Council directs RFP for crossing-guard contractor after review of counts; staff to coordinate with CVUSD

The council reviewed the city’s Crossing Guard Program on July 8, including the results of the 2025 counts, the city’s 2023 policy for placement and oversight, and staff recommendations to seek a contractor to administer the program.

Public Works Director Nadir Hadari reported the city’s updated placement policy is the most flexible in Ventura County and that the spring counts show 14 locations meet the city’s criteria for guards in the 2025–26 school year. Staff told the council the Conejo Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) appreciates the program but does not currently have capacity to take on administration. To increase reliability and worker availability, staff recommended issuing an RFP so a specialized contractor with a larger regional pool of guards could manage day-to-day staffing while the city would continue to fund and oversee the program.

Public commenters urged preserving guards at specific corners and warned that removing guards could undermine safety and trust; speakers asked the council to use any savings to upgrade intersections where guards are removed. City staff noted that counts are taken on representative school days and that the city’s policy treats groups of people (e.g., an adult crossing with multiple children) as one school-aged pedestrian for the counting method.

Council actions were taken in three separate votes. Councilmember Gutierrez’s request to place a one-year hold on elimination of the 10 locations that failed to qualify under the city policy failed (2–3). Council then voted on the three staff recommendations individually: to receive the report (passed 3–2), to direct staff to issue an RFP to explore contracting administration of the crossing-guard program (passed 5–0) and to direct staff to consider using any program savings to accelerate walk/bike safety projects (passed 5–0).

Staff said an outside contractor could be selected through a standard procurement process and potentially begin service after a transition period (the earliest realistic start would be after a major school break, staff said). Staff also proposed quarterly senior-level coordination meetings with CVUSD, Public Works and the police department to monitor school-safety issues and committed to continuing outreach to promote walking and biking to school.

Ending: The council authorized staff to issue an RFP to explore a contracting model for providing crossing guards, will continue program oversight in accordance with the 2023 policy and will consider directing any realized savings toward pedestrian and bike-safety projects.