Policy 7.125

Use of the Castaldi Analysis for Facilities

1. Purpose.-- Pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1003.62(2), this Policy implements Waiver # 4 under charter district status, approved by the State Board of Education ("SBE") on January 21, 2003, providing exemption from being subject to the Department of Education's ("DOE") implementation of Fla. Stat. § 1013.03(10)(a), which as implemented by the DOE would involve validation through a Castaldi analysis of the need for replacement of facilities. This Policy should be revised as necessary to maintain consistency with the Charter School District Contract with the SBE and should be repealed if charter district status is not renewed. The scope of the exemption and the practices authorized to replace the waived statutory requirements are set forth below, substantially as presented to the SBE.

2. Practice Prior to the Exemption.-- Although there is no specific statute requiring a Castaldi analysis to validate the Educational Plant Survey or an amendment of the survey, the Castaldi analysis is the method used by the DOE as a mathematical computation to determine if it is more cost effective to build a new educational facility or remodel, add to, or upgrade the existing facility. The analysis takes into consideration the age of the facility and the replacement value of that facility and may be completed by either the DOE or the School District. Under Fla. Stat. § 1013.03(10)(a), when the DOE determines, based on the Castaldi analysis, that it is more cost effective to renovate or otherwise upgrade the building rather than to replace it, the DOE does not validate the School District's survey amendment.

3. Approved Alternative Practice.-- The District will continue to provide the Castaldi analysis to the DOE; however, the District will determine if buildings should be replaced when the Castaldi analysis would not justify replacement of the buildings. In lieu of using only the Castaldi analysis, the School District will consider additional criteria beyond the age of the building and its estimated replacement cost to determine if a building should or should not be replaced. This waiver would only be exercised if one or more of the criteria applies. The decision of whether to replace a building will also be reviewed by the Construction Oversight Review Committee ("CORC") for approval. If the results of a standard Castaldi analysis indicate that the District should renovate a building rather than replace it, the Board may apply additional criteria to determine whether to renovate or replace the building. If the Board decides to replace the building in cases where the Castaldi analysis would indicate otherwise, local funds will be used to pay for the cost of the replacement.

4. Criteria.-- The following criteria will be used in determining when this waiver should be exercised:

1. Additional Costs to Work Around a Building.-- A building or buildings may be located in the middle of an older campus requiring a more expensive custom design when a more efficient site plan could have been used at a lower design and construction cost if the building were demolished. Not demolishing the building would have the effect of increasing the cost per student station.

2. Small Site.-- Small sites pose another problem because the District does not have the flexibility to build new facilities on other parts of the campus. Removing the building may allow the small site to be used more efficiently.

3. High Operating and Maintenance Costs.-- Older buildings typically have higher operating and maintenance costs in terms of repairs, utilities, and, in some instances, staffing. In many cases the building that is required to remain when the rest of the campus is being replaced, may itself need to be replaced in just a few more years.

4. Security.-- Older buildings that cannot be incorporated into the design of a replacement school campus which is designed in accordance with Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) guidelines, pose a threat to the safety of students and staff.

5. Local Funding Available for Replacement.-- This waiver will only be exercised if funds are available locally either through Certificates of Participation, impact fees, private donations, or other local sources.

5. Examples.-- The School Board is aggressively replacing outdated campuses while building new schools in high growth areas. By replacing the older, mostly inner-city schools, the District is providing equitable facilities for all of its students. As these older campuses have developed over the years, with some schools being up to 80 years old, more recent buildings have been added on these campuses in locations that make it difficult to incorporate the newer building into the design. Several examples of the above situations are listed below to illustrate the usefulness of this waiver:

1. A school that opened in 1929 and sits on just 1.4 acres of land on its east campus which would be substantially rebuilt within the next two years: using the Castaldi analysis approach, the District would not able to replace a media center. located in the middle of this campus, built in the early 1990's. This results in the new school using more recreational green space that the District shares with the town, and citizens were willing to donate necessary funding for the replacement facility through private donations to maintain the recreational green space.

2. A high school that opened in 1963 and is undergoing a major replacement of its facilities: this school has an aging science building that the District is not able to replace, using only the Castaldi analysis, even though the building cannot be included within the secured courtyard of the new campus. This school replacement project is financed through local funds.

3. An elementary school that opened in 1926 and is being replaced, with the exception of a media center that cannot be demolished: in addition to causing the prototype design to be changed, the building sits below the floodplain and the DOE suggested that the District elevate the building, at a substantial cost. This stand-alone building is also outside of the secure single structure that houses the rest of the school's facilities and has one main entrance point. It would be more efficient and cost effective to replace the media center.

6. Impact on Students.-- It is anticipated that implementation of this Policy will allow the District to build more efficient, safer schools and utilize prototype designs more efficiently. As a result of this waiver, the District will realize savings to both the capital and operating budgets, freeing up funds to provide additional facilities and increased support for instructional programs.

7. Monitoring and Reporting.-- Besides continuing to report the Castaldi analysis to the DOE, the District will also report other cost factors not currently considered by the Castaldi analysis, as well as other criteria that factor into the District's decision. This information will also be reviewed by CORC, which will recommend approval or denial of the replacement of the buildings to the School Board prior to submittal of the information to the DOE.