Facilities director outlines capital‑project timelines, staffing gaps and snow‑removal workload

George English, Penfield’s director of facilities, told the board the district’s cleaning and maintenance teams manage nearly a million square feet of building space and more than 200 acres of grounds.

“Our cleaning staff and maintenance crew take care of over nearly a million square feet of building,” he said, noting the scale when describing custodial and grounds responsibilities. English reviewed capital projects in three phases: the high‑school library (phase 2b) with a grand opening scheduled the following morning, a new IT hub and kitchen renovations planned across phase three, and phase‑one work (boiler replacements, lighting for a multi‑purpose field and roofing) slated to start summer 2027.

English acknowledged cost pressures for utilities and consumables and said hiring skilled maintenance mechanics remains the district’s largest staffing challenge. He reported a current vacancy rate in custodial/maintenance of roughly 5% and said the district is using a recently retired mechanic on a temporary basis to cover critical knowledge gaps.

On winter operations, English said staff logged 728 hours of snow‑removal work this season and praised grounds and bus mechanics who took early shifts to keep facilities operable. Board members asked for tentative dates for later phases; English said phase two work is most likely to start summer 2028 but cautioned that schedules depend on bids and contractor sequencing.

Board members thanked English for his stewardship and for highlighting staff contributions. No formal actions were taken on capital projects at the meeting; change orders and contract approvals were handled later in the agenda.