St. Charles School District spends nearly $2 million on fleet of new vehicles

St. Charles School District 303 Board Members voted to spend almost $2 million on new buses and minivans at their Feb. 12 meeting.

Board members approved the purchase of 17 new school buses for over $1.6 million, and eight mini-vans for up to $300,000 in an unanimous vote without discussion.

At the Feb. 5 Business Services Committee meeting, D303 Chief Operating Officer Justin Attaway presented the request to the board. He told board members that the district has fallen behind on vehicle replacement, and will have to buy about 17 buses per year for the next few years to catch up.

Attaway said the district is working to implement an eight-year replacement cycle for vehicles. The district currently has 130 school buses, and the administration is recommending the replacement of every bus that was purchased between 2010 and 2015, which will be 17 this year.

The district will purchase 17, 2023 Blue Bird 71-passenger gasoline buses from Central States Bus Sales, at $97,500 each, for a total of $1,657,500. This purchase would be paid from the fiscal 2025 budget.

Administration also requested the purchase of several mini-vans for special education transportation. Attaway said the district needs to establish a fleet of 10 to 15 mini-vans and is hoping to buy at least eight this year.

The School Board voted to grant administration purchase authority for eight mini-vans for up to $300,000. This purchase would be paid from the current fiscal 2024 budget.

Attaway said because the need for the vans is urgent, the district is exploring options for purchasing slightly used vans from local dealerships. He said the vans would be the first vehicles of their kind owned by the district, and would likely have a five-year replacement cycle.