Superintendent proposes districtwide facilities walkthrough; trustees schedule June 22'23 evening tours

Superintendent Montoya told the board June 15 he wants trustees and staff to walk through district facilities to perform a needs assessment and better understand on-site priorities.

"I would like to propose a day that we just go through the district and look at every facility," Montoya said, inviting trustees, facilities staff and principals to participate so the board can see conditions "with feet on the ground." Facilities staff (Mr. Carrera) and trustees discussed continuing the facilities committee and using tours to refine the district's project priority list.

Several trustees urged a mix of on-site tours and committee meetings: larger, older schools (for example Jefferson) may require more time, while smaller schools could be toured more quickly. Carrera said the 10-year facilities plan provides a top-project list and that many items are already slated for work this summer, including major window replacements at Washington and Van Buren and parking-lot work.

Trustees agreed to schedule two evening tours on June 22 and June 23, starting at 5:30 p.m., with a third date to be added later if needed. Staff were asked to coordinate with principals and to provide updated priority lists in advance so the board can review outcomes at the July 20 board retreat.

A facilities committee meeting was also discussed for the week of June 17 (noon to 1 p.m.) to allow the architect (Jeff, Design West) to brief trustees if he is available.

The board did not take formal action to adopt project-specific spending during the meeting; trustees tasked staff and the facilities committee with scheduling tours and compiling prioritized project information for future decision points.