APS School Bd Mtg

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter. The elementary school needs to stay.

Exactly. There is nowhere for it to go at present and those are real kids that need a spot in school. They don't just disappear by you tearing down their building.

The truth is that we need APS to engage in comprehensive, school system wide planning and they just seem determined not to do so. So we just keep playing whack a mole. It is a mess.

They can move the school to Central Library.

And do what with the library?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The career center site is 12 acres. The WL site plus Ed Center is 22. https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/FAC-1300-seat-siting-document-draft.pdf

Correction - the Career Center site is 7.9 acres. The adjacent Patrick Henry Elementary site is 4.2 acres. You cannot assume that elementary campus is available. There is nowhere else proposed for that elementary school at present.

If APS chooses to build all 1300+ high school seats at the Career Center, then it could choose to build a school for the Montessori program at the Ed Center location. But by splitting the high school seats up, it is taking away both sites. I'm not sure where they would move the Montessori elementary in that case. They are already looking at a deficit of something like 4 elementary schools over the next decade.

In response to another question, the Ed Center component of the WL campus is negligible. You really are comparing a 22 acre campus to an 8 acre one. I don't think it's likely that a pool and football field could be accommodated at the Career Center. Kenmore, on the other hand, has a 32 acre campus (not including the adjacent elementary school). That is enough room for a full high school with all amenities (even without structured parking).

I'm the PP who posted the link to the PDF doc and you're right about the numbers. I was including the current elementary site when I said 12 but you're right it doesn't make sense to do that.

I completely agree with you regarding the respective size of the sites and the fact that Kenmore would be the best option for a new HS. And I share the concerns that I understand were raised by Arlington Heights folks about splitting up the seats and thus burning bridges with regard to both sites (not to mention the available funds with which to build).

The seat siting document includes Quincy Park in the size of WL campus. Without Quincy park, WL is about 14 acres. The entire Career Center/Arlington Mill/ Patrick Henry site is about 12 acres.

This is correct.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The career center site is 12 acres. The WL site plus Ed Center is 22. https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/FAC-1300-seat-siting-document-draft.pdf

Correction - the Career Center site is 7.9 acres. The adjacent Patrick Henry Elementary site is 4.2 acres. You cannot assume that elementary campus is available. There is nowhere else proposed for that elementary school at present.

If APS chooses to build all 1300+ high school seats at the Career Center, then it could choose to build a school for the Montessori program at the Ed Center location. But by splitting the high school seats up, it is taking away both sites. I'm not sure where they would move the Montessori elementary in that case. They are already looking at a deficit of something like 4 elementary schools over the next decade.

In response to another question, the Ed Center component of the WL campus is negligible. You really are comparing a 22 acre campus to an 8 acre one. I don't think it's likely that a pool and football field could be accommodated at the Career Center. Kenmore, on the other hand, has a 32 acre campus (not including the adjacent elementary school). That is enough room for a full high school with all amenities (even without structured parking).

I'm the PP who posted the link to the PDF doc and you're right about the numbers. I was including the current elementary site when I said 12 but you're right it doesn't make sense to do that.

I completely agree with you regarding the respective size of the sites and the fact that Kenmore would be the best option for a new HS. And I share the concerns that I understand were raised by Arlington Heights folks about splitting up the seats and thus burning bridges with regard to both sites (not to mention the available funds with which to build).

The seat siting document includes Quincy Park in the size of WL campus. Without Quincy park, WL is about 14 acres. The entire Career Center/Arlington Mill/ Patrick Henry site is about 12 acres.

This is correct.

This is correct, if you also take the Ed Center and its parking out of the calculation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The career center site is 12 acres. The WL site plus Ed Center is 22. https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/FAC-1300-seat-siting-document-draft.pdf

Correction - the Career Center site is 7.9 acres. The adjacent Patrick Henry Elementary site is 4.2 acres. You cannot assume that elementary campus is available. There is nowhere else proposed for that elementary school at present.

If APS chooses to build all 1300+ high school seats at the Career Center, then it could choose to build a school for the Montessori program at the Ed Center location. But by splitting the high school seats up, it is taking away both sites. I'm not sure where they would move the Montessori elementary in that case. They are already looking at a deficit of something like 4 elementary schools over the next decade.

In response to another question, the Ed Center component of the WL campus is negligible. You really are comparing a 22 acre campus to an 8 acre one. I don't think it's likely that a pool and football field could be accommodated at the Career Center. Kenmore, on the other hand, has a 32 acre campus (not including the adjacent elementary school). That is enough room for a full high school with all amenities (even without structured parking).

I'm the PP who posted the link to the PDF doc and you're right about the numbers. I was including the current elementary site when I said 12 but you're right it doesn't make sense to do that.

I completely agree with you regarding the respective size of the sites and the fact that Kenmore would be the best option for a new HS. And I share the concerns that I understand were raised by Arlington Heights folks about splitting up the seats and thus burning bridges with regard to both sites (not to mention the available funds with which to build).

The seat siting document includes Quincy Park in the size of WL campus. Without Quincy park, WL is about 14 acres. The entire Career Center/Arlington Mill/ Patrick Henry site is about 12 acres.

This is correct.

Quincy Park includes valuable field space used by W-L for PE and sports and it's owned by APS. I personally would want any new neighborhood high school wth a boundary in Arlington to have similar facilities and field space to the other schools. Are most families willing to sacrifice the field space our current high schools have for an urban type neighborhood high school with much less field space at the Career Center site? I don't know the answer to that, but I don't think so.

[Anonymous]

In a best case scenario, Ed center could be gutted and remodeled to house a full pre-K to 8th grade Montessori program. It would increase traffic but may resolve some of the complaints of the WL parents over a mega high school. The entire career center site could be used for a 4th comprehensive high school. There is no perfect solution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The career center site is 12 acres. The WL site plus Ed Center is 22. https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/FAC-1300-seat-siting-document-draft.pdf

Correction - the Career Center site is 7.9 acres. The adjacent Patrick Henry Elementary site is 4.2 acres. You cannot assume that elementary campus is available. There is nowhere else proposed for that elementary school at present.

If APS chooses to build all 1300+ high school seats at the Career Center, then it could choose to build a school for the Montessori program at the Ed Center location. But by splitting the high school seats up, it is taking away both sites. I'm not sure where they would move the Montessori elementary in that case. They are already looking at a deficit of something like 4 elementary schools over the next decade.

In response to another question, the Ed Center component of the WL campus is negligible. You really are comparing a 22 acre campus to an 8 acre one. I don't think it's likely that a pool and football field could be accommodated at the Career Center. Kenmore, on the other hand, has a 32 acre campus (not including the adjacent elementary school). That is enough room for a full high school with all amenities (even without structured parking).

I'm the PP who posted the link to the PDF doc and you're right about the numbers. I was including the current elementary site when I said 12 but you're right it doesn't make sense to do that.

I completely agree with you regarding the respective size of the sites and the fact that Kenmore would be the best option for a new HS. And I share the concerns that I understand were raised by Arlington Heights folks about splitting up the seats and thus burning bridges with regard to both sites (not to mention the available funds with which to build).

The seat siting document includes Quincy Park in the size of WL campus. Without Quincy park, WL is about 14 acres. The entire Career Center/Arlington Mill/ Patrick Henry site is about 12 acres.

This is correct.

Quincy Park includes valuable field space used by W-L for PE and sports and it's owned by APS. I personally would want any new neighborhood high school wth a boundary in Arlington to have similar facilities and field space to the other schools. Are most families willing to sacrifice the field space our current high schools have for an urban type neighborhood high school with much less field space at the Career Center site? I don't know the answer to that, but I don't think so.

Then are you advocating for the Kenmore site for its acreage? Serious question. I grew up in a small town with one high school. Even so, the football stadium was not within walking distance of the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Quincy Park includes valuable field space used by W-L for PE and sports and it's owned by APS. I personally would want any new neighborhood high school wth a boundary in Arlington to have similar facilities and field space to the other schools. Are most families willing to sacrifice the field space our current high schools have for an urban type neighborhood high school with much less field space at the Career Center site? I don't know the answer to that, but I don't think so.

Then are you advocating for the Kenmore site for its acreage? Serious question. I grew up in a small town with one high school. Even so, the football stadium was not within walking distance of the school.

By "football stadium" do you mean "all field space"? If it were just a question of where kids go for games, that's not a major consideration. If you're saying that your high school had no campus with space for outdoor activities, I'm having a hard time imagining a small town high school were that would be the case.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter. The elementary school needs to stay.

Exactly. There is nowhere for it to go at present and those are real kids that need a spot in school. They don't just disappear by you tearing down their building.

The truth is that we need APS to engage in comprehensive, school system wide planning and they just seem determined not to do so. So we just keep playing whack a mole. It is a mess.

They can move the school to Central Library.

And do what with the library?

move it to another smaller building. a library does not require much physical space anymore. we could put hundreds of seats there right now with just small reconfiguration. make it a 9 grade academy or HB annex or something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter. The elementary school needs to stay.

Exactly. There is nowhere for it to go at present and those are real kids that need a spot in school. They don't just disappear by you tearing down their building.

The truth is that we need APS to engage in comprehensive, school system wide planning and they just seem determined not to do so. So we just keep playing whack a mole. It is a mess.

They can move the school to Central Library.

And do what with the library?

move it to another smaller building. a library does not require much physical space anymore. we could put hundreds of seats there right now with just small reconfiguration. make it a 9 grade academy or HB annex or something.

oops it's not APS property. never mind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In a best case scenario, Ed center could be gutted and remodeled to house a full pre-K to 8th grade Montessori program. It would increase traffic but may resolve some of the complaints of the WL parents over a mega high school. The entire career center site could be used for a 4th comprehensive high school. There is no perfect solution.

The Ed Center could not be remodeled to be an elementary school (especially not one with over 100 preschoolers (3 and 4 year olds) attending. It would need to be torn down and rebuilt. I think Kenmore is the best option for a 4th high school, but if APS decides to locate it at the Career Center instead then I think they shouldn't split the seats. They should commit to building a school at the Ed Center for the Montessori program and then use the entire Career Center / Henry campus for the high school. That is not on the table though. There is probably not enough money to build two new schools right now. So the high school seats are going to be split and Henry will remain an elementary school. In the long run, the split option is probably the worst one being considered because it will be the most expensive and won't fully utilize either site. But again, APS is dead set against developing a long term, comprehensive plan for addressing capacity needs.

[Anonymous]

You guys need to calm down. This will just be for a few years and the numbers will go back down.
The county has many needs. Schools are just one part.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You guys need to calm down. This will just be for a few years and the numbers will go back down.
The county has many needs. Schools are just one part.

Nope. Schools are a need, not a want. We don't NEED to do a lot of the things the county prioritizes. Not when there is a crisis point in the schools. The other wants can hop on the back burner and wait a few years until we get the school situation under control. And no, it's not a blip. The county population is growing, and the long-term forecast for children is going up, too. Millennials will be in their child bearing years for another ten to fifteen years. And the subsequent generation (currently referred to by some as Generation Z) is actually a LARGER cohort. Stands to reason that their children will also need schools. Not sure why you think we're suddenly going to revert to being a sleepy bedroom community with a declining population like in the 1970's-1980's. All signs point to Arlington growing. If you have evidence to the contrary, please share.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You guys need to calm down. This will just be for a few years and the numbers will go back down.
The county has many needs. Schools are just one part.

Ok, Dr. Murphy!

Agreed the schools are just one part. But the more 5BR infill housing and multi-bedroom affordable housing that you put in the county, the more school seats and fields and all the other kid-focused infrastructure you need. If you make one a priority, then the other must be a priority as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In a best case scenario, Ed center could be gutted and remodeled to house a full pre-K to 8th grade Montessori program. It would increase traffic but may resolve some of the complaints of the WL parents over a mega high school. The entire career center site could be used for a 4th comprehensive high school. There is no perfect solution.

You must mean elementary school parents. Many W-L parents support growing the school within reason, and with the necessary facilities to support a larger population.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In a best case scenario, Ed center could be gutted and remodeled to house a full pre-K to 8th grade Montessori program. It would increase traffic but may resolve some of the complaints of the WL parents over a mega high school. The entire career center site could be used for a 4th comprehensive high school. There is no perfect solution.

You must mean elementary school parents. Many W-L parents support growing the school within reason, and with the necessary facilities to support a larger population.

Ofd course current parents support growing the school. It won't be over sized until they are long gone .