Call Huntley District 158.

After recently buying 29 school buses for this school year, board members got a surprise the Thursday night before last.

There are now 25 or so “extra” buses in the transportation area after the buses leave in the morning to pick up their students.

This came to light after District 158’s Transportation Director Rick Rossi made a presentation Thursday night at District 158’s Building Committee meeting.

You can imagine Chief Operating Officer Glen Stewart was none too happy when this information became public knowledge.

School Superintendent John Burkey suggested that the extra buses included the 8 spare ones that are purposely left idle to replace those needing repair and for field trips.

Rossi said that wasn’t the case.

Stewart’s board member friends, who controlled the board before the spring elections and still do, awarded him the well-paid, top administrative position.

Here are the details:

• 12 buses will sit for 6 months since the end of school last June until December 10th when their leases expire.
• 13 buses will be idle for a full year unless administrators put them into service by creating more bus routes or adding them to current routes.

The irony is that there have been enough parent complaints this year in D-158 that the school board discussed using 5 or 6 of the buses to meet parents’ objections to crowded bus stops and crowded buses.

Board member, Kim Skaja, one of the board members who voted to hire Stewart, said having the extra buses was “good planning.”

I wonder if taxpayers agree.