Impact on schools with expanding housing options in single family zones

[Anonymous]

County seeking feedback on proposal to expand housing options in single-family zones. Listening sessions on housing proposal scheduled for this month. What does this mean for MCPS? Most if not all schools are already over crowded.

[Anonymous]

Dates and times of listening sessions:

Sept. 11, Silver Spring Recreation and Aquatic Center, 1319 Apple Ave., Silver Spring

Sept. 12, Wheaton Community Recreation Center, 11701 Georgia Ave., Wheaton

Sept. 17, White Oak Community Recreation Center, 1700 April Lane, Silver Spring

Sept. 23, Germantown Community Center, 18905 Kingsview Road, Germantown

Sept. 25, Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center, 4805 Edgemoor Lane, Bethesda

Oct 2 from 12 to 1:30 p.m Online session via Zoom

[Anonymous]

Did any one attend in Silver Spring this week?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dates and times of listening sessions:

Sept. 11, Silver Spring Recreation and Aquatic Center, 1319 Apple Ave., Silver Spring

Sept. 12, Wheaton Community Recreation Center, 11701 Georgia Ave., Wheaton

Sept. 17, White Oak Community Recreation Center, 1700 April Lane, Silver Spring

Sept. 23, Germantown Community Center, 18905 Kingsview Road, Germantown

Sept. 25, Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center, 4805 Edgemoor Lane, Bethesda

Oct 2 from 12 to 1:30 p.m Online session via Zoom

The in-person sessions are from 7-9pm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:County seeking feedback on proposal to expand housing options in single-family zones. Listening sessions on housing proposal scheduled for this month. What does this mean for MCPS? Most if not all schools are already over crowded.

Not really.

https://gis.mcpsmd.org/cipmasterpdfs/MP25_AppendixE.pdf

[Anonymous]

More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

Yep. This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

I live in Silver Spring and so do not see a prevalence of non-owner occupied houses. However Dilver Springbis large and this may be true of your neighborhood. However consider the fact that homes which serve as the primary residence of the owner receive a property tax break. In theory rental houses pay higher property taxes which fund the schools. If you want to be useful look up the rental properties online and see if the homeowners are reporting that the home is a rental. You can report homeowners who are falsely claiming a house is a principle residence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

Houses should come with school documents/vouchers/attendance ability—I don’t know what to call it. Base it on county housing guidelines. Each bedroom can theoretically hold 2 kids. So a 4 bedroom house would get 6 school coupons. When the house is rented out, the landlord has those coupons to give out. Or if the housing was built thinking that only 3 kids would live in a 4 bed house, then allocate 3 school coupons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

Houses should come with school documents/vouchers/attendance ability—I don’t know what to call it. Base it on county housing guidelines. Each bedroom can theoretically hold 2 kids. So a 4 bedroom house would get 6 school coupons. When the house is rented out, the landlord has those coupons to give out. Or if the housing was built thinking that only 3 kids would live in a 4 bed house, then allocate 3 school coupons.

That's a terrible idea. Just build more schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

This was exactly my Silver Spring neighborhood. We moved to Rockville when it was time for my child to start K.

[Anonymous]

Can I ask what neighborhood/s in ss? Or the school pyramid at least? Curious silver spring resident over here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

I live in Silver Spring and so do not see a prevalence of non-owner occupied houses. However Dilver Springbis large and this may be true of your neighborhood. However consider the fact that homes which serve as the primary residence of the owner receive a property tax break. In theory rental houses pay higher property taxes which fund the schools. If you want to be useful look up the rental properties online and see if the homeowners are reporting that the home is a rental. You can report homeowners who are falsely claiming a house is a principle residence.

You are right about this, however it is not enforced in Montgomery County. We have two properties on our street where the landlord is not reporting the homes as a rental. However, it is very clear that he doesn't live there. Several neighbors have reported this landlord but even the code enforcement agent who came out said there is not much she can do because it's difficult to prove. One property has a court case against it, but that case has been going on for years and in the meantime, it's being rented illegally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

This was exactly my Silver Spring neighborhood. We moved to Rockville when it was time for my child to start K.

Unfortunately, this is also happening in some parts of Rockville. City of Rockville does a better job of enforcement, but if the neighborhood is not within the limits of City of Rockville, you can still end up with these types of rental homes.

And, it can pretty much happen anywhere there isn't an HOA. Definitely an issue in Wheaton, Gaithersburg, Germantown, etc. And even my co-worker in Olney has mentioned that this has been an issue in some neighborhoods up there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:More overcrowding.

I live in Silver Spring. We used to live in a solidly middle-class neighborhood with single family housing.

Many (not the majority yet) of the single family houses in our neighborhood have been purchased by landlords, who then rent them out to multiple families, or turn them into boarding houses.

So, in a house where we may have had 2-3 kids attending the local ES, we now have 5-6. It's pretty much doubled the number of kids. The class sizes at our middle school just continue to increase.

Teachers are frustrated and our kids are suffering.

Houses should come with school documents/vouchers/attendance ability—I don’t know what to call it. Base it on county housing guidelines. Each bedroom can theoretically hold 2 kids. So a 4 bedroom house would get 6 school coupons. When the house is rented out, the landlord has those coupons to give out. Or if the housing was built thinking that only 3 kids would live in a 4 bed house, then allocate 3 school coupons.

That's a terrible idea. Just build more schools.

Where? The county is allowing developers to build high density housing on every spot of available land.

And, with what money will we build more schools? The county is basically letting developers off the hook. I guess taxpayers can cough up even more money to build more schools, while landlords and developers laugh all the way to the bank.