Mythical Western HS

[Anonymous]

There is a TON of parkland in western Fairfax. Have the county sell some of it to FCPS, build a high school, redistrict and be done with it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a TON of parkland in western Fairfax. Have the county sell some of it to FCPS, build a high school, redistrict and be done with it.

Since FCPS sold Carson property to Saudis at --what I am pretty sure--was the behest of the Board of Supervisors, they owe the school system a site. Carson was the logical site.-

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is a TON of parkland in western Fairfax. Have the county sell some of it to FCPS, build a high school, redistrict and be done with it.

Since FCPS sold Carson property to Saudis at --what I am pretty sure--was the behest of the Board of Supervisors, they owe the school system a site. Carson was the logical site.-

Agree though I hate to lose parkland.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a TON of parkland in western Fairfax. Have the county sell some of it to FCPS, build a high school, redistrict and be done with it.

A good amount of land becomes parkland bc it isn't buildable for whatever reason: floodplain issues, etc. So this could be why they can't find land.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The firm they hired - said there is no land with enough space available to be purchased - next step look at currently owned school properties that are big enough.

I really find it hard to believe that nowhere in all of western fairfax, is an available plot of land. Maybe not available for what they want to spend.

I work in land development, and there are not many large parcels available in Western Fairfax at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But westfield, centreville and chantilly are all absolutely enormous. We do need another high school.

And, the new high school should be within those boundaries-to realistically relieve them. No one else needs to be affected unless overcrowding is a problem. No schools near them are underenrolled.

Tyson’s is growing and Marshall and McLean do not have extra space.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But westfield, centreville and chantilly are all absolutely enormous. We do need another high school.

And, the new high school should be within those boundaries-to realistically relieve them. No one else needs to be affected unless overcrowding is a problem. No schools near them are underenrolled.

Tyson’s is growing and Marshall and McLean do not have extra space.

But, there are schools near them that do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But westfield, centreville and chantilly are all absolutely enormous. We do need another high school.

And, the new high school should be within those boundaries-to realistically relieve them. No one else needs to be affected unless overcrowding is a problem. No schools near them are underenrolled.

Tyson’s is growing and Marshall and McLean do not have extra space.

But, there are schools near them that do.

I agree that Western Fairfax should take priority but it seems like just building one school isn’t enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But westfield, centreville and chantilly are all absolutely enormous. We do need another high school.

And, the new high school should be within those boundaries-to realistically relieve them. No one else needs to be affected unless overcrowding is a problem. No schools near them are underenrolled.

Tyson’s is growing and Marshall and McLean do not have extra space.

PP is talking about siting a new western high school within the current boundaries of Chantilly, Centreville, or Westfield. Chantilly and Centreville are currently overcrowded, and Westfield will be if the growth near the new Metro stations materializes. That is preferable to avoid cascading boundary changes, as would likely be the case if a new high school were instead located within, say, the Herndon or Fairfax boundaries.

Marshall and McLean are in eastern Fairfax and pose a different issue. Marshall is near full capacity, McLean is overcrowded, and both can expect to get more kids with all the Tysons development (which feeds about 55-60% into Marshall and 40-45% into McLean). Each has space for a permanent addition if FCPS were to build one (their campuses are bigger than those of Madison and Justice, which just got or getting additions). Most likely, FCPS will stiff those schools when it comes to building additions and instead end up moving Marshall kids in Vienna (Wolftrap/Westbriar) to Madison eventually and McLean kids in Falls Church (Timber Lane) to Falls Church eventually, since Madison was just expanded, even though there's very little growth within its boundaries, and Falls Church is getting built out to 2500 during its renovation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But westfield, centreville and chantilly are all absolutely enormous. We do need another high school.

And, the new high school should be within those boundaries-to realistically relieve them. No one else needs to be affected unless overcrowding is a problem. No schools near them are underenrolled.

Tyson’s is growing and Marshall and McLean do not have extra space.

But, there are schools near them that do.

I agree that Western Fairfax should take priority but it seems like just building one school isn’t enough.

If and when they ever build a new high school it will soak up a very large part of the capital budget for several years.

[Anonymous]

Send Tysons growth kids to tiny Langley. Problem solved.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Send Tysons growth kids to tiny Langley. Problem solved.

Gee, I wonder if anyone has ever thought of that before.

Seriously, FCPS staff tried that already in 2021. Elaine Tholen blocked it at the behest of the Great Falls Citizens Association, and only one of her colleagues (Abrar Omeish) balked. Instead, they just moved a small number of built-out, single-family neighborhoods in Vienna near Wolf Trap from McLean to Langley.

I put my money on their waiting as long as possible until they have another full-blown crisis on their hands. Then they'll move part of Marshall (the Westbriar attendance island and the portion of Wolftrap that now feeds to Marshall) to Madison, and the Timber Lane part of McLean to Falls Church (Timber Lane is already a split feeder to McLean and Falls Church). It won't align with their purported equity goals, but they've already shown repeatedly they don't pay attention to equity when it comes to boundaries and it will save money.

[Anonymous]

It won't align with their purported equity goals, but they've already shown repeatedly they don't pay attention to equity when it comes to boundaries and it will save money.

If they really had equity goals, they would focus on good, solid instruction where the kids are. Otherwise, they are shifting kids just to make the standardized scores in the high schools look "even." That's not equity for the students. It's just equity for looks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

It won't align with their purported equity goals, but they've already shown repeatedly they don't pay attention to equity when it comes to boundaries and it will save money.

If they really had equity goals, they would focus on good, solid instruction where the kids are. Otherwise, they are shifting kids just to make the standardized scores in the high schools look "even." That's not equity for the students. It's just equity for looks.

It all depends on what you think the predicates are for "good, solid instruction."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But westfield, centreville and chantilly are all absolutely enormous. We do need another high school.

And, the new high school should be within those boundaries-to realistically relieve them. No one else needs to be affected unless overcrowding is a problem. No schools near them are underenrolled.

Tyson’s is growing and Marshall and McLean do not have extra space.

But, there are schools near them that do.

I agree that Western Fairfax should take priority but it seems like just building one school isn’t enough.

If and when they ever build a new high school it will soak up a very large part of the capital budget for several years.

Which should be a surprise given how long this HS has been in CIPs. Poor planning on the county (including FCPS) part combined with unwillingness to be the adult in the room re: boundaries.