Broward School Board debates outsourcing and staffing of building department as $800M in capital money looms

Chair reopened a workshop discussion of the Broward County Schools building department, prompting board members to press district staff for a clear staffing analysis, a plan for apprenticeships and a cost comparison of outsourcing versus in-house services.

A board member asked what initiatives are in place to "build capacity for the future" and whether the board should act to help staff recruitment. District staff said recruiting trained inspectors and technical staff is difficult and costly, so the administration is pursuing a mix of approaches: grow internal capacity, expand partnerships with local technical schools, and use outside contractors where needed.

"We really have to figure out how to grow, grow our own," said the district representative who outlined plans to form pathways with local technical schools and to develop an "aggressive apprenticeship program" so graduates will consider district careers. The chief building official, who said she became chief on 12/15/2021, said the district already has examples of employees who entered as apprentices and stayed.

Board members pressed for timing and data. Staff committed to produce an internal staffing-analysis aligned with a superintendent reorganization in the spring and to share that analysis with the board and the public. One member asked for a broader before/after analysis across multiple projects (not only four schools) to substantiate claims of improvement.

Outsourcing and costs dominated the discussion. A board member cited a grand jury recommendation to outsource the building department and asked for the financial impact. Staff reported an estimate of $6,000,000 to fully outsource inspections and related services; the current building-department payroll shown in the packet is $2,508,417. District staff also reported payments to two vendors (CAP and NovaUSA) totaling $7.3 million across 2022–2024 (about $1.7M in 2022, $1.8M in 2023 and roughly $2.0M in 2024).

The chair clarified the arithmetic: the $2.5 million figure covers in-house payroll only, while the district currently spends about $4.5 million overall when existing outside contracts are included. Staff said a full outsourcing estimate of $6 million would represent roughly a $1.5 million increase over current total spending, and that outsourcing contracts tend to carry higher hourly/vendor rates than equivalent in-house payroll costs.

Board members emphasized urgency and scale. One member noted roughly $800 million in capital funds and urged the district to scale either staff or contractor capacity so projects are delivered faster: "I want schools built — I don't care if it's $6,000,000 or $27,000,000 — I want schools built," the member said. Another added that cutting corners on compensation may leave the district unable to hire market-rate talent.

Staff argued the problem is often defective plans and gaps in the review process rather than inspection capacity alone. They advocated a "systems approach" that maps how a plan moves through the building department, consultants and inspectors, and said an electronic plan-review system will add queryable data and accountability so the district and public can see where delays occur.

Several members asked staff to return with detailed follow-up: a full staffing analysis, the historic and projected vendor costs, a comparison of turnaround and performance metrics with peer districts, and an assessment of whether outsourcing would actually speed delivery. Staff agreed to bring that information to the board.

The workshop produced no formal motion or vote. The board requested follow-up data and signaled openness to pay market salaries or increase outsourced inspections where justified to accelerate projects. The district also discussed staggered site visits to the building office to avoid sunshine-law issues when board members tour the facility.