Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Facilities topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Washoe board approves $275,000 OnStrategy contract to plan school repurposing
Summary
The board unanimously approved a $275,000 professional services agreement with OnStrategy to design a repeatable, community‑engaged process for repurposing school sites no longer used for instruction. Trustees emphasized the need for careful community communication and for learning from other districts' experiences.
The Washoe County School District board on Oct. 28 approved a $275,000 consulting agreement with OnStrategy to develop a structured, repeatable process to repurpose school buildings the district may no longer use for instruction.
Chief Facilities Management Officer Tammy Zimmerman told trustees the contract is intended to create 'a comprehensive, repeatable framework for repurposing those sites' that emphasizes collaboration and transparency with the district, the board and the community. 'With this agreement, we propose to work closely with OnStrategy to develop a comprehensive, repeatable framework for repurposing those sites,' Zimmerman said.
Trustees pressed staff for information on OnStrategy's local experience and the scope of community outreach. Zimmerman and OnStrategy staff answered that the firm is local and has worked with other public agencies in the Reno‑Sparks area and that the engagement would include communications planning and community input to avoid missteps other districts have experienced.
Jay Sterling, who represented OnStrategy at the meeting, said the firm has local ties and described the proposed work as a 'phased approach that is flexible enough according to the needs of the school, the different communities' and 'replicable' across the district. 'We would be, yeah, absolutely excited and honored to work along beside you and be an assist to make these great things happen for our students, teachers, and our community,' Sterling said.
The motion to approve the agreement, moved by Trustee Hall and seconded by Clerk Woodley, passed by voice vote, 7–0. Staff said OnStrategy will begin stakeholder outreach and return iterative findings to the board, including a communications plan to accompany repurposing recommendations.
Provenance: The OnStrategy agreement and the board discussion began at the transcript segment starting 00:25:33 (block_1533) and concluded with the vote recorded near 00:34:39 (block_2079).
