by Paul Rignell
Contributing Writer
Local school officials are finding that Vision Transportation, based in Elk River, is still the most economical choice for busing students to school and other school-sponsored events.
A new contract between Vision and District 728 will come for a vote by the School Board at a meeting June 22.
At a workshop held June 15, board members told Executive Director of Business Services Greg Hein they preferred a renewal with Vision over a second proposed option from another north metro company.
The agreement being considered with Vision would cover the district’s busing needs for the next five years, or through the 2019-2020 school year.
Hein had reported to the board last February that the Elk River company proposed a four-year renewal of its partnership with the district for after the current contract expires July 31.
The board was willing to consider that offer, but any option of more than two years in length required the district to issue a formal request for proposals from Vision and any potential competitors.
Hein said in February that he expected an earlier request for proposals this year would result in more bids for busing than the district saw in 2013, when he managed this process the first time after being hired that March.
Still, the district received just one other proposal this year, from the Metropolitan Transportation Network based in Fridley.
Either the proposal from Vision or from MTN would have come with cost increases to the district through the next five years (partly to cover employee medical insurance and also equipment maintenance), but Hein told the Star News this week that the fifth year of Vision’s bid still came in lower than the first-year offer from MTN.
Hein said that although the district’s payments to Vision will be higher in the coming year than they were in 2014-2015, that increase will be offset largely by more state funding, which was approved last year for special education busing. Starting this fall, all school districts are getting full reimbursement for those costs, he said, whereas they only collected partial aid in previous years.
The Elk River district’s financial obligation to Vision will rise by 2.75 percent annually from 2016-2017 through 2019-2020, Hein said, but the schools’ budget for busing still will be less than what other area districts are paying, he added.
Students in some districts are riding to school in buses that are equipped with GPS tracking technology, but District 728 has not had that feature, which comes at an extra cost with Vision, and does not desire to add such an upgrade, Hein said. He noted that the district’s commitment to basic safety and competent bus service reflects the district’s mission to focus more of its dollars on classroom instruction.
“(Vision) provides a quality level of basic service, and we’re happy with that,” Hein said.