Western High School Renovations/Construction.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid spent his entire 6th grade in a trailer and both my high schoolers had a lot of trailer time at Chantilly too. I don't see any issue with out buildings. Better than a trailer.

The issue is it’s across a 4 lane dead end road.

Why is that an issue?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid spent his entire 6th grade in a trailer and both my high schoolers had a lot of trailer time at Chantilly too. I don't see any issue with out buildings. Better than a trailer.

The issue is it’s across a 4 lane dead end road.

Why is that an issue?

A truck driver may get confused and plow a kid down in the main loop in a desperate attempt to leave the school and find the right building.

[Anonymous]

Chantilly has student parking across a major four land road.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid spent his entire 6th grade in a trailer and both my high schoolers had a lot of trailer time at Chantilly too. I don't see any issue with out buildings. Better than a trailer.

The issue is it’s across a 4 lane dead end road.

Why is that an issue?

A truck driver may get confused and plow a kid down in the main loop in a desperate attempt to leave the school and find the right building.

This is not a major street. People are not driving on it for any reason other than going to the school. Are you trolling people with this nonsense?

There is a stop light before you turn in. They could have someone go out and stop traffic in between periods. Or, those buildings hold classes for Seniors and Juniors who should be old enough to cross a barely trafficked street.

[Anonymous]

I was just there for the open house and this is essentially a private drive. They will put up a flashing crosswalk and that will be the end of it. It’s hardly “frogged” across Rt 28. If your kid manages to cross streets in their neighborhood I think they will be fine.

[Anonymous]

“Frogger”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Chantilly has student parking across a major four land road.

Right, and my kids had to walk across it everyday for two years.

[Anonymous]

Again, that is not how they are choosing to use the satellite buildings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Again, that is not how they are choosing to use the satellite buildings.

I stopped typing too early.

They are using one as an Early Childhood Center and the other one as an administrative center.

Classrooms will be housed in the main building.

You know, the one with a pool and three gyms, huge robotic labs, professional science classrooms with massive vent hoods.

The one with the open learning bays and two cafeterias.

Yeah, not the POS shell buildings.

[Anonymous]

I'm going to need to see a source on that, because I haven't seen that anywhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid spent his entire 6th grade in a trailer and both my high schoolers had a lot of trailer time at Chantilly too. I don't see any issue with out buildings. Better than a trailer.

The issue is it’s across a 4 lane dead end road.

Why is that an issue?

A truck driver may get confused and plow a kid down in the main loop in a desperate attempt to leave the school and find the right building.

Oh my god. You are insane. They can also block off the driveway. Carson blocks off the driveway during school hours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid spent his entire 6th grade in a trailer and both my high schoolers had a lot of trailer time at Chantilly too. I don't see any issue with out buildings. Better than a trailer.

The issue is it’s across a 4 lane dead end road.

Why is that an issue?

A truck driver may get confused and plow a kid down in the main loop in a desperate attempt to leave the school and find the right building.

Oh my god. You are insane. They can also block off the driveway. Carson blocks off the driveway during school hours.

Education Drive is a quiet dead end road. Period.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Again, that is not how they are choosing to use the satellite buildings.

I stopped typing too early.

They are using one as an Early Childhood Center and the other one as an administrative center.

Classrooms will be housed in the main building.

You know, the one with a pool and three gyms, huge robotic labs, professional science classrooms with massive vent hoods.

The one with the open learning bays and two cafeterias.

Yeah, not the POS shell buildings.

I know some one said they could do that early in the process but plans can change. It would be far less expensive to take one of those buildings and use it for additional classrooms and to house the library. It would be less disruptive and less expensive, both are good outcomes. If adding one building provides them the space they need, then they can use the second for an alternative purpose. The budget shortfall and the outcry about taking money from other CIP projects to take care of Western would be good reasons for them to shift plans from adding an admin center to a less expensive classroom build out.

I don’t think that anything has been set in stone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Again, that is not how they are choosing to use the satellite buildings.

I stopped typing too early.

They are using one as an Early Childhood Center and the other one as an administrative center.

Classrooms will be housed in the main building.

You know, the one with a pool and three gyms, huge robotic labs, professional science classrooms with massive vent hoods.

The one with the open learning bays and two cafeterias.

Yeah, not the POS shell buildings.

I know some one said they could do that early in the process but plans can change. It would be far less expensive to take one of those buildings and use it for additional classrooms and to house the library. It would be less disruptive and less expensive, both are good outcomes. If adding one building provides them the space they need, then they can use the second for an alternative purpose. The budget shortfall and the outcry about taking money from other CIP projects to take care of Western would be good reasons for them to shift plans from adding an admin center to a less expensive classroom build out.

I don’t think that anything has been set in stone.

Well, the building is of good size and standing to be reconfigured.

Say goodbye to your pool Karen Wheeler.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The school has two out buildings that are not being used. They could 100% remodel those out building to provide the additional space needed while maintaining most of the interior of the current building. Put the library on one floor of an out building. Use space there for an English wing or foreign language space or a history space. They could renovate those buildings without disturbing the school during the year and make the spaces that they need for clasrooms.

+1 A little common sense goes a long, long way.

DP. I’m not sure that spending a lot of money on security vestibules and hyperventilating about getting kids out of trailers or modulars at other schools really aligns with kids attending regular classes in the current shell buildings at Western but we all define common sense differently.

Have you seen the area? It is almost a private road.

It’s not exactly gated so the point stands: you’ve got some School Board members acting like modulars are a crime to justify boundary changes while meanwhile Western kids may end up routinely leaving the main building to attend classes in separate, detached buildings. There’s no consistency, just expediency.

I attended school in California where there were open campuses and we walked outside to different buidlings. It was fine. There is a difference between trailers and modulars, that are not long term building, and a detached building. Walking outside to a building for class is no big deal. Using trailers and modulars that are set up on campus to handle over crowding is a different situation.

This is not California but from a safety perspective there is little difference between a modular and any other building detached from the main building.

No, in California they build open schools because they can and it is less expensive to build those buildings. The weather allows it. The safety issues are real because there are more pathways into the school. Is there a safety issue with walking from the building to a detached building or modular? Sure. Is it that big of a deal, no.

The metal detectors at FCPS are bypassed daily, kids are letting their friends in at different doors to get around the traffic jams created at the main door. The metal detectors are performance theatre and that is it. School shooting are scary but they are still a rare event. I am not worried about walking between buildings because of the threat of a school shooting or weather mainly because they are rare events and I attended an open school and know thousands of kids who attend open schools today who have been fine.

Western has two perfectly functional buildings that can easily be incorporated into the school. Kids walk to modulars and trailers every day without incident, I am not worried about kids walking to detached buildings that are better constructed then modulars and trailers.

If you accept that logic, then we have to agree that they are wasting money on security vestibules and talking out of both sides of their mouths when they claim that modulars at others schools need to be eliminated. It’s irrelevant if the shell buildings at Western are better constructed. Their use will present the same security issues as any detached modular.

You people don’t pay attention.

Mateo Dunne said that the shell buildings will be used as administrative offices for FCPS, or as a preschool.

They have two, so one will serve as a Regional Office Building and the other as a Preschool/Daycare.

They won’t be used as core buildings.
Sadly, there are two courtyards I would close in at Western’s main building.

It has four courtyards, three in the 3-4 story part.

I would keep the center one open and form classrooms around a learning bay like at TJ, with bathrooms, workrooms, and whatever is needed in those bays.

I think that makes the most sense.

Put kids over courtyards.

Mateo Dunn is not the decision maker here, friend.