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Facilities staff say snow contractors fell short during February storms; district to revise RFP and oversight
Summary
Facilities staff told the Board of Alders’ Education Committee that snow‑removal contractors failed to meet performance expectations in multiple February events. Officials said they will change contracting language, improve inspections and seek stronger equipment/manpower requirements for next season.
New Haven Public Schools facilities staff updated the Board of Alders’ Education Committee on Feb. 26 about snow‑removal performance this winter and said repeated contractor shortcomings will prompt changes in contracting and oversight.
Mike Carter, a district facilities official, told Alders the facilities office logged about 12 snow/ice events this fiscal year (totaling about 16.7 inches of accumulation in its accounting) and that five contracted vendors were responsible for school lot and walkway clearing by zone. Carter and Superintendent Dr. Madeline Negron said several contractors did not meet the standards specified in the district’s request for proposals and that the district had to re‑task crews or send vendors back to finish work during some events.
Officials described specific operational problems observed during February: some vendors lacked adequate equipment or the manpower levels needed to cover large zones, inspections were insufficient (one inspector covering 40 sites was judged too few), and pricing by snow‑depth bands did not align with actual operational needs. Carter recommended contracting changes: require documented equipment inventories (VINs and site visits to verify equipment), specify hours‑and‑equipment pricing instead of per‑storm depth bands, break large zones into smaller, bid‑sized packages, and separate landscaping and snow contracts so overruns in one area do not exhaust funds for the other.
Carter also said the district will work with procurement, legal and labor representatives to draft a clearer statement of work and, if needed, an MOU for coordinated snow operations with union partners. The district has compiled photographs, emails and performance documentation that it plans to include in the procurement record for the next open market RFP.
Board members asked for more detail on a related operational practice: clearing selected school parking lots that the district opens for off‑street public parking during storms. Carter said those clearances were performed under the New Haven Public Schools budget this winter and agreed to provide Alders with a breakdown of costs and the history of why those lots were added to the district’s service list.
Committee members and staff noted that contractors who failed to meet the contract standard were required to return to complete work and that invoices and corrective actions are being reviewed by procurement before payment. Carter said the district will factor the documented performance into next year’s procurement process and expects a revised RFP and increased inspection capacity before the next snow season.
