollars, right? These are not small. You know, we're not just adding some weather coding or something like that on there. So just help me to understand and help the community to
understand, please. So because in the original superintendent's recommendation, McGruder and Wooton were not in the six years those roofs have really passed their point of expected useful life. And so knowing that they weren't coming up for the next six years again, when the original
superintendent recommendation came out, we also did not feel like we could wait another six years to replace those roofs. Now, in lieu of the additional options that are out there and some are whole replacement, some are renewal. The one advantage to a roof is you. Often if we do a renewal where
we're gutting the inside of a McGruder and Wooton, a roof you can reuse like that is probably one of the best investments we could make for renewal project, where we could keep that existing roof. We might need to redo patches here and there, especially if we add an addition or if we, you know,
add any additional HVAC equipment or change that. But it is a fairly solid investment, even if we keep it and then do a renewal down the road. Okay, I remembered my question, but I might have some follow ups, but
I need to think about that for a moment. So. Mr. There's a lot here. So we're trying to get through everything I noticed in peeler, there's masonry and concrete work at certain areas.
I just want to make sure. Do we go back to work that was done somewhat recently. What is under warranty? Do we follow through on that? Because it does seem to me that, for
instance, for instance, I think at Damascus Elementary that concrete wasn't that old. It was already coming apart. Can you let me know how we follow back with contractors to make sure that, you know, they
installed it correctly? Yes. We are trying our best to constantly be checking in on warranty, particularly roofs. Probably as the primary example. And HVAC, those have extended warranties and we are constantly if we have an issue,
we were just huddling as a team the other week to really make sure. Right. This is an overlap between our maintenance team and our construction team. And, you know, at the school level, they need one method. They need to submit a work order, and they don't need to worry about who is doing what behind the scenes. And so we were just
talking through that process of making sure it gets to the right people on our facility side of, okay, how old is this roof? The school is saying it's leaking. Is that a warranty issue or is it the maintenance division? So yes, we do try and our asset essentials to track everything. How long does that warranty last so that we are
sending out, whether it's a contractor or whether it's our maintenance team? I would love to hear more about that. Maybe in fiscal management. Thanks. Last question, Miss Montoya. Then we'll move to the next session. Well, I have a follow up to that. And then I had another question about another
section. So if we're going to move on to a whole nother section, I think that we need to ask both of those questions also. So if it's a brief or we can always follow up with email, go ahead. But if we follow up with email that information does not go to the community. That's the purpose of these sessions so that the community
has the information. So as a follow up to my question, I appreciate the explanation. I just need a minute to digest that. So. Is it cheaper, though, to have the roof done as part of a rebuild kind of a package, if you will, versus we're going
to have the roof done and then maybe later we're going to build the rest of the school, and maybe it's not, because maybe all those pieces get added up and it's the same amount, I don't know. Yes, it can be. If we're going to put it all under one large, you know, construction manager. Yes, there can be economies of scale
and savings there. And does that affect because you talked before about like with Winston Churchill doing the HVAC and the roof together, that helps us to qualify potentially for more state aid. And so here, if you're just doing a roof, whether it's Magruder, Wooten or any other school, does that mean we wouldn't qualify for
the state aid because we're not packaging it with another system? So the the way the state aid works specifically for any systemic work, including the renovation, we're talking about where we're targeting five building systems. The state's calculation goes back 16 years. So if they do
participate in the roof, they. So let's say we replace the roof of Magruder in 2031. So basically when we go back to ask for more money for renovation, they will take that roof part out of that. Okay. So
they're looking at a 16 year window from when you request what if you've requested any other systems it goes system. Right. It goes into that five system package basically. Right. Exactly. Okay. Great. Thank you so much. That makes a lot more sense. My other question had to
do with restrooms. I noticed that again, for a lot of these we have like a very detailed right. This school needs this and this much. But I noticed then for restrooms we don't really have that after the fiscal year 27. Is it because these are just all the orders
for restrooms that we have, or we haven't figured out exactly what the ranking order should be in terms of who needs what? We do have a fairly detailed list. I think part of it is just restrooms is an interesting one. It can also be
funded in Ada, so it's also trying to land on where we land with how much funding we're going to get through Ada because things are solved through that. So I think for us it's trying to be as transparent as possible without not overcommitting and putting too many pieces out there. Okay,
so we recognize that other schools may also need restroom upgrades or renovations. ET cetera. And just because your is not listed here, it's not that we don't know or we don't care or anything like that. Right. So the plan would be to come back and for FY 28 right when we do an amendment year
and really spell out hopefully what certainly what we're doing in FY 28, but also trying to maybe even include FY 29. Okay. Wonderful. Thank you so much. Thank you. I understand I have one last last last just a follow up to to to that when you did the ranking or maybe I don't know if you did the
ranking of the bathrooms. But when you're talking about are we talking about special education bathrooms for example, that might need renovation or might we might need to add a special education bathroom, because there's now a new program at a school that wasn't
there before. Absolutely. So we that would typically come out of either or the restroom renovation, which we're going to talk about the building modifications and program improvements. So if an elementary school gets an autism program, yes, it's it might be a bathroom, but it also might be a bathroom, a
prep space and observation room. All encompassing is under that window. Yeah, because there's quite a few of those in my district that, you know, they just got new programs, but the bathrooms are not quite up to code to be an Ada or an observation room or so on. Okay.
That's good to know. And I also learned something new. Thank you, Mr. Arnold. I didn't know there was a 16 year retroactive in that formula. So that is also good to know. I love when I learn new things. Thank you. Thank you for your work. Let's
move on. All right. So we just talked about this a little bit. The building modifications and program improvements. This bucket of money really does cover a lot of different things. Whether it's science lab
renovations special modifications. We really envision this pot of money being, you know, able to accommodate these regionalized programs in the future. So while we do have a six year plan, these it's it's important
to note that these are all subject to change. Right. Because if if a school receives a new program, we are going to pivot. If there's a school like Twinbrook and Damascus elementaries, that they were in the CIP for a major capital project, and we know they have
Ada issues, we are now going to pivot and reutilize some existing Ada monies for those schools, which we are going to get into. So that is why you see subject to change, because these do change year to year. So the restroom one Miss Montoya, they will change. And I want to make a point that we
talked to our Department of Maintenance every single year, all the time, especially over the summer. How many work orders are being placed because they might not be able to take care of it where they thought, we have three more years left in this restroom, this group restroom, and then it just starts failing over over that
year and we need to adjust. So we are constantly pivoting. So these are just projections and estimations. But yes this the the PMP fund really does cover a lot of very essential parts of our programmatic piece of the building. All right. And we
will go over our outdoor play space and athletic infrastructure PDF which this is a new one. This sort of builds off we have had in the past, an outdoor play space bucket of money that helped with playground replacements.
But quite frankly it wasn't enough. It was 450,000 per year. And you can see with our our new budget, we've significantly increased this. I know we're going to talk a lot about turf, but this does encompass Ms. Rivera-Oven. You know, you were
talking about bleachers and guess what? They just like every other asset in our school building have a life cycle. So it's whether it's in the stadium, whether it's in our gymnasiums, anything. And it's not just athletics, but it's also playgrounds. And you'll
see in both this FY 27 chart as well as our six year plan, we have placeholders. We do have a plan of where these these different playgrounds could go. But again they will adjust year by year depending on playground inspections and things of the like. So for FY 27 you can see
we've slated for 3 to 4 elementary schools to receive playground assessments and replacements. New turf installations at Magruder, Poolesville, Springbrook and Watkins Mill high schools, and turf field replacements at
Richard Montgomery and Walt Whitman high schools. We'll get into this a little bit later, but typically a turf lifespan is between 8 to 12 years, so we we target about ten years for this. This is our six year plan.
You can see it sort of mimics what our FY 27 plan is. I would say at some point we would like to expand and even go with more line items with bleacher replacements, LED lights at our stadiums. Because our stadiums are not just used for athletics,
they're used by the community, they're used for pep rallies and other school events. So same with the gyms. So so this is just an all encompassing, both from an elementary school playground standpoint to our secondary schools with their
gymnasiums and their outdoor facilities. We presented this last work session, but these are the the current schools that have synthetic turf. We currently have 12 high schools, one middle school and one elementary school. Right now,
we're tracking in today's dollars to be a full replacement, which means you're digging up the ground and you're putting the subgrade and then topping it off with the turf to be about $2.5 million. And for those schools like Whitman and Richard Montgomery that just need the top part
replaced is about $1 million. So these are the schools. And we were asked to have the most recent year. And this is actually on our athletic site as well. If anybody wants more information, doctor Sullivan and his his group have a very
detailed they show us maintenance assessments and things of that nature. So this gives the public sort of a view of where they're at and leading to the next slide. This is a
map of where the turf currently exists, where we plan on placing them in FY 27 and then the the five years to wrap up our six year CIP. So I'm going to orient everybody to the to the legend with those different
colors of triangles. So the schools in green are right now they have existing turf. The blue triangles are projects that are in our CIP currently, meaning major capital projects, whether they're Crown, Northwood, Woodward or Damascus.
So these are schools that are part of their major capital project would receive turf. The the black triangles would be that chart that we just showed to have recommended new turf. And then the red ones would be the ones we would get to the
next five years. So the plan is to have turf at all 27 high schools by the end of the CIP cycle. But this gives you a snapshot of where it currently exists, where we plan on going in 2027 and beyond. So there
are various costs. We've been asked this quite a bit. We have gotten quotes just as of last week. We wanted to get as up to date costs as possible. So this this shows you the upfront capital costs as well as the yearly maintenance and
operating costs. You can see that natural grass is is much more cost effective in terms of the initial site work, but it's more expensive to maintain yearly. You can see it's $634,000 for natural grass
field, but the maintenance is much more expensive. And there's reasons for that that are in the bullet points above. So with grass, you have to line it, mow it, treat it, aerate it, topdress it, overseed it and
water it. This these costs do not reflect gas or maintenance for the mowers that you would need for the grass, the turf fields. And I'll let Doctor Sullivan get in to the to the nitty gritty of these. But the turf fields already come lined.
You don't need to water them. We do have $12,000 worth of overall maintenance. So that is all reflected in this cost chart. I think we're good. All right. So usage this was an eye opener putting this these
numbers together. So currently right now it is sort of an apples to apples comparison. We do have 12 high schools with natural grass stadiums 12 high schools with synthetic turf. That is because Northwood is offline and is over at Woodward. So it actually broke down
pretty evenly. So the average use average hours used per year for all high schools. So for the natural grass this does reflect all 12 high schools that have this the natural grass stadium. And then for the synthetic turf line it does incorporate all 12 high schools
that have synthetic turf. So we currently do not use our stadium fields for PE. Our physical education classes. Athletics uses them over 6600 hours a year. And then for the community use, we went on the
2025 Cuff report and we found that natural grass stadiums were used 261 hours. So for all 12 of those high schools that have natural grass, that came up to just under 7000 hours for 2025, synthetic turf PE, we
used 4.7 hours of use per day. That is to allow for changing and to get out to the to the stadium field. So that's a little over 10,000 hours. Athletics uses them roughly over 15,000 hours and community use over 20,000 hours. So
that's that was a pretty glaring comparison for just under 7000 hours to just under 46,000 hours. And in this table, this shows you a breakdown of both the costs and the usage
available. So you can see the upfront costs for turf is almost $1 million more. But the amount and these numbers for the estimated usage is over ten years. And again we did the ten year maintenance and ten year
usage based on the effective use of life that we anticipate for turf field. And then the last column, it's a breakdown of of what it costs both your upfront capital and your ten year maintenance. Estimated ten year maintenance cost over ten
years for both natural grass and synthetic turf. Okay. Thank you for this presentation. Thank you for Doctor Solomon for joining us. I'm going to open up for questions. Miss Zimmerman, please go ahead. Thank you. And maybe I missed
it, but could you explain further why physical education is not using natural grass? So the physical education classes are not on national natural grass to allow the fields to rest. So they're typically
using the practice fields or other facilities around the campus, but not on the stadium field. So typically our natural grass fields are only used for games. So our grass field schools are not practicing unless there is an extenuating
circumstance that requires them to practice on the fields. I see. Okay, miss Silvestre, I have several questions, but I'll start with safety. Over my seven years here on the board,
we've had different student athletes come to testify about different fields and how they've caused injuries during play. Could you? I didn't see any data about that comparison. Could you talk about why why
you feel that the turf fields that you plan to put into all the schools are going to be safe for our student athletes. So the artificial turf technology continues to evolve and get better and better. And what we see in our play amongst the grass and artificial turf
fields is that they're both safe for our student athletes, and we do feel confident in our artificial turf fields, in providing safe spaces for our student athletes. I do want to reference the Olo report that provided some data and
information as well regarding injuries and safety. There's some references in there. Most notably, I believe it was 73% of the studies showed there were no differences between artificial and natural grass fields. With the newer
technology, it has evolved the shock pads, and you see that with the G max and the hardness. And all of our maintenance reports are on our website, real time, so that the community can see that we are maintaining these fields
monthly as well as conducting prior to the fall and spring seasons, G Max testing on the fields. And those results and those reports are posted for our community. If I could just clarify, Doctor Sullivan's working from memory, but I am
actually looking at the Olo report, and I just want to clarify that it does. The reports you're citing say that over 53% of the reports reported no difference in overall injury rate. The report also does note that the type of playing field is not solely
responsible for the type of injuries, and so there's a lot of variability in that data as well. What's the date of the report 2004 I'm sorry, I'm sorry 24 I said 2024 July 30th 2024 I apologize I know. Yeah.
Nope. 2024 thank you. Okay. Miss Rivera Evans. So I'm just trying to understand if there is no difference. And the artificial turf fields cost
more. Why is this a good thing? So I want to reference our core values for MCC Athletics of equity and Access. And actually the slide that is up in terms of the hours if we can get that pulled up, the artificial turf
fields provide an exorbitant number of hours of use, not only for athletics but also for our physical education classes throughout the school day as well as our communities. And not only are they providing the hours, they're providing a top
notch playing surface that is lined and ready to go and is resistant to any of the weather outside of thunder and lightning. We're playing. The games go on not just during the weather, but also the days that follow. Significant rain events
and the fields are safe. They're playable. And what's what's happening right now is our artificial turf. Fields are becoming homes for our grass field schools to play on. When there are significant weather events, they're calling their neighbors and moving games to
play on turf so that we can continue to get the games in. Additionally, the artificial turf fields, I'm talking about the games there, but the artificial turf fields open up a practice space, and so the schools with artificial turf
are able to practice on those fields in the afternoon hours prior to the games in the evening. And so that keeps students on campus. And so I want to reference some of our newer schools that are under construction, Crown and Woodward Crown in particular.
There are no middle school, elementary schools, park fields remotely close to that campus. So we're going to have to be shuttling students off campus for practices. We're doing that at a number of our campuses
right now, especially with the addition of Girls Flag, which has been a wonderful thing. And we have the student interest and participation numbers to support adding junior varsity girls flag in the fall season. That will mean there are ten
teams sharing the stadium field just for games, and we've got to find a practice home for all of those teams. So the artificial turf fields open up that access point and provide equity across the schools and
providing a top notch playing surface for our games. And I think when I say top notch, I think we speak to we look to our state championship, our state semifinal events and where those games are being conducted all on artificial
turf. We have actually hosted the state championships for field hockey and lacrosse at Paint Branch High School here in Montgomery County. When college campuses were not available, they called us and said, Hey, Jeff, can we come
down and host these? And we did. So that speaks to that consistent level of playing surface, that artificial turf provides, and the confidence that the games will go on. I also want to speak to the
community use aspect. So while we are not allowed to or we can't really open up, we're allowed to. We really don't have the ability to open the grass fields to the community as much as we'd like, because our programing is using them extensively. When we have
artificial turf field, we remove that and open the doors to our campuses, bringing our community in to use the fields. This not only occurs during our seasons, the fall and the spring, but also during the winter and the summer, where
even our teams are not using them. I'll give you a quick example. On the winter, in a couple weeks, our grass fields will be covered by turf blankets. They will be completely taken offline and covered by blankets to assist the grass with growth. No one
is using the fields for three months. The artificial turf fields though they're being used all the time by PE classes when the weatherows, and our community groups are all over the artificial turf. From mid-November until March 1st
when our spring season starts. A similar thing happens in the summer, when we've got to take the fields offline to allow the growth of the Bermuda grass. I appreciate that as someone who grew up in this community and who went to a high school that
went back to back championships, we didn't have turf fields and we still hosted many of those things. So again, I guess the community has still has some concerns. I know you're saying equity, but when this program was started, it was really not started with an equity lens. So I'm going to push back a little
bit on that. But again, I just my, you know, as as we have seen science advance with turf fields, we have also seen signs of advance with grass. So I really want us to do a very
comparable. Comparison. I, I think my belief is natural is better. That'st my personal belief. As I said, I grew up in fields and we, we, you know, we turned out okay. But you also
hear about and I appreciate Miss Sylvester's question about injuries that also we have heard of injuries of when the turf field is too old, it overheats in the summer and we have kids who have gotten burned and other things. So I just want to make sure that we
are doing the evaluation. And and I appreciate the fact that, you know, this is this is a new thing. But as somebody who grew up in the 80s, I grew up on on good old grass, and I know as somebody who who was the head of cough for many years, I know
we had a lot of advancement with Bermuda grass and other and other things where we can also. But one of the things you have not touched on, Jeff, is also the fact that our weather has a tremendous impact on that. So I just would really like us
to to be very conversant before we invest even more to ensure that the options, you know, still more expensive than what it is. And we are facing some financial times ahead of us. So I appreciate the equity lens as
well. But like I said, I push a little back on the fact that when we started, you know, turf fields, we really did not look with an equity lens back then. So but thank you for that. Can I just chime in real quickly on the pilot conversation? We have been collaborating closely with
parks right there in a very similar situation to us, constantly evaluating the differences between natural grass and turf. And so we are in communication with them. They did pilot a very extensive natural grass field, Hillandale Park on,
just south of White Oak Middle School. For us within the first two years. And they have some really great photos. I know they're finalizing their evaluation of it and report, and I will gladly share that with all of you once they have shared that final assessment of
it. But they too are struggling when it comes to fields that have high usage. That is a lot of what this is about is just anything that has a high usage is hard to maintain from a natural grass. So that has been a very good pilot for us to watch and utilize. I think to
assess. I think it aligns with a lot of our high school usage, and so happy to share when they have finalized all of that. Do you have a timeline when that? Very soon. I was hoping maybe before this meeting, but not quite. So I'm hoping in the next month or two that we can
share that. I mentioned that I would be very interested to see, because technology has evolved in both areas, so good data will help us. All right, Miss Montoya, thank you. I was a student athlete. Softball.
Right. You're in a field. So I definitely a lot of this conversation sounds very familiar to me. The difference was that I grew up in a place where it was just hot and dry, so we didn't have a lot of the challenges that we have here in Maryland. Right? We have moisture all year round. I have
little kids. We have to have all the weather clothing out all year round because you just never know when things are going to happen. I remember when I was coaching Little League for my kids, we routinely could not use the field because there was puddles and flooding, and even though it's a couple days later, it just doesn't drain well. Despite all the good work from
our friends at Parks and Planning. So I am concerned about usage and inability to play, and also to practice where you're going to play. I think we don't really talk about that as an athlete when you're practicing somewhere else and not on the actual
field. It is different. It is different. And if we have these athletes that want to go to play at the college level and beyond, then we really need to make sure that we're providing them with the same types of things that they would get. Quite frankly, if they go to a lot of these expensive private
schools. Right. So I that usaget I also have a concern as a mother about whether or not to expose our kids to any harmful materials or chemicals. I know that, again, there's been lots of technologies with these fields, so I don't want us to
get into a space where we just think about maybe how the fields were when they initially came up as a potential product, and I didn't know if anyone could speak to that aspect. I can speak to that. I think the initial concerns around that centered around the crumb
rubber infill that was used and in M.C.P.S. right now, all of our fields are organic infills. And so in that technology continues tovolve. So if we look back, you know, eight ish years ago, we were using zeolite, which we've transitioned those fields
predominantly to a sand infill. We've used shave pine and now we're using coconut and walnut organic infill. And so I think that organic piece has really changed the dynamics around the artificial turf fields. The
other piece of that, they're cooler. The organic infield infills are cooler. And so the weather has come up in a couple of the comments. There's a couple of things I want to speak to with the weather. One,
on the artificial turf. We do have guidelines in place that curtail activities when it's warm. And we also have special guidelines for artificial turf fields. So those things exist for the turf fields. But I also want to talk about the weather
when it comes to natural grass. Our natural grass fields are Bermuda grass. All right. That is the best playing surface in terms of the grass. But where Maryland and where we're where we are located is not ideal climate for the Bermuda grass. And what you'll see on our
stadium fields, our Bermuda fields is that typically around the 1st of October, they start the Bermuda goes dormant and turns brown. And so you'll see that transition happening. And they don't wake up, if you will,
until late part of the spring. And really the ideal time for Bermuda fields in the summer. Bermuda grass likes the warm weather and it loves water. And so that becomes problematic too from a maintenance perspective. And then, of course, the the
hours of use and the ability to use that. And we're trying to keep games off the fields to preserve the actual playing surface. So I did want to make those points in terms of the weather. Thank you. Mr. Sure. I wanted to make sure that we're
capturing all the actual maintenance on the synthetic turf that's included in that $12,000. So, for instance, it says zero water utilities. But
it is my understanding that sometimes you do actually need to water the turf, the plastic turf, because of the infill that's being used. And that that infill sometimes needs
water. So. Have you is that true that the infill needs water sometimes because it's a zero water utilities? Or do you need to water it? For instance, if it's really hot out and you need to cool things down, we are not watering the infill to
cool things down, or as part of the typical maintenance plan for the fields so you do not water the the plastic turf. You do not. To my knowledge, there's no watering of the infills. Okay. Is there any
other maintenance? Is that 12,000 for the the two times a year that our contractor goes out Keystone? That 12,000 covers the eight maintenance visits, the grooming of the fields, as well as the two G
max tests that occur before the fall and spring seasons. Okay, great. That's helpful. I'm just making sure like I'm going to comparing apples to apples. Okay. Thank you, thank you. Miss Malone. So I'm just
curious because I haven't seen it throughout the presentation. When we were looking at the data of how turf fields affected, like current schools that already have it implemented, did we also take into account how it's affecting the track, for example, near the turf field or surrounding area, the stadium surrounding it? And if that expanded its
lifespan or benefited at all? I can't speak to the impact on the track per se. The overall facilities are being used more. I would say the the artificial turf fields are being used, so
the track is not as used, used as frequently. So I again, I can't I don't have the data to support one way or the other, and I don't want to speculate and give you inaccurate information. If I could get if we could get data on just how the overall tracks lifespan may or may not be benefited based
on turf fields, then I think that would be helpful. When I ran track, I specifically recall always whether or not there were turf fields at our stadiums and near our facilities, and it was beneficial in some cases. Thank you, Mr. Zimmerman. Thank you.
I was hoping that we could get a little bit more information on the useful lifespan of a turf field and what happens at the end of a useful lifespan of a turf field. Yeah. So on average, a vendor will tell us
that it is ten years. 8 to 12 years is often what they see. The range is really dependent on the usage. If it's a heavily, heavily utilized field, we're going to get closer to 8 to 9 years. If it's sort of a moderately used field. We're still using it for athletics,
right? We still probably have community use, but maybe not the 14 hours of the day that it is available that Jeff and I have talked about. We might be able to get that closer to 12. I would say what's really changed with the manufacturers over the last decade is their ability to recycle and happy to
send, you know, any brochures or information that's needed. But they all when when we replace it, they take that, they take it to a recycling plant and they often use it for the infill underneath a new field. So they are recycling the old products. That has changed. I know that wasn't
always the case in the past, but they are and all of them have committed to that. Okay, thank you, Miss Silvestri. I think that was my question because I have been here seven years and that was not the case
when I first started. Could you just go back to the you mentioned the pilot. Can you just restate where that might what just the details of that. Once again, it's the Hillandale Park on New Hampshire Avenue. It's near White Oak Middle
School for us, about a mile and a half south of that. I believe it's just north of 495, but it's a big grass field. It's a very heavily utilized for parks. They are constantly programing it. So it's why they wanted to choose that location as a good
pilot. Right. I think we all understand that if it's an underutilized field, it's easier to maintain than natural grass. So it's sort of why they chose that location. They have some good photos. Again, I know they're working on sort of a comprehensive update for their commission as well, and the
public to sort of show what they've been, you know, that that team has been out there, the maintenance team really trying their best to keep it in use like they want to while also maintaining it. And they've already, again, within the first two years, had to replace do a complete replacement of the natural
grass. Okay, great. Thank you. And just to miss Stewart's point about the costs, just I see here that you're not also not counting the cost of mowers and gasoline for some of the maintenance costs of grass
fields. So yeah, I think we just don't have exact data on that. And so didn't want to to speculate. We do a mixture of our team and house M.C.P.S. maintenance and operations, but also parks mows a lot of our fields for us, our natural grass fields as well. So it's
not it's a mixture between the two. And so in lieu of trying to throw a number at it, we didn't feel that we had a good solid number to share. Thank you. Yeah. Understand, Miss Rivera, thank you, Miss Andrea. Just very quickly. I guess I
just want to be clear for the public when we're talking. Usage, my understanding, at least when I was, I was chairing cough, was that part of the issue for our grass
fields was the over usage of those fields, which does have an impact on our grass fields. But if there was no public usage on our fields, if there
were not open to, you know, to the public, one thing is to have a park with Bermuda grass. Another thing is to have a high school with Bermuda grass. And there's a difference. But if you had the regular usage that you would have at a school, it
is. It's nhe same comparison as the usage of a facility that is open to the public. So I just want to make sure that we're comparing apples to apples. So I don't know if the other 12 schools
that we're talking about who have grass are open to, to the public or not. But I know at least with parks, you know, like the one that you just mentioned to soccer groups. So
I just want to make sure that we are comparing apples to apples. All right, Miss Montoya. I guess, is there an answer? Because I will just say, like, even at my kids schools, like
elementary, we wanted to do an after school soccer and it was like, oh, nope, someone else has already renting the field. Some other, you know, group or company running a soccer class or whatever. So I mean, even on schools where we don't have an official field, I mean, it's just the grass playground at the school, right? They're
renting that presumably through CPF to use that. And it's grass. And so that's the usage. And the kids show up the next day and they play on it. And so I hear I do hear what you're saying, I guess I'm just it seems like all of our schools
are open to be rented in some ways. Right? We do treat the high school stadium fields separately for some of the reasons that have been outlined here. And partly again, this does get to some of the use enclosure policies when it is an artificial turf field. As Doctor Sullivan was saying, it
is open for community use when it's grass. The high school stadium field is not because the overuse, again, makes that it can preclude the students from being able to use it. I will say, though, that we do as as again, Jeff was saying, even
on our grass fields, our grass stadium fields, we limit our own use as well. So M.C.P.S. is also limiting its own use of the stadium grass fields to preserve them, because even that level of use is challenging. Okay. And so thank
you for for that explanation just so I can understand exactly what we're talking about. My question actually has to go with some of the current schools that are on the list. Like I see we have one elementary school and one middle school, and I'm feeling
a little confused as to where those come from or how that came about, only because it seems like if those exist, then now we have to maintain them and potentially replace them. And we have, you know, it's one thing to say, okay, well, all
of our high schools should be able to have that parity, right. Because there's 2526, but there's 100 and plus elementaries ahen the middles and so. 40 middle. Right. Right. So I'm just wondering if you can help me to understand. Perhaps some of my
colleagues are wondering too, it sounds like why do we have this standalone elementary school, Somerset, and the standalone middle school, Julius West that have turf fields? And how does that figure into all of this? And there's more to opera singer. There's a soccer field. I don't
think it made this list. Thank you for that. I didn't know that. So maybe someone can answer. Flora singer could be a parks field, which may be why it's not on our list. So I'm going to I'm going to jump in just from a quick historical perspective on both of those.
The it is true that certainly M.c.p.s has not adopted any kind of standard around or policy or approach to go with synthetic turf outside of the high school stadium field. So I just want to be really clear about that. These are
definitely one offs as you're highlighting. And they came about through sort of two different conversations with both of those, with both of those entities. And as miss Grace Rivera-Oven was saying, we certainly didn't start the artificial turf conversation
from an equity lens. I think that has really evolved to something that we do want to prioritize. But both of these reflect specific conversations. The Somerset Elementary School community was very concerned about the state of. They do
have a small footprint and concerned about some of the state of their playing surfaces. And so that community generated the funding to support that. And at the time, M.c.p.s. Approved that. Julius West came about, actually, because in
that era of time, M.c.p.s. Was pursuing implementing artificial turf fields through partnerships with sports organizations. Again, we're not doing that anymore. But because of that, and actually it was the outgrowth of some legal action. We did enter into an
agreement for those fields. So long story short, they were one offs of of of the again, products of their times, I might say. And at this point, to your point, we do have to factor them into our maintenance plan in terms of
how to ensure that they continue to be operational. Right. Because our policy is when we have these capital improvements that perhaps and I don't know the details surrounding these two, but say perhaps there was a booster club or a PTA and they raised money. And I've looked at this
policy because for my own kids schools, and when you do that, you do have to seek this approval. There's a process, but M.c.p.s then has to agree to maintain, right. So even if they can come up with the $1 million to put the turf field in, M.c.p.s, then has to agree to these maintenance costs that
you're putting here. Right. And so even though we're no longer saying, well, we're going to explore middle school turf fields, or perhaps there are other schools that have a small footprint that might like to have a turf field. Instead. We're kind of moving away from that, but we're still on the
hook for maintaining these two. Is that correct? Okay, okay. Thank you. Mr. So I as far as the equity part, I do want to note that our three top
performing football teams all play on natural grass. I thought that was interesting. Sherwood and Churchill and so in that case it seemed to work
out for them. I also have questions about total hours of use. For instance, you mentioned that the grass turns brown. Does that really mean you can't play on a field
that's not perfectly green? I mean, is why why is that? Yeah. I'm curious. What's the reason why you couldn't play on the brown? The grass is just dormant and changing. We're still playing on them. We still
play on the grass fields. We we don't close the fields. They're still being used. I just wanted to explain that we're not in the ideal climate for Bermuda grass. That was the point. We're still playing on the Bermuda fields. Okay. I just I just wanted to clarify that
with the coloring. It's hard. It's hard. Okay. And so you can you can go ahead and answer that. Yeah. Sorry. The fields I will just say from experience the field, it gets hard and it hurts. I mean it literally hurts. Yeah. Which is why the green up percentage actually
matters. And unfortunately the green percentage is at its peak in the summertime. So when we're not using it, which is unfortunate that the optimal usage for the grass fields is actually when we're not in session. Miss Wolff, I have
another can I another question just because we're talking about seasons etc. and we are getting hotter and there are some guidelines I see in the Athletic handbook but doesn't
talk about the wet bulb. So so you know, you're measuring the humidity along with the temperature. And I just want and also I notice it says teams shall restrict activities
instead of will or you know, is there a level of choice there. Because I just want to make sure that we are not exposing our kids to the kind of temperatures that I've seen on artificial turf, up to 140, 160
degrees on the ground. So I also would like to see the temperatures on these newer infills because again this is something that we should be tracking. So I will say the the
weather guidelines are shall will we? We are off during those times. We're also restricting, especially in the summer, to our workouts that would be on a field or just in general into the early morning hours of the afternoon. That is
just good health and safety practice in terms of how we operate the program, especially with our certified athletic trainers in our schools who are there present for the practices and supporting our program as it operates. So we do stay off
the fields during those times. In terms of the wet bulb temperature, we use the heat index and the reason why we use heat index. And I understand the wet bulb is the most ideal and just for the public. The wet bulb is a very specific
measuring to a site. Right. So a wet bulb temperature reading can be different on a turf. It can be a different in a shaded space. It can be different up on a hill down in a valley. It is specific to a site. We have hundreds of teams practicing
all over the county. Right. So not just specific to a high school campus right now in the fall season, we have schools practicing at middle schools, elementary schools, park fields. Right. So using with a with a district our size and a program
our size, being able to use the heat index. Right. And we're splitting hairs in terms of that the wet bulb versus heat index. And certainly understand the ideal piece would have a wet bulb reading at every single place we're operating and activity. But from a reasonable operational
perspective, we do use the heat index. And you'll see that on our website. In terms of the colors and what activities are allowed and when when these high readings are out. We're not operating. The program is out when there's a code red,
when the heat index is up there, we're not operating or we're operating under limited equipment and time with mandatory water breaks. And we are limiting the time on artificial turf field, in addition to all of those health and safety protocols. And so
that just to be clear, in terms of the steps that we are taking here in M.C.P.S. are above and beyond any district I know of in our state in terms of how we utilize health and safety as a driving force around the use of artificial turf fields, because
we know artificial turf, we know they get hotter. I think would be a good idea to at least use that technology where the artificial turf is, because we just know it gets hotter. And I also have one more question. We'll come back to
you. Miss Wolff hasn't have a turn. Then I'll come back from my left hand side. Miss Wolff, thank you. I wanted to follow up on Miss Montoya's question regarding Julius West and Somerset. Were these recent installations that we did or
that they this is the year that they put them in? 2019, 2016 because it said, I'm sorry, it says 2019 and 2016. My real question is at the end of the
life, do we have to replace it? We will be. And why would we replace it if we didn't install it? So technically, I believe we did install it. I mean, I mean, the system contracted for the work with the system, had funding from other entities in
order to do that. Okay, I understand that, but my question is why are we keeping it up if they funded it? This is going to shock you. But we made a bad deal. Well, and ten years ago, they entered into an
arrangement for the here and now. And now we are the ones that have to deal with the consequences. Ten years later, you're saying this is forever? I mean, they created a contract. We're at last. Beyond we. We made an arrangement and we
would have to go back and revisit that. But we will have to do something, whether it is the removal of that, that turf when it's ended, its useful life or the replacement in kind, or the establishment of a grass
field space. But one way or another, we will have to address those facilities as a reaction to the agreements that were made a decade ago, and we're on the hook for them. Okay. I'd just like to get a
copy of those agreements. I'd just like to see them. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Zimmerman. Thank you. I have two related questions. The first is why the Poolesville High School
installation costs nearly $1 million more than the Springbrook and the Watkins Mill installations. Yeah. So we've already preliminarily looked at that, and we were told that the stormwater management piece at that site
is much more significant. So it's not only the subgrade and the the actual turf itself, it's the drainage and the stormwater that goes along with that. Because the the county views artificial turf as a hard surface. So we have to provide
drainage and stormwater, just as we would for an asphalt asphalt parking lot. So there's a lot of other costs besides the green turf that that come along with that. So those those costs will differ from site to site. But we were told that
that one specifically will have much higher costs. Yeah, I think we've talked about a lot of elements here, but one that I feel like we keep returning to is cost. I think many of us would be interested in seeing what the cost difference would be if we were to choose to do
natural fields as opposed to turf. Miss Montoya, thank you. This is going to sound similar to a question I had before, but Magruder is on the list for turf, so can we just explain for the community? It may be because it's like, well, their
end of the year, end of life for that turf is is done. So we have to get it done. And if we wait too much longer, depending on whatever option gets chosen right, they just need the field. That's fine. I just want to make sure that the community understands why. We have one proposal going over here to kind of rebuild the whole space,
but then we have some of these piecemeal projects. If we can pull up the slide with the map and show a couple things with the schools that are in this year's recommended. First, the four schools there, we looked regionally at where the schools are located, and I was on
Magruder's field two weeks ago when Damascus played there. The field would benefit from an artificial turf and located centrally Poolesville. Since we installed the first artificial turf field when we've had a modernization or a new build
project. As part of that project, we've included an artificial turf field. So Poolesville would align with the other modernization and new build projects during the last, really since 2007 ish, when
Richard Montgomery was our first field. Springbrook High School is our smallest footprint. Along with B-cc, there is just the stadium field and then an upper shared field between the baseball and softball fields. So looking
again, when you look geographically Springbrook being where it's located, as well as the small campus footprint was a selection and then finally Watkins Mill, we need an additional artificial turf field in the upper part of the county. And when you look
at the other capital improvement projects and way, you know, like a Damascus and as well as how old are the schools, right northwest is is newer than Watkins Mill. So we looked at some of those factors as well and came up with what
we believe is a, a Fab Four, if you will, to start with the CIP. That really balances all of those things and takes into account a number of factors to produce that list of schools. And does that do the turf fields? What is it? Five the five systems, the 16 year
window? Do our turf fields in that part of that also? Okay. But if and I guess what I'm getting at is if we see these pieces for Magruder happening, but then we're talking about having just rebuilding a whole new school. Can you just
understand how that might be confusing for folks? And again, just thinking about comprehensively, when this came out, Magruder and Wooten were not in there. And so we needed to think about the upgrades that needed to take place with in lieu of a full renewal or renovation. So I think your line of thinking is absolutely
appropriate, given the things that have been added and part of the conversation over the last couple of weeks. There's also absolutely ways to do this and to maintain that field should one of the options be considered, right, that they move off site for the time of the renewal, that field likely
could stay intact without being impacted. Okay, so depending on what happens with some of these other proposals, then some of this might be moving around also. Correct? Correct. I just I have to raise my hand or not for something. Right. And I need to know what I'm what I'm
raising it for or not. Yeah. And and potentially and what the board has to consider is a lot of what ifs that overlap one another. And what, what you are looking at in terms of your capital improvement plan is just that. It's a it's a plan. And there may be downwind
implications. If you go one direction with a set of boundary assumptions and changes, and that might stay intact. And if you go in another direction, it might push you in another point where you may make a change to your
plan. But the idea is queuing up projects and making sure that you have a priority list of projects ready to go. So if not this, then that is is really the the, the the focus that you should have. They've
prioritized some recommendations that that I've endorsed. I also agree with them. And I also think that that there is a way for you to have a little bit of both, in particular with a renewal project, investments like a
roof. It's totally worth explaining why that makes good sense, because it's the guts of the school that are going to be revitalized, not necessarily the the physical structure on the outside itself, although there's likely going to be some
work there too. And that includes a a revisiting of the athletic facility. So even if you upgraded the athletic facility, it can still be used during the renewal period and still be used as a as a home field for the the the students,
even if they're off site, which is an option too. So okay, and sorry, just to remind me, this is not included as one of the systems, right. Because I see Churchill on here again, 2032 apparently is going to be a big year for Churchill. So it seems like everything is getting redone there. So the exterior
components are not one of the five systems. Okay. So that's just something like we're just funding okay. Thank you. Mr. have we tried installing a regenerative, organic, state of
the art grass field? M.C.P.S. Have we attempted that? Not to my knowledge. Yeah, we can double check with a few others, but not to my knowledge, no, because I have read that these type of fields, after a couple
of years can get upwards up to 2000 hours of use, versus I think you were using about 500 hours is my correct right now, today. So. This slide doesn't
really say the each particular field. Sorry, but I believe it's about 500 am I correct. Yes you're correct okay. So even if we didn't get up to 2000 we get up to 1500. Right. Which would make a huge difference. And there are some
investments to do that. But I would like to price out a regenerative regenerative organic field because, you know, for instance, in Montgomery County we have something called the AG Reserve. And we actually
do have a lot of experts in this county that deal with grass and turf. And I think we should not rule out the possibility of us being on the cutting edge of grass technology. I want to point out
that if we follow, this plan would be putting over 400 tons of plastic in our county. So it's it's something we really should think hard about the environmental aspect to this,
the PFAS that has been shown in the blades, the way the blades break down and go into our water systems, we need to weigh this carefully. And so this is why I'm always trying to look for technology to try to get
the the balance right. And so thanks for this presentation. I also noticed there was some discrepancy in the Olo and this presentation, and I'll follow up via email on that. Thank you.
Remind me, the pilot that you mentioned that's doing the the Park and Recreation is doing at Hillsdale. Are they using the newest regenerated grass for that pilot or that is not. It's the Bermuda grass I believe I
can double check. Okay. I will be interested to see if we ourselves or with the newest technology to pilot at one site to see what's usage. We can get out of that. And and last, just a reminder to everyone this is
a plan and it depends on funding for all of it. Even our real asset proposal. County has said spending guidelines and this is above the county's
spending guidelines. So there are a lot of decisions down the road for the system and for the board to decide. Let's oh, Miss Silvestre, just Miss Stewart made a comment and no one responded. So I'm assuming she's correct. Does anybody
want to respond to her comment about the waste that is being generated as a result of the turf fields, because otherwise it's not the waste? I'm saying that there will be plastic on on the ground instead of
natural grass, which in itself is environmental issue. The waste is another issue I am very concerned about, because I don't think the recycling actually recycles the whole all the parts. I apologize, I
misunderstood, but if you want to address it, no, I mean it's an accurate statement. It's a synthetic plastic is what the artificial turf is, but the infill is with organic. Is organic. Correct. Gotcha. Thank you. Okay, let's move on to the next session. Thank you. Great.
So we just have a few follow up slides based on questions that have been asked through both public testimony and through the previous work sessions. So the first one we're going to start with, this was brought up earlier today on Damascus Elementary. And we have a
follow up slide on Twinbrook as well. We are moving forward with an Ada project there. The reason it's not shown in the previous slides, again, because this is using existing FY 26 funding. So it's not in FY 27 proposal. We've been out there team has been working with the
school administration there to prioritize a few different projects. The same is true for Twinbrook Elementary School. We are looking at adding an elevator as well as looking at some of the other exterior compliance pieces, such as parking and accessible stall as
well for inside for restroom. And then we have a view very specific about four questions that we wanted to go over that have been brought up. So one of the questions was the public would like clarification on why Twinbrook Elementary is so far
down the list based on the original FCI, and we wanted to just share. I won't read this, but it just shares some of the additional context. Right? When we make investment, that is a good thing and the facilities, but that does impact what the facility condition index. So we
just listed out some of the recent projects, such as the HVAC from 2020, the chiller enclosure, additional carpet replacement painting. And you can see that list of the projects, the next one that you would like. Clarification on the zoning, since it appears to
be inconsistent on the maps and options. This was brought up during a public testimony. The individual actually shared the map. And if you recall, back in August we started sharing during regular board meetings the boundaries and programs teams put a map together that
showed the six regions. And doing that, we have to take into consideration the existing boundaries for the high schools that are being proposed in those regions. So because Dufief currently articulates to Wooten, they do show, they show.
You can see a little bump out right in the region for for that region, what's changing. And some of the boundary options right now is that they are showing a new articulation pattern. And so it's not an inconsistent map, it's just what we are showing with the
program region boundary. We have to use existing so that we are not making any assumptions on the proposed boundary options. Okay. And two more. There was also public testimony
about providing a list of schools currently under consideration for enrollment, location and changes due to the boundary changes. It was brought up specifically about the impact that some of the Woodland Elementary School has had. So I think we just wanted to clarify that there are no
students currently attending middle school and high school that have been involved in boundary studies that will be impacted by the one that we are currently. So in the last five years, what was brought up specifically about woodland is the impact that our students have had during Covid, right?
Many of them were doing remote learning and then they actually moved over to Grovesnor while there construction. So they, you know, experienced the impact of Covid learning from home. Then they had the impact of going to Grosvenor as the holding while their facility was in construction and then
moving back. And so that is why that specific school was referencing multiple impacts. It's a very valid impact, but it wasn't a result of a boundary. That's what we wanted to clarify. And then the last one was requesting additional information on the effectiveness of block scheduling at Eastern Middle
School, and if and how block scheduling will be implemented at middle schools receiving the Silver Spring International students once the school is closed. Given that current recommendation and proposal on the table. And so in consulting with our programs team and
curriculum team, the decision to do block scheduling is really a school based decision. And it's a school wants to change the structure on how they support their students. That's made at the leadership level. But they did want to note that by 2027, additional
schools will need to implement a consistent model due to changes that are coming with MSD. And with that, we will end with a timeline slide. So that concludes the slides. Happy to take additional questions,
broader questions or any additional follow up questions. Yes, I will open it up for any additional questions. Miss Montoya. And I just want to preface this by saying that we may not have an answer. And the community needs to know that,
too. There's a lot going on, a lot of things that are going to be worked on, a lot of long overdue kind of fixes. Right? Which is fantastic. But one of the questions and I get some variation of this question in a lot of spaces that I go to. But
someone was kind enough to say it very explicitly. They said, Miss Montoya, we understand staffing. We understand the costs. We understand we can only do so much at one time as a system. But what are we supposed to do now? And this
was a school whose name is not mentioned anywhere in any of this. And I was there, though, and it is very hot in spaces where it should not be hot. And there was a very young children in those spaces, and it was not a hot day even. And so I understand where they're coming from. And my own children have
had times when it's like, oh, we got to send you with some extra clothes and it's the heater is broken and it takes a while to get that piece or whatever. So I understand, you know, why that has to be the case. And the kids are fine. My kids were fine. But I think that's kind of the overarching question that gets asked by a
lot of people is because those needs that they're saying are not made up, they're very real. It's just that our need is so great that these budgets and proposals can only capture some of the most dire need when we compare them. And so as we just
kind of move along, I just would like to have all of us think about what is the answer to that question, what are these schools and children and families and staff supposed to do in the meantime, if their school maybe never really even makes that list? And again, we
might not have an answer for that today, but I think we do need to try to think about how we help those schools to get through the year, because those problems are very real. Also, just to for you to answer that, also to let my colleagues know
the next time we meet is November 20th. Alright. So just that to let everyone know the next time we meet is November 20th. The board is expected to
take action on the proposal, so if there are any more information, data that you would like, you should let the staff know. Now in order to help you make decisions. And also, when all of you to keep in mind and the audience to
keep in mind, we can ask, we can send something to County Council in the spring when the budget is done, or understand that we might need to relook at our list again, depending on the level of county's funding to the school system for
capital improvement. All right. Okay. Mr. Could I just respond to that comment real quickly? While I know this entire conversation has been focused on capital funding, honestly, a lot of what you're getting at is also just maintenance. And
we have had significant leadership and entire changes on the facilities team, and I think we are headed in a very strong and positive direction. We have changes at the service center level and really reworking with our schools. I think they have gotten frustrated over the years of
submitting work orders and not hearing from the right people, and we are really trying to rebuild that. Can we solve every work order quickly? Absolutely not. Right. That's not in our capacity. But can we be responsive and let people know where we are? Yes, and I think that is something that
I've been working closely with the team and with our n at one time, that we are at least aware of their needs and trying to address them. Thank you. Mr. I appreciate that comment. And in that vein, in
the past, way before you, there was a promise made to the public that there would be some kind of public view into maintenance orders. Are we still working on that? Yes, I love yes. Thank you. One more
thing. Just my own. I'm just letting the public know where I am and prioritization and my prioritization is HVAC and air quality. And that is I think I hope my colleagues agree that
that is a focus. And I think we've heard a lot about that today. So thank you so much for all the information and the march towards more transparency. And that maintenance piece would be towards that March. Thank you. I still have one
more thing I'm trying to understand from this budget. In this budget, there are allocations for staffing in this budget. So when do we put staffing in operation budget?
When do we put it in CIP budget. And that's one. And I also we you haven't touched upon technology tech modernization, technology modernization. That is also where we have a lot of staffing costs that put into
technology modernization. So I would like you to touch upon those things. I will start. So the specific line Ms. Yang is referring to is called the design and construction management line. That is the line that funds our planning and construction team. So you
will only see a few handful of those people in the actual operating budget. The majority of that team, anyone that's primarily focused on a capital construction project, can be funded out of capital dollars, so there's no overlap. They will show up in the org chart,
and there's actually at the very end of the operating budget list, those positions that are capital funded, but they will not show up in the actual operating budget. So let's take a quick second to explain why capital and not operating in terms of numbers,
depending on the number of projects that we have active, may depend on the number of staff. So different than what we would do in the operating in the local budget, where these would be our consistent staff members that we know we need to operate, construction, that we
know we need to operate a certain function no matter what, whether we've got zero projects or 20 projects, they would stay in the operating budget. Maintenance crew will be there. Yeah, but but what would be variable might be these additional staff members that are tagged in the capital
improvements program because of it may be number of project dependent or type of project dependent. And so as the projects change, the number of staff changes. Along with it, you also see personnel tagged
in there for purchase service of a P3 consultant that's new and that's certainly new for us because we're exploring that as a potential option and a potential cost savings. So our hope is that ultimately that pays for itself. But, you know,
we do need to account for it, and it's not appropriate for us for it to land in our operating budget, because eventually that will go away. And the need for that would be would change over time. So it's almost think about it like fixed costs versus variable costs okay. So
can you also address does that explain the big staffing costs in the tech section that we are hiring outside people to do some of these modernization work. So tech Tech Mod actually is a little bit of a different
situation from the CIP conversation. And that's one that I think we will come back to more fully as we talk about our operating budget, because that's while while there is a significant budget piece here in the capital budget, it is more closely aligned with our conversation in the operating
budget. There are staff members associated with the tech Mod budget. And that, again, those are positions that conduct the work that is funded out of the tech Mod budget in CIP. However, part of what we see here is the
beginning of a an approach that we want to take to bring those two budgets closer together and to really reduce our footprint in the capital budget for Tech Mod. But again, I think we'll bring that conversation back to the board more fully when we talk about the operating budget,
so that we can look more fully at the two pieces together and how they interact. Punchline. We definitely see Tech Mod as it's currently conceived, and how we could conceive it in the future is really more of an operating expense. And think
about it in the same context of the construction personnel. It really is more of a fixed expense than a variable expense. And so as we go into the future of tech Mod, we we may be introducing proposals for the board to consider how that
might look in the operating budget. So there's not a ton of changes with tech Mod this year. But but know that we see that as more of a fixed expense. Technology isn't isn't going away. It's not disappearing. But right now as it as it's
conceived, we could see it going more operating. So just to clarify, this year in our CIP proposal, the tech is included in our CIP. You are saying for future planning, we would like to see that in our
operation budget. Okay, Miss Montoya, thank you. Just because this is actually the last time we get to ask questions, I think really right, for the benefit of the community before we're expected to take a vote. And so I'm just I'm having a hard time
understanding again, recognizing that, yes, there's going to be this back and forth with the process. I understand that. I think the community understands that as well, but it seems like the current CIP encompasses some projects that we don't really have decisions
on yet. So, for example, Sligo Creek Elementary School replacement is in there, eastern Middle School. The replacement is there. But I know there's a proposal to maybe make the replacement bigger. So it's just it's getting a little. But then again, we don't see Magruder
and Wooten in here in terms of that proposal. So it just feels a little muddled in terms of, for myself, being clear on what exactly am I voting for or not and for the community to understand when we take a vote
next week, what are we voting for or not? Because it seems like, again, some of this, it seems like some of the CIP encompasses some of the proposals but not others. And so it's just it's very unclear. I also do have some concerns
about the elementary school projects, given that we know we need to do an elementary school boundary, given that we know that enrollment is down, given that $60 million can do a lot of things. So these aren't small. You know, relatively speaking, this is not 1 or $2
million, right? Which is still a lot of money. So I'm just hoping I can I can personally get some clarity, but also for the benefit of the community, because they come to me with a lot of these questions. The recommendation that I put forward in this year's CIP is
the sure footedms that you can move forward with. Now, the CIP is a six year plan. It is the two most relevant years in the CIP. Are the first two years in the CIP. And so that really sets you in a direction.
We've talked about a lot of things that could potentially change, like the introduction of Magruder and Wootton, and we've shown timelines and what that could look like. Perhaps it could be in this six year outlay. Candidly, whether it makes it into the six year
outlay or it doesn't make it into the six year outlay, that is an amendment that you absolutely can add at a later date. Part of the the the challenge is we have introduced things that overlap with boundaries. And the most
confusing part about this year's CIP process is precisely what you're talking about is the fact that the timelines don't align. And what we would like to do is to have the board weigh in on this CIP as it's proposed, because it does
outlay at least the next two years very clearly as to what we would expect and where it would place us. It does not recommend elementary projects that would be in conflict with future changes that might occur
as as it relates to boundaries and potential other school closings or things of that nature that we have to consider down the road and that it does not lock the board in. And I think that this is really important. It does not lock the
board in to a decision about a holding school until you're ready to make that decision about a holding school, because, candidly, the questio that you have about Magruder and Wootton are largely dependent on whether or not you have a
holding school. And so because that's not a decision that the board is queued up to make until March, my best recommendation for the board's consideration is don't make that decision until you have to make that decision, until you've received public commentary and that you've got public hearings on the boundary
and you've had public hearings on that option, whether there's maps and whatnot. And none of these recommendations conflict with that at this point. So I think you're I think you're in a good place with that. But you're asking the right question because those two things are so intertwined. And
it can be confusing because the timelines. Right. But when we're looking here at Sligo Creek Elementary School, replacement Eastern and Sligo Middle School, doesn't some of that encompass some of the proposal to close Silver Spring International Middle School,
which we haven't gone through that process yet. I mean, I know we all know eastern is in need of repair no matter what happens, right? I think the question is, is how big of a repair or replacement of this capital improvement program recommendation is the closure
of of Simms. So and I guess I'm just used because we have the policy that lays out very clearly what the process is for any school closure irrespective. And we haven't gone through that process yet, but we're it looks like and to the community,
it looks like we're voting on that by voting for a proposal that would encompass the facility changes that would be necessary to put that closure into place next January, correct? Yeah. You you have some time and and even though you are signaling that there's
work and projects, you still have time to go through that full process. And I would recommend you go through that full process. But you've you you have a window of time. And what you are signaling
regardless, is that you are committed to the projects that we've spelled out, even though it may be a part of that process. Like for example, the Sligo Creek Elementary School, that that's still a noteworthy project. You're not closing
Sligo Creek, but it wasn't very high on the index or the ranking or the right. And so I guess that's what I'm looking at there. And so for the community, it can feel like by voting for these things to happen, that we've already
decided what we're going to do in terms of Simms, we've already we're basically voting right, even though we haven't gone through the process. But what I hear you saying, and please correct me if I'm wrong, is that the actual actions of getting those things started
would not occur until after the process. We go through the process for whether or not to close. Simms. Correct. So if, for example, it's decided that you know what, maybe that's not the best decision to close Simms, then we can then go back,
rework those sections of the CIP and that would be a full option available. Is that correct? Yes. And and to that point too. And Sligo Creek Elementary School is a very good example. You have need of an elementary holding school in that part of the county. It
certainly makes your Piney Branch construction project more possible and more palatable. To have that as an option. So even though that project did not rank very high on the facility condition index
or even the weighted formula, you are creating capacity with that recommendation and with that project to do other projects. Okay, so there's other considerations to be taken into account when we decide which projects move forward and when, other than
just the facilities index, the weighted formulas and things like that. Because again, this is a very large school system. So we're trying to move multiple pieces at multiple times and trying to make the best, sometimes most cost efficient decisions that we can. Right. Because we know that budgets are a challenge. And so the same thing would be said
true for the Crown proposal, right? Wooten and Magruder are actually not even in here as proposed replacements, but if they were, it would be a similar nature that until we go through that process of determining, we could always come back and refigure some of these, right. I just want to
make sure that the community is clear, because many, many times I get those sentiments and I understand I understand how that feels. Sure. And that is precisely it is that you would be almost predetermining another decision if we included Magruder or Wooten, it would
signal to the community that you've already made up your mind about something. Without going through the process, we would advise you go through the process before considering an addition back in. Okay, and just for Simms Community, Sligo Creek Community, we are going through the process prior to
taking any action on any of these. Sligo Creek Elementary, Sligo Middle School, Eastern Middle School. So this is, you know, not a permanent decision irrespective. Thank you so much. Mr. So I would like after hearing that, because I was
going to broach that topic about making a decision before we go through the process. So it sounds like it's the beginning of a conversation with our county executive and county council as well, and the
way our budget might line up that this is this, this vote on the 20th is really the beginning of a conversation. Is that correct? Yes. You have a very long CIP budget process,
but this is one piece of the puzzle that the county executive considers in making his budget proposal. The other piece of the puzzle I get to bring to you the second week of December, actually, I think
it's the third week of December, and the operating budget and and again, it is these are, these are pieces of a larger puzzle that get revisited back again before the budget is finalized and enacted on July 1st of next year. So I also
want the community to know that this is this is not the end of the conversation. It's the very beginning. And they will have multiple chances to talk to decision makers and including the county executive and the county council and us as we
move through the process and to get to the, you know, the solution that's going to be best for the system and for the kids that we serve. And this is a complicated process. It really is. It's complicated.
It's long. Hang in there. After ten years, you have been doing this. It is. But thank you, staff, for your presentation and we will see you on November 20th with our final decisions.
Thank you. Okay. And let me see. Do I have a motion to do? I need to adjourn today's meeting. No. Is there a work session? I do need a motion to adjourn today's meeting. Motion to
adjourn second. All in favor, please raise your hand. One, two. That's unanimous. With those present. Thank you so
much.