Rappahannock County school facilities staff told a joint work session that the district faces several large capital needs — including a near-term elementary-school roof replacement, aging HVAC and a multi-year bus replacement requirement — and that a private solar company may offer a way to replace the roof with limited up-front cost to the county.

Facilities staff said roof inspections show the elementary-school roof and the gym roof are approaching the end of their expected life cycles. Presenters said metal roofing typically lasts 40–50 years while asphalt shingles tend to last about 20 years. "So in my opinion, it's more cost effective to do it now because 20 years from now, just think how much that metal roof is gonna cost," one presenter said.

On a potential financing approach, staff described preliminary talks with Secure Solar (company name used in meeting) under which the company would fund the roof replacement and install solar panels; Secure Solar would retain the electricity generated for a multiyear contract and the district would receive a metal roof without the full capital outlay up front. Officials said the firm's final numbers and the mutual terms were not yet available and that the Board of Supervisors would need to approve any multi-year agreement because the school board alone cannot make a multi-year contract.

Buses and lifecycle costs: Presenters reported the cost of a new bus has risen to about $165,000 each, up from about $110,000 five years ago. The district said it operates several older buses and recommended budgeting for regular replacement rather than waiting for a large, clustered replacement need.

HVAC and other systems: An engineering firm had been engaged to assess HVAC systems and life-cycle replacement needs; staff said the primary wing boiler and other systems date to the late 1980s and may require either burner replacement or full system replacement as analysis proceeds.

Why it matters: Roofs, bus fleets and HVAC are capital items with high up-front costs. Staff said the district receives about $200,000 per year from the state for capital and that multi-year planning and possible partnership arrangements may reduce near-term county budget strain.

Next steps: Staff said they expect a solar/roof proposal within weeks and will return to both boards with data and proposed contract terms; they asked the boards to consider a multiyear approach to capital planning, including the idea of budgeting for at least one bus per year to smooth costs.