With all the new buildings in Rockville/North Bethesda, it's doubtful they'd pull that many from DCC, and if they do it's not going to be the neighborhoods talked about as there are closer ones. Its a huge issue for families with kids with after school activities as the buses only drop off once with limited times so for many of us without bus service, you can be driving your child up to back and forth twice a day which is a lot especially when you are driving for outside activities too. |
The boundary study is going to occur in 2025, using enrollment numbers and projections from fall 2024. |
The Einstein facade was also redone in the 90s, so it looks different than before. It was at the same time and by the same architect that did Whitman. Regarding Blair, the school should’ve been renovated at its walkable historic site like B-CC, the original proposal, but the PTA was lured by the promise of a brand new building with more field space. The current fortress-like Blair is in a terribly inconvenient location. |
It really is a terrible location, in so many ways. |
The facade being done 30+ years ago is not helpful. The inside looks ancient. Not sure where folks are saying is updated. |
The problem is there are not bus rides for everyone. It’s two miles as a rule. Our kids would have to cross several major roads, sometimes during rush hour and most streets don’t have sidewalks. And, if they have activities at school the activity bus, if you have one has limited times and stops. We are often driving our kids twice a day to school, so four to six trips daily with two kids. Sone activities don’t start till 4 or 5 pm. It’s much more doable with two mikes than four to five miles. I don’t care if your school is under enrolled. I care about distance as between school, school activities and outside activities already spend several hours a day driving. It may work for a kid in no activities who can just catch the bus but with no bus service, school and outside activities those few extra mikes each way add a huge time difference for us. |
It probably should be completely demoed and replaced. There is plenty of room on the large site. Einstein is not a historic building. Arlington and Falls Church completely replaced their secondary schools built in the 50s and 60s with new buildings and campuses. |
A good argument for more public buses and more sidewalks. The county and state don't provide adequate transit service and adequate facilities for kids who walk, skateboard, scoot, or bike to or from school. Then MCPS has to make up for that failure in their capital and operating budgets. |
And where would the 2000+ Einstein students go while their building is demoed and replaced? With fifteen portables currently taking up space outside, there is not plenty of room. |
Einstein's modernization and addition cost $24.5 million in 1997 and won at least two architectural awards.
"The Board recognized Stephen Parker of Grimm and Parker Architects, who received the Honor Award for Architectural Excellence from the Potomac Valley Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). The project was chosen for the AIA award from among more than 133 projects locally and throughout the country. The award was presented to the Montgomery County Public Schools and the firm of Grimm and Parker Architects, located in Calverton, Maryland. The $25.4 million modernization and addition project was completed in two years for the opening of Albert Einstein High School in September 1997. The Albert Einstein High School project will also receive an award for architectural design from the National Association of School Boards at the organization's annual conference in March." https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/siteassets/district/boe/meetings/minutes/1998/minutes.011398.pdf |
More sidewalks would be helpful but public buses would not fully work as they don’t go everywhere and it’s not realistic for the county to provide. We’ve petitioned the county multiple times over the years for sidewalks and we’re told no. We ere lucky after many tries just to get stop signs put in. Mcps has the responsibility to provide buses for schools. |
There is no way they spent that much. And, if they did it needs to be redone again. |
Sure. Get in line behind Eastern, Wootton, Damascus, Magruder, and lots of elementary schools. |
Whatever they spent, a façade is a...façade. Window dressing. May be nice to view from the parking lot. Walk just inside and...very uninspiring. It needs to be expanded (with whatever on-par updates would make it not need such consideration for many years, as should any major capital project) unless significant population is shifted west with the Woodward boundary study or a new HS is created very quickly to address continued DCC-area population growth. |
No question about those. This is on the County Council for nearly three decades of underfunded allocations and tax break policy with a lack of concrete school facility space reserve in their interaction with Montgomery Pllanning/M-NCPPC. More even than on MCPS for design overreach and questionable prioritization for some; they've spent at least a decade way behind. |