Fact Check: MCPS Dir says it is "erroneous" that MCPS pays more for same FieldTurf product #artificialturf

At Minute 11:00 of the video below from today's County Council Education Committee MCPS' Director of Construction James Song declares that it is "erroneous" information that MCPS pays more than other school systems for same FieldTurf product.  

The new definition of "erroneous" must be factual.

All of the field prices below are for the FieldTurf Revolution product: 

2012    Gaithersburg High School   $ 424,967.44

2012  Paint Branch High School     $ 413,153.59

                                          2012      AISD Stadium                     $  369,350

Also, in this video James Song tells the Council's Education Committee that MCPS can't shut down artificial turf field use at 9 PM (minute 7 of video below) because it won't allow the hours of use that are needed for a partnership agreement for one of these fields.

However, Montgomery County's Noise Ordinance sets 9 PM as the time when noise levels must decrease, but what is a Montgomery County Ordinance to MCPS?

Guest Post: MCPS Dir. James Song tells BOE Artificial Turf "could" be bid out.

Why bid when you can just shop? 

A member of the public took notes from the off camera meeting of the Montgomery County Board of Education Fiscal Management Committee Meeting on March 18, 2013.  One of the topics at that meeting was artificial turf procurement. 

MCPS Director of Construction James Song spoke to the committee about the future direction of artificial turf fields in Montgomery County and how he wanted to make the program “self-sustaining,” through a number of creative approaches... For instance, if a private group puts up $350 K to $400 K as an initial capital investment, they can be given a user contract for five years. Their option to renew kicks in at the five-year mark. User fees would make up the difference in costs, but he gave no data on how well this is working. He did not say whether private groups would be asked for another large sum of money on contract renewal.

He takes most of his field performance data from the Field Turf brochure, which helps make the case for his numbers...

James Song talked about the following:

• The MC fields are set up on a 10-year cycle. They each cost $1.1 MM. MC currently has four high schools with AT fields, with two on the way. This $1.1 MM is split roughly between the cost of the rug and the cost of the field construction. This amounts to $550K.
• His funding sources vary. For instance Wootton High School funding is 100 percent private. Based on the 10-year life cycle the funding approaches can be creative.
• His replacement costs, based on a 10-year life cycle, are $450K - $500K per field. However, he admitted that the 10-year term is not a hard number. It’s the manufacturer’s recommendation, but they also conduct annual inspections of the fields and supply additional infill and do spot repairs of the rugs. He did not say whether this was included in the contract, or paid for, nor did anyone ask him how long the warranty actually lasts.
• All MC fields are Field Turf/Tarkett. The company came recommended through the Keystone Purchasing Network. The benefits to using Field Turf/Tarkett are that they provide a professional product, used by professional teams. He said the county could bid out, evaluating whether a better product could be delivered at less price.
• He said that all MC AT fields are the same. The prices did vary for the fields with RMHS costing $950 K; Walter Johnson costing $1.0 million; and Gaithersburg costing $1.12 million. Wootton came in at $1.1 million, but those funds are private.
• MC is exploring infill mixes for health and environmental reasons. There has been talk of lead in tire crumb and other health concerns, but nothing has been proven. They are monitoring the latest technology looking for ways to keep temps from rising more than 15 degrees on the fields. Infill mixes are being explored and they can bid on different materials because Field Turf/Tarkett will accept other infill materials.
• Montgomery County has done extensive research on injuries and harm related to AT versus natural grass and artificial turf appears to be safer.
• He said that replacement costs could be $450 K - $500K, but he has yet to replace a field. This information agrees nicely with the Field Turf literature.
• More competition will bring down prices, but MC wants the best.

• In terms of grass fields, he said that there are constant costs such as water usage, striping the fields for athletic events, and fertilizers and pesticides. The county is spending $50,000 to $60,000 for natural grass stadium fields. Artificial turf is a fraction of these costs.
• For RMHS, private groups kicked in roughly $300 K. Annual maintenance on this field comes in about $8,100 per year. For WJHS, private groups kicked in roughly $335 K, which gave them 900 hours of use annually, and maintenance costs on this field are $16,000 to $17,000 annually. [He did not explain the 100 percent difference in maintenance costs for these two fields.]
• He said that scheduling for use of the MC artificial turf fields goes through Community Use of Public Facilities. He said that CUPF charges $150 to $175 per hour. [He did not mention that the fields require a three-hour minimum rental on weekends, nor did he mention that the rates for other groups can be more than $200/hour with a three-hour minimum.]
• The self-sustaining model is based upon MCPS, CUPF and private groups working in concert to keep the money flowing. He attends a lot of benefits to strengthen the county’s relationship with private groups.
• They are looking at 3,000 hours of annual usage on the artificial turf fields...
• If more artificial turf fields can generate revenues, it may allow more artificial turf fields to be constructed.
• Of natural grass he said that after two years they die and are replaced...

Craig Rice calls Cherri Branson "off topic," cuts off discussion, and turns off mics. #artificialturf #FieldTurf

Councilmember Cherri Branson knows a lot about government procurement!

Listen to her questions to MCPS' Director James Song at today's Council discussion of artificial turf in the video clip below.

But, don't expect to hear Mr. Song respond to any of Councilmember Branson's excellent questions.

Council President and Education Committee Chair Craig Rice promptly cuts her off, calls her questions "off topic" and turns off the audio on this hearing!

BOE don't need no stinkin' bids!

Here's what the Board of Education paid for the FIELDTURF artificial turf at these two high schools:

5/25/2012    Gaithersburg High School    $4.47 per square foot

10/17/2012  Paint Branch High School    $4.47 per square foot

Pennsylvania's Keystone Purchasing Network:  $4.89 per square foot

The BOE claims that their prices are based "off" the Keystone Cooperative pricing. 


Now, here's the 10/23/2012 price a school system in Pennsylvania can pay for FIELDTURF artificial turf based on the COMPETITIVE BID they received from FIELDTURF

$3.77 per square foot

Keep in mind that an artificial turf field is about 92,000 square feet.  So a savings of 70 cents per square foot on the two MCPS fields would have yielded savings of almost $130,000 on this one component of the project alone. (There are many other parts to an artificial turf field installation.  None of the components are put out for bids in MCPS land.)

Want to hear more? The $3.77 price that the PA school system can pay for their FIELDTURF is a full $1.00 cheaper than the Keystone Pennsylvannia purchasing price that the BOE claims gives them such a "deal".

So is using the Keystone Purchasing Network really a good thing?