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Board reviews lease-financing bids for new buses; Huntington County ESC recommends TD Bank
Summary
A bid opening was held for lease-financing five 54-passenger buses, five 29-passenger buses and two maintenance vehicles; a late letter from the Huntington County Educational Services Commission recommended TD Bank as the winner. Board members also discussed driver shortages and whether district buses could generate summer revenue.
Hastings told the board that a lease-finance bid opening took place for the purchase of five 54-passenger school buses, five 29-passenger buses and two maintenance vehicles and that a letter of recommendation from the Huntington County Educational Services Commission suggested TD Bank as the winning lender.
"We utilize [the commission] to help us work through this lease purchase process," Hastings said, summarizing the commission's recommendation. He also noted the bid winners were to be determined after the 1:00 p.m. bid opening the same day.
Board members discussed the district's approach to vehicle acquisition and whether the district was "renting" or "leasing" buses. Hastings clarified: "We're not renting buses. We're leasing them so at the end of the lease, we'll own them. Those will carry us through several years of not having to buy buses." Members raised concerns about driver availability, summer staffing and additional wear-and-tear on vehicles, and explored the idea of using district buses for summer programs or contracted routes as a potential revenue source if staffing and operational constraints allowed.
No formal procurement award or final vote on the selection was recorded in the provided transcript segments.
