The \u201cSMART Bond\u201d program, a school renovation effort that became a symbol of waste and mismanagement for the Broward School District, is coming to an end \u2014 at least by name.<\/p>\n
The School Board agreed in 2023 to set an end date of Oct. 31, 2025, for the program that was initially funded by an $800 million bond<\/a> approved by voters in 2014.<\/p>\n SMART \u2014 which stands for Safety, Music\/arts, Athletics, Renovations and Technology \u2014 was supposed to be over in 2021, and School Board members hoped in 2023 that a firm deadline would help speed up construction.<\/p>\n It didn\u2019t work. There are still more than 100 projects, or a third of all work, that are not complete, according to recent district reports. Most of those projects are under construction and will be finished, officials say, but the name SMART program is being retired. The district is also ending its Bond Oversight Committee, which it created in 2015 to monitor the progress of the bond.<\/p>\n District officials say it\u2019s been years since they even used bond money to fund the projects, which are costing a total of about $1.6 billion.<\/p>\n \u201cThe resolution wasn\u2019t to get rid of the projects. It was not to call them SMART projects anymore because the SMART money is gone,\u201d School Board Chairwoman Debbi Hixon said at a recent board meeting.<\/p>\n While most School Board members\u00a0see the bond program as a debacle, some are discussing doing it again, possibly as early as 2028.<\/p>\n Bureau Veritas, a Maryland firm specializing in building inspections, has been assessing the condition of all district schools for the past year. It\u2019s part of the district\u2019s \u201cRedefining Broward Schools\u201d effort to decide whether to close or consolidate schools<\/a>.<\/p>\n But the data also will help the district present a case to the public in the future for the need for another bond, officials say. The total capital improvement needs are estimated at $10 billion, district officials say, which is more than 12 times the amount of money voters approved in 2014.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m hoping over the next three years that our performance improves, and we win back the confidence of our county,\u201d School Board member Allen Zeman told the South Florida Sun Sentinel.<\/p>\n Zeman, while critical of how the SMART bond was executed, said he thinks voters would give the district another chance if it can provide a list of schools that need fixing and how the district plans to avoid mistakes of the past. At the Oct. 21 meeting, he said that if the district asked for the full $10 billion in needs, the cost to the average homeowner would be $750 a year, which he thinks would be a good investment.<\/p>\n That figure created sticker shock among board members at the meeting.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to do a great job as a district and as a board and rebuild some of that trust,\u201d Board member Adam Cervera said. \u201cBut to come up here and talk about $10 billion dollars in bond money, that\u2019s not going to happen. So we need to start looking at other ways to get these schools some of the TLC that they need. I\u2019m certainly not suggesting that we send our kids to dilapidated schools, but we\u2019ve got to be realistic here.\u201d<\/p>\n Board member Rebecca Thompson said she\u2019s also reluctant to ask voters to approve a bond any time soon. She noted that in March, 65%\u00a0of Pembroke Pines voters rejected a tax increase<\/a> for parks, road improvements and a police headquarters.<\/p>\n \u201cPembroke Pines just went out for a bond for $230 million, which is a fraction of what we would ask for, and it failed, and not close. It miserably failed,\u201d she said. \u201cI just think we need to be really cognizant of the economy that we are living in and that families can\u2019t afford a dollar or two more.\u201d<\/p>\n Cynthia Dominique, a Margate parent who chairs Broward\u2019s District Advisory Council, told the Sun Sentinel she is also skeptical a bond would pass in the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n \u201cThe parents I speak to are just disappointed with the debacle the SMART bond was or is,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n She said many parents believe the district has ignored the condition of decaying schools for years and has expressed more interest in closing them than investing in them. The SMART bond program included few replacements of dilapidated buildings, instead focusing on upgrading the roofs and air conditioners of aging schools. Many of those projects were stalled for years.<\/p>\n The SMART bond program was marred by a needs assessment that underestimated the costs and the full scope of work required, high turnover of district management and delays due to friction between district staff and contractors.<\/p>\n The district has frequently accused contractors of performing subpar work and taking too long to fix problems. Contractors have accused the district of conducting overly rigid inspections, changing the scope of projects while in progress and failing to pay them adequately or on time. The district has been sued by at least 10 contractors who alleged breach of contract, while the district filed suit against at least two. Several suits were settled, but most are still active.<\/p>\n The SMART program was the focus of a statewide grand jury report<\/a>, completed in 2021 and released in 2022, that concluded school administrators had mismanaged the program and misled the public for years. The grand jury recommended that Gov. Ron DeSantis remove School Board members who jurors argued had failed to hold the then-superintendent accountable for the missteps of the bond. DeSantis removed four board members<\/a> and replaced them in August 2022.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile the SMART Bond, approved by voters in 2014, had its challenges, there\u2019s no doubt that students have benefited \u2014 and continue to benefit \u2014 from new and renovated buildings, upgraded HVAC systems, classroom technology, playgrounds, band equipment and enhanced safety measures,\u201d district spokeswoman Keyla Concepcion told the Sun Sentinel.<\/p>\n Zeman, who was elected in November 2022, has been highly critical of\u00a0the SMART bond and has been looking to move past it since he joined the board. In the spring of 2023, he proposed setting the Oct. 31, 2025, deadline to end the program. This was based on the date that AECOM, a company the district hired in 2020 to take over the bond, had set to reach substantial completion of all projects.<\/p>\n \u201cWe represent Broward County, and Broward County\u2019s done with the SMART Bond,\u201d Zeman said at a workshop in April 2023. \u201cThey want it over now. The fact that I\u2019m proposing to wait 31 months to get this all stuff closed out means that I\u2019m behind the values of the county I represent already, so I\u2019m non-negotiable on October 2025.\u201d<\/p>\n The School Board voted unanimously to approve the resolution in May 2023. But progress continued to stall. When the board hired Howard Hepburn as superintendent in April 2024, one of the goals they gave him was to get the SMART bond projects completed quickly<\/a>.<\/p>\n