We good? >> All right. Welcome uh welcome back from summer and our first operations meeting. Uh Mr. Ghart, if you'd like to uh call it to order. >> Yeah. >> 12. So, um, get a roll call. >> It's on here. We don't have to. Just everybody, everybody is present. Just >> can we get a motion for approval of the agenda? >> Motion to approve. >> Second. >> Anybody opposed? >> Good to go. >> Approval of the minutes. Same thing. >> Second. There we go. >> And then, uh, >> what I want to go over is some of the work we completed over the summer, just highlight some of the larger things and, uh, how they came out. And, uh, we, uh, were fortunate enough to do a little bit of, uh, talking through some of the product projects, even the paving, it saved a additional amount of money just because we had thought about some things and had some preings and stuff like that. So, uh, if you haven't went over and seen the William Tenn, uh, tennis courts yet, the repair unbelievable. >> Yeah, they look fantastic. >> We put pickle ball courts on. It cost us $109,000. So, and they they warranty it and yeah, it the what what they did was amazing. I guess from what I talked about last time is they would clean the last time they did they cleaned out the the cracks, filled them with sand, and then filled them with a a layer of some type of mortar and then painted over them just those spots. This company dug them out as far down as they could dig them, dug them sideways, powerwashed them out, totally vacuumed them clean, put an expanding type of concrete joint thing in which filled and outward and down so there's no surface. They put a mesh layer over that, painted it down, another wider mesh layer over that two foot wide, painted it down. I think that, if I remember, it was like seven or eight coats of paint in total by the time it was done. And you can't see a single line of crack or nothing. So, it looks excellent. >> It was definitely worth worth. Um, you'll see the uh Log College and William Tennant lots. They look great. Um, what I talked about is that they had in our quote this tetra mat and I've dealt with it before. What it is is to protect a failing parking lot after they grind it down from the cracks underneath coming back through the surface. But what it also does on any parking lot that has a large piece of equipment or bus or tractor trailer or something stopping on it repeatedly, it gets hot. It'll actually separate and cause the top layer that they just put on to slide across the bottom layer because of the weight of the like the buses. And if you've ever been at a stoplight where they're like this and that's from something like that. And he's like I'm like we talked about it because I've seen it fail. He's like, "Yeah, we've had to go back over the last couple years and repair things that we did that with on a full surface area because it just separates over time." So, what we decided to do is only do it in areas like if there was a big crack, we did it in a two foot wide area strip that long. So, in the end, it ended up saving us $39,000 on the on the projects by not doing it. And it'll last longer. >> Thank you. >> It'll last longer, too. >> Great. All right. I don't know if uh anybody's aware, but the uh three days before school started, the lift at the garage, the the hydraulic motor failed, and there were two a bus and a truck stuck on the lift because when you put them up, they come down to rest on a lock. So, in order to take them down, you have to raise them back up to get them off the locks to lower the lower it down. So, the fail safe is if it anything pressure blows, it's stuck on the locks. Well, that's what happened. We had a company come out and quote us $20,000 for a brand new system because they said our system was too old. They wouldn't repair it. So, here we are. So, I got a couple guys over there. We tore the thing apart. I'm like, "Hey, we got to get rid of it anyway. Let's tear it apart and look at it." We pulled it apart, drained all the old fluid, pulled the motor and the pump apart, found out the pump, hydraulic pump failed internally. We're like, "Well, this might be able to be rebuilt by somebody because there's plenty of companies that do that kind of thing." took it to a local hydraulic shop. They were like, "No, it's too bad. We can't repair this or rebuild this thing." But they said, "We have the exact pump in stock. Here it is." So, if you look, the the price of the new pump was 1,500 bucks. The price of the new fluid and all the filters. So, I'm like, "If it's a part, let's drain it and let's put everything new in it. Let's, you know, the old one could have left metal in the pan and we could have ruined another pump." So, for the price of about two grand, we got that thing off. And that was just the hard work of the guys that we have on our staff that that made that possible. They weren't scared to try and it wasn't going to hurt anything else. So, I mean, that that was great. And the other one, it was going to be a couple weeks before they could get the new unit in also. So, we would have had two trucks, a truck and a van stuck there, and we wouldn't have been able to do maintenance on our buses for that. The lift is back up and functional, good to go in two >> running like crazy. >> That's great. >> Whose idea was it to do that? >> Um, I got Billy and I got over there first, Billy B, and we tore it apart. I said, Billy, come over here and let's just look at this thing and see if it's blown apart, what it is. We pulled it off. We're like, that's just a simple hydraulic pump. Let's go get it looked at. And he took it down to a hydraulic shop and they went through all that and found us a new pump and off we went. And it was back and running the next day. Once we found out, we had it done in two in two days by the time we got it done. So it was done before school started. >> Yeah, >> we >> we are so fortunate with the facility staff that we have and how hard they work and what they're willing to go above and beyond to do. It's great. So I have all those names that were involved in that. We'll give them to Yeah. And then again, I'm going to thank you all for our new but used backhoe which we relied on. Here's another one that again Billy involved in Joe Petac uh Tracy Far all involved in uh Bill Bird was involved in um f or Thursday evening last week. They were out by the stadium getting it ready for the next day and noticed water coming up out of the ground near the trainer shed. So that Thursday night, Joe went back in. Tracy and him, they came up with a plan. Tomorrow we can dig this up. It's got to be an underground pipe. We don't know what caused it. Um just old. It was an old old cast iron pipe. They dug it up that morning. Uh Bird went and got all the parts while they were digging it up. They exposed it. They uh cut back the old pipe as far as they could go. They re-placed it in, put it all back together, and had it up and running around three o'clock that day, 3:30. And uh what it did save us, not just the money, because if we'd have had to have a company come out and do it, I think it would cost us six grand, seven grand to do. So it cost, it probably saved us five grand in the long run. Um, what it did save is the soccer game that night because we'd have had no bathrooms and there was a band event the next day which it would have definitely shut down with the number of people. So, their reaction time and their thoughts and getting this done again saved us not just that but not having to cancel events or move them. So, it was really like again we're fortunate because they just do stupid thing. So, I am uh still working on our FCF classrooms that I'm trying to go through now, have all our plans in place so I can present it here in a few months to you for approval or whatever how we're going to move forward with that so that can be done next summer. I want to do it now so because we can't I don't want to get it done and ready so we know what that cost is going to be and what it entails and how long they have to be shut down for. But, I mean, it's a summer project obviously. So, that we're still working on. And I continue to uh work on our 10-year capital plan. I just had uh a company come out. We talked about and they just got me the report the other day. I haven't really went through it yet because of everything else going on, but the status of all our roofs in the in the district in order to get solar on them. And so, but that those pricing I'll have for you next operations and we can talk that through and see what our what our attacker approach on getting our up the up to par so we can put solar on them or do something. So that's that's moving forward. You've all seen the snapshot that hasn't really changed too much since uh the last time. That's just a fiveyear snapshot. Tom, do you have uh capital updates or anything you'd like to go through? Okay, so this hasn't changed since the last time. Um, yep. Same things. stupid thing. My fat fingers. All right. So, here are the things I would I want to move forward for the board. And I know uh bus patrol finally. Um we worked through some contract snags with bus patrol. They had originally when they get sent it to me last in June, May, I don't know when it was, but earlier in the year, it had a quote a quote for a bill monthly bill on it and it entailed over $10,000 a month like they were going to charge us and it looked like it looked like you were going to owe us $10,000 no matter what. Well, that is not true. So, I had them remove that so it wasn't part of what we were signing. And how it works now that I finally got all the updated and correct information is say we put it in 50 buses. We owe them $275 a month per bus out of the 300. >> Why do we owe them? >> Because they maintain the cameras. And that's only one. But but we don't owe them anything if we don't even make a ticket. That's the thing. >> The tickets are sent out. >> Y >> they're sent out for $300. >> Correct. And that >> gets 100 down. >> Yeah, >> I I'll give you all the breakdowns. >> Excuse me. >> I can give you all the breakdowns. I have an example here of exactly how it works. >> Other districts pay nothing. >> Yeah, they Well, they do. They don't pay it out of their pocket, right? So, the first $275 that comes through to bus patrol is theirs. After that, we get the remainder besides what they pay the township and the and the state. The state gets an amount too for >> that's every month. >> Yep. But their projection is and if if we don't make a single ticket, we don't owe them anything. It's only if >> tickets left and right because people are used to not being ticketed and they're flying through these buses. So his projection in month just based on all the other school districts in the area is 20 to 25 grand we will bring in after all those little things are paid per month. So you're looking at 200 $250,000 for you know that 10-month period. >> Yeah. So so that there are some fees we owe them but only if we have tickets paid correct. We don't owe them anything. If we get zero tickets for a month, they get they get nothing. >> I know. So, so the projection is that. So, that's the one thing I'd like that's going to come forward. >> And part of bus patrol also includes video cameras, right? So, video cameras interior to the bus, not just the ones that catch the bad guys running by, but interior ones that are uh stored to the cloud, not to the discs that we currently have. So, it is a much better, >> right? But but they go they go to like a memory chip card. So people need to take the chips out, bring them into the office to to >> these cameras are a part of the bus patrol plan because they have the cameras outside. They'll also add cameras inside which will be saved to the cloud which will really provide a much better and long-term uh uh utility uh when videos are needed. You know, sometimes videos are needed and not known right away and you come back a week and that one's already been discarded or it's not been run or someone forgot to push the chip in or forgot to put the chip out. Right. So, it is a it'll be a vast improvement. >> Cameras on the bus. >> Correct. There may be a third. I'm not sure. I thought there was a mid camera, but I'm not sure. Inside the bus. Inside. Yes. >> Three cameras inside. >> Well, I think there's a front and a back. I thought there was a mid, but I don't know. There's a front and a rear just like we have and then a mid camera so you can kind of see between because our front and rears you can't see between the seats obviously. >> Well, it's just part of the system. That's all part of that's part of what the $275 goes back to them maintaining that system. >> But if you don't get that system, >> I don't think it's an option to their their thing. >> I don't believe it is. >> So, we already have the already. >> Yeah, they're already there. >> These new cameras are going to be part of the system. >> Yeah. >> So, there could be monthly cameras. >> Yeah. >> And they're willing to take that because they know the results of how many tickets come >> that 100 that's no that's not accurate now. >> Yeah. So, >> they get it. They're cut first then we get what's left. >> So, technology they get that that amount, right? And then the state gets 25 bucks and the and the police station gets 25 bucks per ticket. So it's 250 for them. 25 every ticket is not 250. The first 250 is for them. After that, every ticket we get the 250. They get the state always gets 25 per ticket and the township always gets 25 per ticket. pay for the police officer that has to sit there and verify each one of the because it's not valid if it it doesn't matter if we get a hundred of them and the police station doesn't want to verify and we won't get it they won't be valid ticket >> they are they're on board with it. Yeah, you know ticket plate number and have it on video. >> I don't know the legality on that. >> Yeah, I don't know the legality on that. >> Yeah. So, Yes. >> And I've already touched base with the township manager saying this was going through and they're on board with signing it. >> So as soon as we sign the contract saying we are doing it, I take their memorandum over and they sign with us and off we go. So hopefully in the next couple months this will be installed and done. Great. >> I still think it's a good idea. >> Yeah. I mean safety wise safety wise it's the best thing to do. has has nothing to do with money. In my in my thought, it has to do with 100% safety of children getting ones. >> Yeah. >> So helpful. >> Yeah. >> Who knows? stand people's faces. >> And then uh the next thing is I need to do another phase. Remember the controllers we did last year? Oh, we're down to two spares. That's to the rate they're failing at. We pulled a bunch out. So this is a phase of that's $50,000 for the next phase of another McDonald uh wing top and bottom and the hallway that's that also services. So it's a little more expensive than the last one because Last one was just one of the wings. It was $30 some thousand. This one, this section also encompasses the center hallway. So, it's a little larger. And then those, we should recover another 20 or so 30 of those to maintain keep maintained, you know, and uh law or I mean Davis and the high school uses those same ones on theirs. So, at some point, we'll get through them all and we won't have to do it again. But I don't want to do 300 and some thousand >> chipping away at it. And that's all I have. Does anybody have any questions on any of that? >> A good thing. And certainly used by the community, right? So we we ga we gauge some things in facilities by trash can usage, right? The trash cans are overfilling. So the courts must be getting overused, which is wonderful. >> A lot of pickle ball courts in town. >> No. No. Pickle. It's all the rage. >> All the cool kids play pickle ball. >> They're talking about putting one in in uh Shamanic Park over by Friend's Choice. They have that one court that's kind of sitting there. >> Yeah, it's a great resource for I know there's always people around on the weekend. >> Oh yeah. >> Well, thank you. >> Yeah, thank you ma'am. So, I do want to talk about the elephant in the room. >> Mr. Greenwood, we have to do something other people. I think I think we have to do something because it's drastic. We do not have enough bus drivers. I don't care what anybody told anybody. That was false. We do not have enough bus drivers. Um the seeding charts that's for the birds. That is absolutely ridiculous. Did you hear about that? I know we some some do because the bus stop. >> So So it's up to the bus driver, but they were told they have to make seating charts for every route. That is crazy. We don't assign seats. First of all, it's early in the year. You don't possibly know every kid's name. So you just that you can't say to a bunch of teenagers, I'm sorry, you have to sit next to Jojo over here. That's That's too much. >> Well, that's weird for the kids and it's a lot to >> If a kid is unruly, then you make them sit in the front, but it's up to the drivers, not sit down and make a seating chart for each bus. I've never heard of that in any district. Yeah, I mean it's certainly something we could look into and and make sure that we're >> I wouldn't even >> spending our time in in efficiency ways >> if a little it would kindergarten kids sit in the front. That's the rule on the on the buses. >> Excuse me. I haven't heard the word. >> They had to have them in by today. >> And I said, don't do it. If you don't want to do it, don't do it. I said, that's absolutely ridiculous. I mean, people who've been bus drivers for 20 years now, you're going to say they have to have seating charts. That's weird. Unless Unless the kid is unruly, then you make them sit in the front. We'll investigate and see and and and then address it. And I think having moving forward too, and I know we talked about this already, but I actually think the addition of extra cameras in a bus is a very positive thing because it allows so many times building administrators have to do investigations because of bus misconduct. And to be able to have as many angles allows them to to better determine what happened and make the best decision. So, I think it's a good thing all the way around, especially in very uh delicate situations, >> especially being cloud-based. If something happens needs to be investigated, look at they're all saved every day. >> And that's the other right away. >> Exactly. It's more It's more reliable. And if we have to go back after the fact and look at something and and not be able to say, "Well, parent, we no longer have that that footage." >> Is a very posit that day or we didn't need it that day. Yeah. No, it's great. And I think because of that accessibility that we have, that's even less of a reason to have a seating chart because we can look at where what's going on. >> Does the increase in salary have to be approved? >> Yeah. >> By the board. >> Yeah. >> I can't hear you. >> Yes. Yes. All increases. >> The tubes are gone again. >> Yep. No. All all increases, right? All all it would just be like any other change, right? They would go to the board >> next week >> improve improve by name. So, you know, sort of individual changes. >> I think we don't have a choice. >> People do some kids are getting to school an hour late. >> I I agree. I think we were short on buses. I think, you know, we we uh we slipped up there. Um, and I think we're I think these moves I think we've been behind the curve. I think the moves that Dr. Lucab is recommending will put us ahead of the curve uh for the first time, right? We've been we've been struggling from a staffing perspective uh since COVID since the pandemic as as did everybody. >> Uh everybody moved, right? We and we and so did Centennial, right? Last year we increased uh the starting rates up. We moved them up to 2630. Uh but again I don't think it was enough uh quick enough and I and I think the move that uh Dr. Lucal recommended is a really bold step >> and I think will put us will put us on the other other side of the curve >> part of that along with other ideas that he's had. >> We got to make it worth the world. >> Yeah. And and that's why too and and this is something that I'm I'll be putting out in my update today to to the board. But just talking a little bit also about incentivizing moderate incentivization for people to be at work because one of the things too and and our drivers I mean we have a great group of drivers but there have been days where you know for various reasons things come up in in people's lives that that are unforeseeable but last Friday as an example we were down nine drivers >> well because of September is a blackout date >> if you tell me. So, this is a part-time gig for people or a retirement gig. So, if you tell me I have to come to work and my kids are sick, >> I'm not coming to work. >> Well, no. We understand that and and I think that's part part of the reason that that the proposal that I'll that we're putting out and developing together wants to address not only filling the positions that are there for our routes and we have approximately 57 routes and five van routes on top of that but also building um bench strength with some subs so that when folks do call out we can call on >> so that when folks do call out. We need subd drivers on top of our our normal fleet. And so to incentivize that as well, >> that's what we had when it was the good old days. We had subd drivers. >> But then yeah, >> and then one of the things that we want to do too is to offer potentially offer um uh incentive bonuses if if folks drive every day of the month, >> right? >> You know, small incentives to keep just to keep people coming, >> right? But the competition among districts in the twocounty area, Bucks of Montgomery, is is very steep. And it's uh it's been that way for the last probably four and a half, five years. And I know that some of the ancillary services that we use as well uh with van service in particular, >> they're struggling. >> They're struggling and now aren't even able to staff their fleets for our purposes. So, we're seeing it rippling out across >> and some of the other districts are now upping their game. operam is raising theirs next week. >> Um >> which is why we're prepared to pivot as well um with the approval of the board. >> And I think that's what like somebody said, "Oh, we need benefits." And I thought to myself, you know, like most of them do not like I never needed them. Um it's a retirement gig. Some of those people are on most of those people are on Medicare. Just about the money. >> Yeah, it's just about the money. >> Are other districts struggling as much as we are neighboring districts? >> Would it even work for us to like work together with them to create a sub a sub pool? >> No. >> Would that work? >> No, no, not not to hire, but a like a sub that everybody can pull from if they need it. >> They're not going to share. >> I don't know. Never done the system. Yeah, it it's unlikely that they would because I think it's almost all for oneonone. I mean, there's a lot of there's such a there's such a need that I think people are starting to preservation. >> I I think that the spirit of collaboration in this particular instance is out the door. >> They >> everyone's trying to leverage everybody else. >> And the and the other thing, somebody needs to be in that office all the time to answer that phone. If you have nobody, call me. I'll go sit there and answer a phone. Um, >> we have we have a admin Dr. Lucas sent two admins, one from each middle school uh to be there and they are there all day along with Murray. So, we currently have three people uh in response to that very need in you know the >> Have you been getting a lot of emails here and there? Yeah, cuz I >> I say email Luca and Wartman and I give out your emails >> and and >> because it's got to go through, you know, >> and we've we've reached out. We've we've all had many many conversations with parents and and I think, you know, there there's been challenges. We we acknowledge that, but they've been working hard to address it. Um, we finally had a good week at McDonald. >> Yeah. >> So, I was pleased to see progress there. And I think it's this is really boils down to a staffing issue. And as soon as we get the bodies, we'll be back in shape. >> And again, and that's not Look, and we I I'm greatly appreciative of the drivers who are there every day and doing what they do. They need help. We need help. And as we get it, and I think that that what I'm going to propose that that we've developed is going to address that. >> I know people are stressed And when people are stressed, sometimes they talk a little louder and they don't mean to. But I think at the end of the day, we have to remember everybody's stressed. And yelling at drivers in a loud, negative way. I know it's hard. I know it is only because you know like I said when we're stressed we don't think you know can you please do this or >> Yes. Yes. Yes. and they're not in the office to do their job. >> Well, they're all and they and paying paying mechanics to drive buses and then they're working overtime to fix buses is killing us. Nobody should be getting overtime. There should be nobody working over 40, but there are. So then they get time and a half and that costs us even more money. So I think raising the rate and it'll look nice and shiny, we'll get more drivers. >> Well, right now the districts are poaching from each other. >> I mean, there was a mass text that went out from Chris Anybody want to come to Central Bucks? Then Her Worship sent something out. All right. >> Okay, that's good. Go ahead. The DMV was perfectly on schedule. It's just liability or full coverage.