Eric Goulet, Whittle School and Ward 3 overcrowding

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If DC bought the site, they could knock down the building and do both mixed income housing and a school on the site. I would love to see it be a boundaryless ECE program like Stevens and military road. Then the nearby schools could cut out pk4 and have more classroom space for the mandatory enrollment grades.

Personally, I think friendship heights is an even better location for this type of development, but whittle would be fine too. I have absolutely zero faith in DC being able to do this type of forward thinking and investment, or to be able to carry it out effectively if they did but a parcel.

The building is under historic designation.

The land is owned by the federal government. They don't typically sell to DC.

Yes, IIRC, DCPS briefly considered the option for swing space there when all the elementary school were being renovated and it was a non-starter. In addition to the red-tape items mentioned, it also required too much expensive work to make it compliant with regs for public school occupation.

Federal property is sometimes sold or redeveloped...navy yard, buzzard point, and the former Walter Reed campus are all examples. Also, historic properties can be demolished or changed...just requires hprb approval. If the mayor wants it done it can be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If DC bought the site, they could knock down the building and do both mixed income housing and a school on the site. I would love to see it be a boundaryless ECE program like Stevens and military road. Then the nearby schools could cut out pk4 and have more classroom space for the mandatory enrollment grades.

Personally, I think friendship heights is an even better location for this type of development, but whittle would be fine too. I have absolutely zero faith in DC being able to do this type of forward thinking and investment, or to be able to carry it out effectively if they did but a parcel.

Friendship Heights? On the Maryland border?

Yes where there is a metro station, several bus lines (including from ft Totten), a ton of large and vacant commercial properties whose owners want to sell or redevelop, and overcrowded in-demand schools.

[Anonymous]

Goulet is nuts but I guess he appeals to some people

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Goulet is nuts but I guess he appeals to some people

Yes, the uncritical. If you think deeply at all about what he's saying, you'll realize he's inhabiting a fantasy-land.

[Anonymous]

When is the realistic opening of McArthur HS expected?
I can’t imagine it is opening Fall 2023

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here is what Eric Goulet said ( below) on our listserv---- ironic, given how Whittle was originally pitched to parents as the school of their dreams, a once in a lifetime opportunity...

"I'm going to step up advocacy efforts to obtain the Whittle School campus. DC cannot miss the opportunity to get the Whittle in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, because it is a once-in-a-half-century opportunity to obtain a 2,400 seat transit-accessible school building. Three Ward 3 ANCs - 3B (Brian Turmail sponsor), 3C (Beau Finley sponsor), and 3F (J.P. Szymkowicz sponsor) - have approved resolutions requesting that DC purchase or enter into a long-term lease at Whittle.

Is he really posting this publicly? J.P. Szymkowicz - who represents the Foxhall NIMBYs - is not a member of ANC3F and the agendas of ANC3F shows no such resolution under consideration. ANC3D also has not considered such a resolution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Goulet is nuts but I guess he appeals to some people

Yes, the uncritical. If you think deeply at all about what he's saying, you'll realize he's inhabiting a fantasy-land.

The Whittle School stuff is unrealistic but saying DCPS has a WOTP space crisis is hardly controversial, because it's verifiably true and only will get worse when Ward 3 gets upzoned. The two schools being added will help but they will be from enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When is the realistic opening of McArthur HS expected?
I can’t imagine it is opening Fall 2023

There is nothing to suggest otherwise. It’s in the lottery and they’ve just announced the principal (apparently).

[Anonymous]

I have no insider knowledge of the Whittle building (and believe all y'all when you say it's a sh*tshow), but Van Ness is a much better location for a new HS than either Macarthur Blvd OR the Lord and Taylor site.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Admittedly I don't live over there, but isn't a brand new HS being built over there already? And don't we not know yet how that will impact Hardy enrollment and feeder path?

There is no “brand new HS being built.” There IS a dated elementary school being converted into HS. It will have a “brand new” cafeteria as the school building did not previously have one at all.

The ‘new’ HS will not do much to reduce the severe overcrowding at JR. It will mainly just help keep it from getting worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It would probably cost a lot less money and take a lot less time if they converted the Lord and Taylor in Friendship heights to a school.

The State Dept. owns the land and considering it's proximity to Embassies they aren't likely to be selling it to the city any time soon.

The Metro bus depot on Wisconsin is moving to The Lord and Taylor site, then the property on Wisconsin will be able to be redeveloped.

I asked in a few ANC meetings where developers gave presentations about the Maggiano’s building redevelopment into apartments - what about planning for schools? They just answer that DCPS does that. There doesn’t appear to be any coordination. I find it incredibly frustrating.

[Anonymous]

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1078026.page

Post about the bus garage

[Anonymous]

Has Eric Goulet ever taken a tour of the Whittle School? How about the others that voted 4-0 for the resolution he is tweeting proudly about? Have any of them ..um.....ever actually seen the school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here is what Eric Goulet said ( below) on our listserv---- ironic, given how Whittle was originally pitched to parents as the school of their dreams, a once in a lifetime opportunity...

"I'm going to step up advocacy efforts to obtain the Whittle School campus. DC cannot miss the opportunity to get the Whittle in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, because it is a once-in-a-half-century opportunity to obtain a 2,400 seat transit-accessible school building. Three Ward 3 ANCs - 3B (Brian Turmail sponsor), 3C (Beau Finley sponsor), and 3F (J.P. Szymkowicz sponsor) - have approved resolutions requesting that DC purchase or enter into a long-term lease at Whittle. Obtaining Whittle must be a top priority if we are going to be able to solve Ward 3 school overcrowding challenges in the upcoming boundary study, because without Whittle, there is no identifiable path forward to solving overcrowding at both Deal and Jackson Reed."

Have the "once in a half-century opportunity" boosters actually looked at an operating budget or toured the building with a real estate professional? Or examined the 20 pages of liens and lawsuits on the property? All the docs are publicly available.

A resolution to purchase or enter into a long term lease--- on a well known disaster of a property they haven't seen or done a fact based analysis on? ..public servants shooting from the hip it seems.

Goulet is claiming three ANCs have passed resolutions. I’ve only seen one of them (Beau’s). 3F has no commissioner named J.P. Szymkowicz and so it’s difficult to understand why he would sponsor a resolution for them. Have three ANCs passed resolutions or is Eric making things up again?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is what Eric Goulet said ( below) on our listserv---- ironic, given how Whittle was originally pitched to parents as the school of their dreams, a once in a lifetime opportunity...

"I'm going to step up advocacy efforts to obtain the Whittle School campus. DC cannot miss the opportunity to get the Whittle in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, because it is a once-in-a-half-century opportunity to obtain a 2,400 seat transit-accessible school building. Three Ward 3 ANCs - 3B (Brian Turmail sponsor), 3C (Beau Finley sponsor), and 3F (J.P. Szymkowicz sponsor) - have approved resolutions requesting that DC purchase or enter into a long-term lease at Whittle. Obtaining Whittle must be a top priority if we are going to be able to solve Ward 3 school overcrowding challenges in the upcoming boundary study, because without Whittle, there is no identifiable path forward to solving overcrowding at both Deal and Jackson Reed."

Have the "once in a half-century opportunity" boosters actually looked at an operating budget or toured the building with a real estate professional? Or examined the 20 pages of liens and lawsuits on the property? All the docs are publicly available.

A resolution to purchase or enter into a long term lease--- on a well known disaster of a property they haven't seen or done a fact based analysis on? ..public servants shooting from the hip it seems.

Goulet is claiming three ANCs have passed resolutions. I’ve only seen one of them (Beau’s). 3F has no commissioner named J.P. Szymkowicz and so it’s difficult to understand why he would sponsor a resolution for them. Have three ANCs passed resolutions or is Eric making things up again?

JP is 3D. He represents Foxhall Village and his constituents desperately want to scuttle the new schools.