COM 0279.000 2010-2012 - Laserfiche WebLink

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painting and repair being reduced to zero despite unmet roof maintenance needs and the lack of trained staff and equipment to conduct necessary work. The Department of Parks and Recreation has insufficient written policies and procedures for facilities maintenance and repair. Its current work order system lacks sufficient follow-up procedures for critical maintenance and major repair work orders that are forwarded to the Park Planner for completion with CIP funds, resulting in certain critical repairs (such as leaking roofs) often not completed years later. While the Parks Maintenance Superintendent is a proponent of preventative maintenance, the Division has not yet been able to implement proactive maintenance processes, and as a result, work orders for unplanned repairs inundate the maintenance staff. A "crazy cycle" develops with maintenance workers patching deficiencies caused by neglected maintenance, leaving less time for completing preventative maintenance, which results in more deficiencies that become repair or safety issues. Insufficient planning, monitoring, reporting, transparency, and accountability relating to the Department's project plans and priorities and asset management in general, leave decision- makers and stakeholders with insufficient information to determine whether the Department is meeting its own strategic plan goals for facilities, fiscal responsibility, and safety as well as the goals of the County Administration, Council, and taxpayers relating to delivery of public services and access to public facilities. A root cause of deteriorating facilities appears to be the failure of prior County Administrations to recognize the impact of deferring maintenance and repairs, which has resulted in insufficient processes and insufficient budget resources allocated to maintain facilities in fully functional condition. Without proper maintenance, public facilities can prematurely fail. Lack of timely preventative maintenance and minor repairs leads to more costly major repairs. By implementing best practices in asset management such as those recommended by the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) and National Research Council (NRC) that are cited in this audit report, the useful lives of public facilities can be extended for their lowest life cycle costs, access to public facilities can be improved, and the Department and all stakeholders will have the information necessary to determine how effective the County has been in meeting its goals and responsibilities relating to facilities maintenance. SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FINDING ONE: INSUFFICIENTLY INTEGRATED PLANNING, BUDGETING, OPERATIONS, AND MONITORING PROCESSES RESULT IN INADEQUATE CRITICAL MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR Recommendation: The P&R Department, County Administration, and County Council need to ensure that there is an integrated overall process to facilitate adequate critical maintenance and repair of the County's recreational facilities. FINDING TWO: P&R's PLANNING PROCESS FOR FACILITIES CRITICAL MAINTENANCE AND REPAIRS IS INSUFFICIENT Lack of an Asset Management Plan for Facilities Recommendation 2.1: P&R should develop a comprehensive asset management plan, which should integrate plans to address the deferred maintenance and repair backlog, ADA rehabilitation, and hazardous materials remediation. The asset management plan should also include a timeline for returning all facilities to the conditions set forth in its Strategic Plan. 2