Blue Valley board approves multiple construction, services and insurance contracts totaling millions

The Blue Valley Board of Education on June 9 approved a series of contracts and renewals covering construction projects, athletic- and facilities-related work, district purchasing, fuel supply and property insurance.

The approvals included a Straub Construction agreement for a new weight room at Blue Valley High (anticipated construction August 2025–August 2026), an athletic-field relocation at Blue Valley North with Universal Construction Company, safety-glass installations at seven elementary schools with Circadia Construction (partially funded by a Safe and Secure Schools grant), and the districtwide apparel agreement with BSN Sports.

Jake Slobodnick, executive director of operations, summarized the construction items and bids and said the Straub contract was “in line with what we were expecting” and that the weight-room project is part of the 2023 bond program.

The board approved a renewal with World Fuel Services / Carter Energy for gasoline and diesel used primarily for student transportation; the fuel is stored at the district’s North and South Transportation facilities. The board also approved an Amazon Business purchasing agreement (annual cap up to $1,500,000) intended to centralize and lower costs for districtwide classroom and operations purchases.

The board approved two electrical-services agreements—an anticipated $1,000,000 annual contract with MC Electric and a smaller agreement with Core Electric—and two vendor awards for device repair services (Synetic Technologies and Tech Cycle Solutions) under a new RFP process. The Synetic/Tech Cycle awards were noted as year one of a three-year arrangement; each contract was described as approximately $450,000 in the presentation.

Sid Cumberland, the district’s risk and safety manager, presented the property insurance renewal through Risk Strategies for $1,590,000. Cumberland noted the district insures about $1,200,000,000 in property value; another insurer had proposed $2,200,000. Board members discussed that rising replacement values have driven higher premiums.

Most motions passed unanimously. Synetic/Tech Cycle technology repair contracts were adopted on a 6–1 vote after one board member said he routinely withholds support for larger technology contracts pending broader review of district technology policy.

Additional details included: - Circadia safety-glass installations: grant covers approximately half of cost (Safe and Secure Schools matching grant). - Amazon Business: districtwide purchasing agreement, expected to centralize purchases and gain discounts. - Risk Strategies property insurance: $1,590,000 renewal covering district facilities; the district’s estimated property value cited was $1.2 billion. - YMCA of Greater Kansas City: although discussed separately, the board approved a revenue/pass-through contract estimated at $534,715.50 to cover utilities and custodial pass-throughs for YMCA use of district facilities.

The board’s approval schedule and voting tallies were presented during the meeting; most contracts were adopted 7–0. The Synetic/Tech Cycle award was adopted 6–1.

The board asked clarifying operational questions during the discussion—how fuel is stored and paid for (charged directly to the district and stored at district tanks), the five-year RFP cadence for fuel contracts, and how district purchasing rotations for apparel and other recurring buys are handled. Several members thanked operations and business staff for work on bids and vendor consolidation.