Chisholm board approves bus lease buyout and weighs $3M garage bid, legislative help
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Summary
Trustees approved a one‑time buyout to purchase a leased bus and discussed long‑term bus garage options after receiving a ~ $3,000,000 design/demolition/construction bid; administrators said legislative funds may be limited and recommended waiting on decisions until the session ends.
The CHISHOLM PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT board approved a one‑time lease buyout to purchase a school bus and spent the meeting's discussion portion reviewing multiple options and bids for a replacement bus garage.
Mr Kayser briefed the board that two buses on lease are due April 15; district staff recommended returning one leased bus and purchasing the other. He said the combined annual lease payment for the two was about $30,000 and the one‑time purchase price discussed at the meeting was approximately $41,000 plus tax. "So what we'd be doing is returning 1 of the buses and then purchasing the other bus," Kayser said. The motion to approve the buyout was moved by Director Simon and carried by voice vote.
Separately, administrators presented a draft bid from Ingenza for design, demolition and construction of a new bus garage near $3,000,000. Superintendent Pertovich said early discussions with a city lobbyist suggested a joint city‑district project could be considered, but staff estimated combining city and district facilities would raise costs to $4–5 million while likely legislative support for the project would be limited (staff estimated legislative dollars would likely be "less than a half of $1,000,000").
Board members discussed alternatives including proceeding with the Ingenza bid as presented, doing only tuckpointing/repairs, pursuing a pole/Morton/Butler style building, purchasing an existing smaller facility and adding on later, or issuing a formal RFP to solicit additional designs and cost estimates. Trustees expressed concern about timing for an RFP and noted that state procurement rules require posting and a bid opening; one board member recommended preparing an RFP so the district would have numbers ready while others recommended waiting until the legislative session concludes to see what funding might be available.
Staff also reported differing appraisal quotes for a district parcel: a Duluth appraiser quoted about $4,500 (4–5 week timeline) while another firm quoted about $13,500 (8–10 weeks) with additional consulting; a mid‑range $6,000–7,500 option was discussed for appraisal plus consulting to advise on marketing and zoning.
Next steps: the board authorized the bus lease buyout and asked staff to pursue additional information on RFP timing and appraisal fee breakdowns; trustees signaled a preference to wait for legislative results before making a final decision on a new garage design.
