TITLE
Title
AMEND FOOD SERVICE CONTRACT BETWEEN GUILFORD JUVENILE DETENTION AND ARAMARK FOOD SERVICE
end
SPONSOR
Sponsor
Doug Logan
end
BACKGROUND
Background
Guilford County operates a Juvenile Detention Center, providing a safe, secure and humane environment for youth placed in custody. A component of this service line is providing three daily meals to these youth. In June 2024, the Board of Commissioners approved an extension to the County’s contract with Aramark to continue this service. The agreement with Aramark was developed utilizing three (3) Aramark positions to support preparing meals for an average daily population of 31 juvenile residents. However, over the past twelve (12) months, the County has begun to see an increase in the average daily population, recently reaching 38 juvenile residents.
Part of this increase is associated with the implementation of North Carolina's "Raise the Age" legislation, which increased the age of juvenile jurisdiction to 18 for most offenses. This reform brought 16- and 17-year-olds into the juvenile system, leading to increased demand for detention capacity. Although overall admissions did not initially increase following the implementation of “Raise the Age” - partially due to the COVID-19 pandemic - the average daily population has recently begun to increase closer to 38 juvenile residents. The facility has a max capacity of 44 residents. An additional impact from this legislative change is an increase in the average length of stay in juvenile detention. This increase in the average length of stay reflects the growing number of youths held with pending criminal cases, including those awaiting transfer to Superior Court and those initially under criminal jurisdiction but reassigned to juvenile facilities under the new legislation. For Guilford County, this trend has resulted in higher daily populations.
The higher daily population puts additional strain on the contracted staff to prepare the meals on time, resulting in delays and causing ripple impacts on the schedule. For a juvenile detention facility to operate most effectively, maintaining the daily schedule provides structure and consistency for the juvenile residents. Based on this, staff are looking to amend the contract with Aramark to reflect one (1) additional position for a total of four (4) positions. The additional salary and benefits for a fourth position would result in an additional $1.27 per meal. This would bring the per meal cost to $5.863. Aramark is also proposing additional language to the contract so if the average daily population falls below 30 juveniles for two months, Aramark will charge an additional $0.17 per meal until the population reaches a minimum of 30. Based on this proposed change, the estimated total is not anticipated to exceed $303,575. The fiscal year 2025 budget included $255,277, resulting in an additional need of $48,298. The County receives a 50% reimbursement rate via USDA, which would offset this impact by $24,149. The remaining funding will utilize existing county resources within Juvenile Detention.
Juvenile Detention Pricing (Effective immediately through June 30, 2025)
Current Price Per Tray Proposed Price Per Tray
Juvenile Meals $4.593 Juvenile Meals $5.863
Staff Meals $2.915 Staff Meals $2.915
Snacks $0.556 Snacks $0.556
Trays $0.200 Trays $0.200
Guilford County Juvenile Detention is the only juvenile facility that is currently bidding and contracting with outside food vendors.
end
BUDGET IMPACT
Budget Impact
General Fund
$24,149 increase in Federal/State funding
$24,149 increase in appropriation to Juvenile Detention
end
REQUESTED ACTION
Requested Action
Approve a contract amendment, in substantial form, between Guilford County, on behalf of its Juvenile Detention Center, and Aramark Food Service to provide food services to detained juveniles at a not anticipated to exceed $303,575 effective immediately through June 30, 2025. Approve a budget amendment increasing federal/state funds and appropriation to Juvenile Detention by $24,149.
end