Yesterday (Thursday) evening, the Carroll Community School District invited community members to an open house at the current transportation facility to explain why the district proposes building a new facility. Outgoing Transportation Director Jeff Cullen explained that when he started working for the district six years ago, the current building, constructed in 1991, was no longer fit to serve the district’s fleet of buses.
Cullen guided attendees through the current building, opening the hoods of the buses to give a visual representation of how little room the mechanics have when providing maintenance or mechanical work on the bus. Cullen demonstrated how, in the current wash bay, he has a four-foot-wide gap from the wall to the side of the bus, with a three-foot-long wand for the power washer. With the new facility, he explained that the person washing the bus would not be drenched anymore.
The “they” that Cullen refers to is the State, who comes and inspects the fleet twice a year. He says any rust around the wheel well or above the floor line on the bus causes a mandate from the State to fix or replace the bus. Cullen says the wash bay would assist in washing all the salt on the road during the winter months and the dirt and mud from the rural routes to be cleaned off more frequently to prevent rust. Building on the cold storage addition to the new transportation facility would protect the fleet from the elements that cause deterioration.
Cullen addressed concerned attendees about the potential $15 million price tag proposed by the engineering firm. Cullen says that while that is a huge amount of money, the transportation facility would protect the district’s fleet and preserve the use of each bus.
CCSD has a fleet of 38 buses and 12 support vehicles (Suburbans, vans, cars) that all stay at the current facility. The fleet transports between 1100 to 1300 kids twice a day and has routes from the Sac County line to the Audubon County line and from the airport road east of Carroll to Eagle Avenue by Arcadia. With the restriction from the State of only being able to keep K-8th grade students on for 60 minutes and high school for 75, downsizing the fleet is not an option. The district plans to meet again on April 19, hosting the Carroll Chamber of Commerce Coffee at the facility to present the information again, and the public is welcome to attend. The engineering firm, DLR Group, plans to be at the next board of education meeting to present the final design on April 22.
Inside current transportation mechanic work station
Cullen demonstrating little room with powerwashing wand
Deteriorating of power wash room, snow and water come in through separation between concrete and building
