The Cleveland County School Board s monthly meeting is scheduled for October 10, 2022 at 6:00 PM at the CCS Central Services Auditorium. As usual, it will be a FUBAR! This time a $24,404,000.00 FUBAR!! Plus, selling off as surplus (Pennies on the dollar) cafeteria equipment necessary to prepare, cook and serve nutritious food to our children that is fit to eat.
Let’s start with the $24,404,000.00 Fubar. Let us also remember that the nitwit CCS Facilities Assessment performed by contracted engineers who were tasked with performing this assessment were ORDERED to perform this assessment with the Guiding Principle that NO NEW CONSTRUCTION of any Schools was allowed. Only maintenance and renovations to the existing facilities and structures. Considering the new auditoriums at Burns and Crest High Schools, plus only “fixing” everything, Robert A has calculated this has a price tag of $217,000,000.00. This $24,404,000 FUBAR that will be shown below represents over 11% of that $217,000,000 repair cost. AND, for comparison, 20% of ONE completely new High School.
That being said, let’s look in detail at the $24,404,000.00 FUBAR that is “called” an HVAC Project. The first thing you will see is that it is NOT just an HVAC Project. It is a FUBAR project that is mishandled from the git-go!!
First, the PROOF. This is the entire $24,404,000.00 project description as provided by School Board Chairman Robert “Luke” Queen. With full expectation that the entire School Board will sign off on this cost with no questions asked.
FOR BOARD APPROVAL
MEP/HVAC Projects at Crest & Burns High Schools
This project includes a complete HVAC renovation with related ceiling, lighting and plumbing replacement on each campus. This package was initially bid out in August 2022, but only one bid was received from Beam Construction, and therefore, bids were not opened. The project was rebid in September 2022. Again, only one bid was received from Beam Construction, but since it was a rebid, the bid was opened.
We recommend approval of the following bids from Beam Construction. These projects will be funded out of ESSER.
Category | Burns High | Crest High |
Base Bid | $11,070,000 | $11,645,000 |
Alternate #1-Lighting | $404,000 | $385,000 |
Additional Contingency | $500,000 | $500,000 |
Deduct for Both Jobs | -$50,000 | -$50,000 |
Total Cost for Each | $11,924,000 | $12,480,000 |
Total Cost for Both | $24,404,000 | ——————– |
Of course, YOU caught that very first sentence that I bolded and put in italics for you. But, since this is proof, let’s look at it again.
This project includes a complete HVAC renovation with related ceiling, lighting and plumbing replacement on each campus.
Note that:
- HVAC, in the Mechanical world, is a separate entity from lighting and plumbing. You don’t call a plumber or electrician to fix your Air Conditioning or ceiling. You don’t call an Air Conditioning man to fix your electrical outlets or plunger your toilets or fix your leaking sink faucet. Who knows what a “Ceiling” man fixes??
- Also, who knows what this Alternative #1-Lighting is. What is known is; lighting is certainly NOT HVAC.
This very first sentence shows that this so-called HVAC Renovation Project should have been broken down into separate discipline projects and bid out to those particular discipline contractors. Failing to do so is a positive indication that CCS does NOT know how to properly send out work for bids. “Requests for Quotations” as it is often called. This crowd under the thumb of Robert “Luke” Queen either don’t know what they are doing or are doing exactly what Luke has required them to do. Add Confusion to the Bid Package such that NOBODY would bid on the project. NOBODY, except for maybe some fellow crook that has “inside” knowledge that they will get the bid if they “Play the Game” with Robert “Luke” Queen.
The key here is that only one firm submitted a bid. And then, when the bid was put out for REBID, they submitted a second bid. Taking advantage of a state law that allows accepting a sole second bid if nobody else submits a bid. As Cleveland County, Gaston County and all the surrounding Counties as well as adjoining and South Carolina are full of HVAC Contractors, Electrical Contractors, Plumbing Contractor and even Ceiling Contractors that would LOVE a piece of a $24,404,000 Project.
Robert A believes 100% that CORRUPTION has to be at play here. No amount of stupidity or even incompetence can account for how this FUBAR RFQ was generated, sent out, resent and now pending approval could have played out like this.
Now for the clincher. It is just days before early voting starts in the 2022 School Board Elections. School Board Chairman Robert “Luke” Queen has already spent well over $3,000 to unsuccessfully beat out Danny Blanton in the 2022 School Board Primary Elections. Luke, as well as Ron Humphries, Kevin Whisnant, Dennis Bailey. Pam Kellar, David Allen, Wes Westmoreland and other Rogue Republicans have helped with that dirty trick shenanigan. And all these CCS schools are over 55+ years old. So, what is the hurry to approve this particular so-called RFQ that has shown itself to be so problematic?
The only believable answer is that Danny Blanton, despite all the time he has had to spend out campaigning, will catch on to this FUBAR HVAC Project approval and VOTE NO this coming Monday Night at the School Board meeting. If Danny Blanton votes NO, the Rogue Republicans will “Light up” Facebook accusing Danny Blanton of being “cruel” to the children of Cleveland County. That Danny Blanton “hates children” or some other bald-faced lie.
Robert A recommends that Danny Blanton. and every other incumbent School Board member votes NO on this HVAC Project Monday night. This project is NOT an emergency and certainly needs more work to get a satisfactory project going. Robert A will even provide his expertise in HVAC and plant operations, construction design and maintenance-for FREE-in taking this faulty RFQ and turning it into an RFQ that will result in multiple competitive bids on this project. Robert A also offers a class on developing and writing RFQs to all the School Board Candidates. Republican or Democrat, NO MATTER.
Of course, Robert A would NOT take kindly to any School Board Candidate that would vote or support an affirmative vote of the school board this coming Monday night to approve this FUBAR Project as it presently stands. With all the corruption that is apparent.
Folks, there is more:
Just two items down in this October 10, 2022 School Board Meeting Agenda is another FUBAR. Another list of items the Child Nutritionist has recommended to sell as surplus. Basically, pennies on the dollar.
Child Nutrition is a hot topic in the 2022 School Board Election. At least for the Republican Candidates that want to implements acceptable changes to certain failed practices that would result in CCS children receiving hot and nutritious meals that they would gladly eat; instead of pre-prepared “boxed” meals that are trucked in everyday, from who knows where, that the children will NOT eat. That they just throw away, even when they are hungry. Meals that may be hot on the outside but are cold on the inside. And such.
The items recommended for surplus are items that are necessary for food preparation. Commercial quality, fully repairable for life, Made in the USA Mixers, indestructible stainless steel work tables, Commercial Quality pots and pans and such. Robert A looked up the Hobart HCM food mixer up on the internet and found it priced at almost $25,000. And CCS Child Nutrition wants to sell it for scrap. Saying it is obsolete!
What a joke!! It is like calling my Griswold antique cast iron frying pan obsolete just because it is probably 100+ years old. I use it on a regular basis. From frying eggs to baking a cake of cornbread. I have tried the super-doper nonstick stuff advertised on TV, only to find the NON stick is soon “gone with the wind”. I am now back to my Griswold and my almost new TV pan is used for watering the outside cats.
Also, Robert A finds it strange that when he asks CCS Superintendent Stephen Fisher where CCS surplus items are kept for inspection? He never-ever gets an answer. Robert A has learned from experience that when people seem to be trying to hide something from him, there is SOMETHING TO HIDE!!!
So, same as with the FUBAR HVAC Projects at Burns and Crest that only ONE insider connected company will bid on. Robert A recommends voting NO on the NEW Child Nutritionist’s recommendation to sell those items as surplus. These are, in relative terms, much smaller than the $24 Million FUBAR projects. But, would cost tons of money to replace when cooler heads take over the School Board and decide to feed our children like they deserve to be fed. Cooked on site and eaten on site. Less waste and better-quality food. This has worked very well since before Robert A started at Fallston School in 1953 until just recently. It is like the old saying. “If it ain’t Broke, don’t fix it!!!” One more thing, Robert A always cleaned his plate at lunch time at the Old Fallston School. Robert A doesn’t ever remember being fed lunch at school that included energy drinks. chewing gum, chips and other such junk food. Ever!
Robert A also has smelled “rats” on other lists of recommended surplus items. From so-called obsolete or broken tools and equipment, to beyond useful life, to other such opportunities to obfuscate the real value of the item. Along with the inability to inspect the item. All opportunities for corruption and mischief. Like maintenance putting new brakes, oxygen sensors, catalytic converters, tires and other such repairs on cars ready for surplus auctions, and then “friends or relatives” with insider knowledge buying the vehicle on the cheap. Such corruption is widespread. And illegal. Although the Cleveland County District Attorney would not prosecute. Like the DA refused to prosecute the P-Card Fraud offenders.
PS: All you School Board candidates, listen up. Robert A will soon be providing you with his own questions on issues related to CCS. Real issues that have been overlooked or just ignored. And, what YOU would do about them.
You will be provided ample time to review and answer these questions with knowledge, thought and judgement. Please do your best to provide good answers to these questions as they will all be published. If answers are not provided, that will be published also.
PS II: All you voters and taxpayers. This article is a very good example of the lack of Planning and Judgement by the Cleveland County School Board. Basically, there are no plans for school construction. And Commissioner Chairman Kevin Gordon wants to raise the Sales Tax rate-supposedly for school Construction.
Be 100% sure to vote AGAINST this Sales Tax increase Referendum on the back side of the 2022 Cleveland County Ballot. This is the third time the Commissioners have tried to ram this sales tax increase down our throats. For a THIRD time vote against this increase that will certainly NOT be put to good use until other Commissioners are elected as Commissioners. Perhaps Robert A will be one of the Commissioners elected in 2024. That would certainly lead to better planning by the school board and ALL others that receive County tax dollars. Including the Cleveland Cunty Fair.