Quantifying the problems will help to give people an idea of the magnitude of the issue. They targeted building envelope problems with the majority of the borrowed funds and, in the process, they extended the life of systems and components that could have been damaged by leaking water and other envelope-related problems. Even armed with their new figures, district officials know that addressing deferred maintenance while still trying to keep up with their current workload will be a tough task. Further compounding the challenge are three new buildings opening next year and an enrollment expected to grow from 215,600 to 220,000 in the next three years. The voters' voice Growing enrollments and aging buildings also are concerns in the Los Angeles Unified School District, which has 800 facilities and 600,000 students.
Information going to voters describes specific, major maintenance needs.
The district was successful in quantifying its needs and getting the bond measure on the ballot, but the issue has been forced onto the ballot just as much by parents troubled by what they've seen in schools, says Jim Samples, director of maintenance and operations for the district. The conditions have made the public more aware of the problem, not the bond issue. The only option was to take the money from other areas of the budget. Preventing the problem Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., offers an example of the value of long-term strategic planning when it comes to deferred maintenance. Certainly, the university has its share of delayed maintenance projects that will cost more to address now than they would have at the time they arose.