The federal government has what is best described as a property management crisis. It owns entirely too many underutilized properties and deteriorating facilities that have been ignored for decades. Deferred maintenance eventually catches up with owners of any facility and the federal government must now address these problems - at a cost that is prohibitive. Congress actually allocated billions of dollars several years ago, but the funding for repair, maintenance and/or repurposing was simply inadequate and additional funding now is not available.

Many with expertise in this area have argued that private capital must be part of any solution. Developers who would find new uses for vacant or underutilized buildings and government property could not only provide the needed funding for renovation and repair, but their efforts would also expand the tax base and bring new revenues into cash-strapped federal agencies.

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Boardman urges investment not just in highways, but other modes of transportation

As a September deadline looms for funding for the nation's Highway Trust Fund and federal officials are warning that the fund could actually run dry before that time, Amtrak President and CEO Joe Boardman (pictured) is making his case for a balanced Transportation Trust Fund. Such a fund, said the Amtrak boss, would provide funding for all modes of surface transportation - highways, transit and passenger and freight rail.

At a recent speech to the National Press Club, Boardman gave the eulogy for the Highway Trust Fund, saying, "The Highway Trust Fund is dead." Providing for the nation's infrastructure needs

Amtrak President/CEO Joe Boardman is pushing for balanced transportation funding. (Amtrak photo)

within the existing financing structure is a no-win situation, he said. "The questions we as Americans must answer are, 'How do we redefine the approach to federal transportation investment to ensure it is focused on truly national needs? How do we recapture the national vision and purpose of the Interstate era?'"

Boardman called the Highway Trust Fund "financially unviable," and built on an outmoded scheme for mobility in this country. He suggested that rather than continue to rely on a highway program, the emphasis instead should be on a surface transportation program. He suggested it is time to move away from doing things just because that's the way they were done in the past and instead supporting a program that invests in projects that can deliver "real results."

The Amtrak president made his case for a funding program that supports other modes of transportation, but particularly rail. He cited figures that Amtrak has set ridership records in 10 of the last 11 years and carries three times as many passengers between New York and Washington as all the airlines put together. And, with revenues up 21 percent since 2008, Boardman said Amtrak is able to support 89 percent of its operating costs from non-federal revenues.

Throwing money at the situation is not helpful, said Boardman. He pointed to a recent Congressional Budget Office study that said the deficit in the Highway Trust Fund will grow from $7 billion in 2015 to $126 billion in 2023. "A world-leading economy today requires a world-leading transportation system," not just a highway system, said Boardman. "The people out there - customers, constituents, citizens and taxpayers - want us to deliver good, relevant infrastructure solutions." 

Seeks consultant to sell advertising on state properties from bridges to ferries

Think you've seen everything? The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) may have a "Can you top this?" proposal. As a result, drivers in Louisiana could see DOTD employees working on state highways with safety vests on that say, "Eat at Joe's. Diner" on the back!

The agency is seeking information from consultants who can run a campaign to sell advertisements on just about anything that doesn't move - and some things that do. DOTD is looking to make money by selling ads on state bridges, roads, rest areas, ferries, scenic areas - even the safety vests transportation employees wear.

DOTD is thinking outside the box and thinking creatively. And it's not just getting started. DOTD already has a contract with the state's largest insurer - State Farm - to put the company's logo and name on Motorist Assistant Patrol vehicles. The trucks offer assistance to stalled vehicles in Louisiana metro areas to ensure smooth traffic flow. And State Farm pays the state $250,000 a year for a three-year contract.

The agency has the right of refusal to maintain control over what can and can't be advertised on state property. Money realized from any such advertising contracts goes back into DOTD's $350 million operating budget. The success of the program and how willing the public is to accept it could map the future of the program. But, if it works and is profitable, it could start a trend among state governments.

Arizona Western College approves new public safety building on main campus

Arizona Western College will soon have a new Public Safety facility on the college's main campus. The approximately $1.4 million facility will be home to the Emergency Medical Services, Emergency Medical Technical and Paramedic programs as well as Fire, Law Enforcement Training Academy, Administration of Justice and Homeland Security programs. The new building is expected to be 7,500 square feet and will be located adjacent to the College Community Center. Still in the early stages of design and construction, the facility is expected to be completed by the end of December. "This facility would allow for our Public Safety programs to come together under one roof, allowing for greater collaboration among our professional administrators and faculty for programs," said Daniel Barajas (pictured), dean of Career and Technical Education at the college. The additional space is necessary to increase the amount of Public Safety courses on campus to meet a growing need of students interested in the program. The facility not only will be used for training, but also for meetings, course offerings and to hopefully meet the needs of the community.

Texas ISD moving ahead with new activity center, high school expansion

Midway, Texas, Independent School District officials recently gave preliminary approval for architectural plans for a new $8.4 million student activity center. Trustees also are expected to approve a $6.6 million project to add a fine arts wing to the high school in about two months. Voters approved $34 million in bonds last year to pay for the new student activity center that will feature a metal building large enough to house football practices, soccer games, band practices and other student activities during bad weather. The project to expand the high school calls for adding a 25,000-square-foot wing featuring a new dance hall, locker rooms, dressing rooms, choir hall, orchestra hall and storage and practice rooms. Current plans call for the board to select a construction manager for the activity center this month and the project to be completed in November or December, noted Karl Kacir, assistant superintendent for finance. Board members are expected to select a construction manager for the fine arts wing project within two months and expect the project to be completed in April 2015, Kacir said.

Missouri State planning to seek bids in April for new Welcome Center

A new Welcome Center on the campus of Missouri State University is likely to go out for bids in April. Construction of the center (as seen in the accompanying artist's rendering) will probably take a year. The center will serve as a centralized site for both students and visitors and will provide an early introduction to the campus as the starting point for tours of the campus. As the construction begins, two parking lots will be removed to make room for construction of the center. The 12,800-square-foot facility will include an auditorium and will also have office spaces for some admissions staff. It will feature cutting-edge technology and relate to today's students. Officials say the Welcome Center is a much-needed facility to serve as the face of the university.

Draft RFP released for Department of Defense electronic health record

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has released a draft request for proposal (RFP) for a new electronic health record (EHR) system. The DOD intends to purchase a commercial EHR to replace the system it canceled, as did the Veterans Affairs Department. The two found the costs too high and did not want to have a joint EHR in both the military and veterans medical systems. The new EHR for DOD will replace the Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Application, Composite Health Care System and EHR components including AHTLA-Theater, according to the RFP. The system would be implemented in two segments, the first for fixed facilities such as hospital facilities in garrison and non-garrison settings. The second phase would extend across the full range of military operations. Facing a Dec. 31, 2016, deadline for deploying a modern EHR, both for the DOD and the VA, the first segment would include 57 hospitals, 364 medical clinics, 282 dental clinics and 200 vet clinics. The second segment would include 227 naval vessels, air platforms and group facilities such as hospital ships, other ships and submarines and combat support hospitals.

Check out these recent awards:

• Marstel-Day won a contract worth up to $1 million from the U.S. Army for architect and engineering services.

• Thomas Bus Gulf Coast was awarded a contract for $1,712,844 from the Conroe (Texas) Independent School District for purchase of 18 diesel and propane buses.

• Dana B. Kenyon Co. won a $23.5 million contract to design and build an intermodal container transfer facility for the Port of Jacksonville.

• Ledcor has been awarded a $39.8 million contract by Nevada State College to build two, three-story academic buildings - a 66,000-square-foot Nursing & Sciences Building that features classrooms, science labs, an auditorium, faculty offices and computer labs and a 61,000-square-foot Student Activities & Administration Building to house admissions, a book store, food services, a campus library, the registrar and financial aid offices and student club and administrative offices.

• AAA Asphalt Paving Inc. was awarded a $1.24 million contract from the Bellaire, Texas, City Council for street maintenance that will result in about 30 blocks of streets being repaired and involves milling existing asphalt pavement, making concrete and asphalt pavement point repairs, placing asphalt overlay over concrete and asphalt concrete pavement and placing storm sewers.

• OnPoint Consulting, Inc. was awarded a 10-year, $59-million contract with the U.S. Air Force to provide IT services to the Air Force District of Washington.

• ManTech International Corporation  has been awarded a one-year indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity base contract with six one-year options with a value of $85 million from the U.S. Navy's Naval Facilities Engineering Command to provide range sustainability services for military training and testing range complexes and assets at various locations worldwide.

• BOH Environmental won a contract worth up to $250 million from the Defense Logistics Agency for several types of containers and container parts.

• Accenture Federal Services won a contract worth up to $45 million from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for general purpose information technology equipment.

• Ratcliff Contractors LP was awarded a $3.17 million contract by the city of Sweetwater, Texas, to build the city's new police station.

Public-private partnership to improve long-term care options

A public-private partnership is planned in Nashville that is aimed at improving long-term care options in the city and in Davidson County. The project will also transform two Metro-owned facilities to privately run facilities. Both the Bordeaux Nursing Home and the Knowles Assisted Living Center are operated by the Metropolitan Nashville Hospital Authority, but the plan calls for private-sector investments in both. The proposal also calls for construction of a new skilled nursing facility by a private-sector partner. Nashville Mayor Karl Dean (pictured) said the project has been a work in progress over the last year trying to identify the best way for the facilities to meet the community's needs. "The public-private partnership proposed as the result of this effort will not only provide enhanced care for the seniors and other individuals who call these facilities home, but it will also preserve jobs and reduce the need for future Metro subsidies," he said. Anticipated in the first three years of the project are construction of an $18 million skilled nursing center to be built, owned and operated by private-sector partners, a private investment of $250,000 in capital improvements to the Bordeaux Nursing Home and private investment of at least $300,000 in capital improvements to the Knowles Assisted Living Center. "We can do better by our seniors, our employees, our community and our taxpayers by bringing partners to the table with the specific expertise and resources necessary to help these facilities succeed long-term," said Dean.

 Are you a government official who has moved into a new position or to a new agency? Did you recently retire? Were you recently named to an executive-level position at a state-supported college, university or community college? Have you secured a new job as superintendent of a public school? If so, we'd like to hear from you - and so would your friends and colleagues - for our "Where Are They Now" column. Just drop us a line at editor@spartnerships.com and let us know about your previous job and where you are now. This week we feature John Kelly.

Andrew R. Dolloff (top left), a York County (Maine) school superintendent and former Scarborough school administrator, was recently hired as Yarmouth's new superintendent, effective July 1, replacing interim superintendent William J. Michaud. Stockton, California, Interim City Manager Kurt Wilson (top center), who joined the city as deputy city manager in 2012 and has been interim city manager since last November, has been named new city manager, replacing outgoing City Manager Bob Deis. Charlie Danger (top right), Miami-Dade County building chief, has announced his retirement and will be replaced by his deputy, Juliana Salas. President Barack Obama has nominated Vice Adm. Michael S. Rogers, a Navy cryptologist, to lead the National Security Agency and the Pentagon's cyber warfare organization, succeeding Gen. Keith Alexander, NSA director since 2005 who is retiring in March. Johnson O. Akinleye, who was associate vice chancellor for academic programs at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, is the new provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at North Carolina Central University. Ohio State University has chosen ophthalmologist Michael V. Drake, chancellor of the University of California at Irvine and former vice president for health affairs of the University of California system, to be its next president, replacing E. Gordon Gee, who stepped down last year. The Reynoldsburg (Ohio) Board of Education has hired Tina Thomas-Manning (bottom right), current associate superintendent at the Ohio Department of Education, as the new Reynoldsburg superintendent, to succeed Superintendent Steve Dackin, who is retiring. Brown University Provost and biochemist Mark Schlissel (bottom center) was recently named the new president of the University of Michigan. Albuquerque, New Mexico, Chief of Police Allen Banks (bottom left), who has spent his entire 21-year law enforcement career with the department and who has served as interim chief since August of last year, has been named chief of the Round Rock, Texas, Police Department. Phoenix Fire Department Executive Assistant Chief Kara Kalkbrenner has been appointed interim chief of the department, replacing Fire Chief Bob Khan, who is retiring Feb. 28. Richard Lindenmuth, a North Carolina businessman who specializes in business restructurings, has been named interim chief executive officer of the new nonprofit Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. Susana E. Guerrero, a former lawyer for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, has been chosen as the executive director of the state's ethics watchdog agency.