DCPS students shafted again - sign petition to keep Jelleff field public

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:All:

I should note that the Duke Ellington track & field, located at Reservoir Road & 38th Street, was just taken away from DCPS and given to DPR over the summer without any public notice.

Something is definitely rotten in DPR and DCPS. I guarantee that the Mayor knows all of this.

Right. Next thing you know, Georgetown U will be given exclusive rights to DE field for a decade...where is the accountability and transparency? Somebody's pockets are getting lined.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why didn't Hardy offer $250k over ten years or $25k this year? Is their PTA broke?

Your entitlement is showing. Perhaps your child's school has $25K to throw around each year. $25K for Hardy's PTO is the bulk of its budget and the PTO serves the entire school not just student athletes. The latest school score card shows that Hardy is 41% economically disadvantaged. DCIAA, together with DCPS and DPR should work to ensure that schools have practice and playing space that doesn't require a bus across town...especially when there is a PUBLIC field right across the street.

Honestly, yes, I think parents of DCPS children started this foolishness of using their money to fund schools. So why should private schools not do the same, using money to lease fields?

What the heck are you even talking about?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All:

I should note that the Duke Ellington track & field, located at Reservoir Road & 38th Street, was just taken away from DCPS and given to DPR over the summer without any public notice.

Something is definitely rotten in DPR and DCPS. I guarantee that the Mayor knows all of this.

Right. Next thing you know, Georgetown U will be given exclusive rights to DE field for a decade...where is the accountability and transparency? Somebody's pockets are getting lined.

There was also no compensation given to DCPS. Our ANC commissioners knew nothing about the deal.

All of this is Jack Evans-Mayor Bowser shenanigans before Jack gets run out of office. We need a special election stat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kinda seems to me that a major issue is why Maret was the only player here. Was there some public notice inviting other offers despite the press about neighbors wanting to renegotiate the Maret exclusivity deal? Apparently not. The fact that there was no possibility for others to join in the negotiations sure stinks. The Mayor should open this up to get proposals from all .

Maret is the sole player because they got in ten years ago and are seeking to renew. Ten years ago there was no open bidding process, it was all negotiated in secrecy.

A lot of private schools need fields and would kill for this deal.

The overarching issue is that the city isn't negotiating with the best interests of the citizens in mind, but of Maret.

True. Lots of other schools and programs would offer more. But if the whole thing were done in the open and Hardy made a case for need, they'd get first dibs, then any remaining time Hardy and Jellef didn't need would be open to bidders. There was no bidding process here; there is no standard cost to lease or application process to get what Maret is getting.

[Anonymous]

OP, please keep us updated on how we can help out. We live in Burleith and I guarantee that this is not on the radar of most our neighbors. I’m circulating this on our Yahoo group.

We have a little baby who will attend Hardy in about a decade. I am adamantly opposed to the selling of public good for private use, especially without public notice and in violation of the law.

[Anonymous]

So DCPS gave DPR Duke Ellington field without public debate or vetting. So let's transfer Jelleff field from DPR to DCPS. Then Hardy, Duke Ellington, Stoddert, Hyde-Addison, Francis Stevens and any other nearby public school can use it.

[Anonymous]

When DPR signed a “Use Easement and Maintenance Agreement” with the Maret School in 2009, the school was granted full access to the field during high demand hours in exchange for renovating the space — including the attached pool and field. Though Maret students only use the field 17 percent of the time during those peak hours, according to Maret’s Director of Communications Linda Johnson, during a community meeting in May, eleven schools or community partners have expressed interest in access to the field.

“Exclusive rights was not part of the agreement,” said Johnson, noting that DPR is the permitting agency, not Maret. She also highlighted that it was the school’s understanding that if the contract is extended that they will renovate the turf field. Johnson continued, “we are really committed to continue working with the community.”

So Maret renovated the space ten years ago in exchange for using it and now has gotten an extension on its use in exchange for another renovation and paying a rental fee?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kinda seems to me that a major issue is why Maret was the only player here. Was there some public notice inviting other offers despite the press about neighbors wanting to renegotiate the Maret exclusivity deal? Apparently not. The fact that there was no possibility for others to join in the negotiations sure stinks. The Mayor should open this up to get proposals from all .

Maret is the sole player because they got in ten years ago and are seeking to renew. Ten years ago there was no open bidding process, it was all negotiated in secrecy.

A lot of private schools need fields and would kill for this deal.

The overarching issue is that the city isn't negotiating with the best interests of the citizens in mind, but of Maret.

True. Lots of other schools and programs would offer more. But if the whole thing were done in the open and Hardy made a case for need, they'd get first dibs, then any remaining time Hardy and Jellef didn't need would be open to bidders. There was no bidding process here; there is no standard cost to lease or application process to get what Maret is getting.

You would think Maret could spare just one day for the public on the field, or install lights so the field could be used for evening practices! So greedy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

When DPR signed a “Use Easement and Maintenance Agreement” with the Maret School in 2009, the school was granted full access to the field during high demand hours in exchange for renovating the space — including the attached pool and field. Though Maret students only use the field 17 percent of the time during those peak hours, according to Maret’s Director of Communications Linda Johnson, during a community meeting in May, eleven schools or community partners have expressed interest in access to the field.

“Exclusive rights was not part of the agreement,” said Johnson, noting that DPR is the permitting agency, not Maret. She also highlighted that it was the school’s understanding that if the contract is extended that they will renovate the turf field. Johnson continued, “we are really committed to continue working with the community.”

So Maret renovated the space ten years ago in exchange for using it and now has gotten an extension on its use in exchange for another renovation and paying a rental fee?

Considering that Maret was the only entity that could effectively use the fields for those 10 years (and the subsequent 10 years) it's hard to say that they renovated "in exchange for using it." The renovations benefit Maret alone. If they wanted to benefit the broader public, they'd add lights for use after dark.

[Anonymous]

If maret adds lights and gets off the field by 7pm weeknights and 4pm weekends, I would say we have a deal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

When DPR signed a “Use Easement and Maintenance Agreement” with the Maret School in 2009, the school was granted full access to the field during high demand hours in exchange for renovating the space — including the attached pool and field. Though Maret students only use the field 17 percent of the time during those peak hours, according to Maret’s Director of Communications Linda Johnson, during a community meeting in May, eleven schools or community partners have expressed interest in access to the field.

“Exclusive rights was not part of the agreement,” said Johnson, noting that DPR is the permitting agency, not Maret. She also highlighted that it was the school’s understanding that if the contract is extended that they will renovate the turf field. Johnson continued, “we are really committed to continue working with the community.”

So Maret renovated the space ten years ago in exchange for using it and now has gotten an extension on its use in exchange for another renovation and paying a rental fee?

What I don’t understand is what needs to be renovated? The field is in immaculate condition. Lifespan of artificial turf is 15 years with minimal maintenance and 25-30 years with active maintenance.

My guess is that over the next 10 years, Maret will do some small capital projects and say that they are living up to their end of the agreement while DPR doesn’t have any teeth to extract concessions.

The entire thing is absolutely corrupt. It’s crony socialism.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If maret adds lights and gets off the field by 7pm weeknights and 4pm weekends, I would say we have a deal.

That was the deal ten years ago. Arguably it was a fair deal. Now Maret is arguing they should get another ten years because they overpaid ten years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So DCPS gave DPR Duke Ellington field without public debate or vetting. So let's transfer Jelleff field from DPR to DCPS. Then Hardy, Duke Ellington, Stoddert, Hyde-Addison, Francis Stevens and any other nearby public school can use it.

DGS -- which manages DCPS and DPR property -- has been pushing for DPR to handle the permitting of all fields, DPR and DCPS, because DPR has a process and DCPS doesn't. Ellington hasn't been "given" to DPR, DPR has taken over the permitting. Since it's not used by the school all use is by permit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If maret adds lights and gets off the field by 7pm weeknights and 4pm weekends, I would say we have a deal.

That was the deal ten years ago. Arguably it was a fair deal. Now Maret is arguing they should get another ten years because they overpaid ten years ago.

All this hearsay is part of the problem. Where is the documentation, where is the transparency? Please link to Maret's "argument." Please provide the "notice" that must have been issued making the availability of Jelleff field to the highest bidder known. What? there wasn't one? all this was just done behind closed doors with pleading, handshakes and payoffs?

[Anonymous]

Jelleff field is lighted, I believe. My child goes to Jelleff afterschool from Hardy and rarely gets access to the field. And when I come to pick him up the parking lot is full of range rovers and the like illegally parked blocked parked cars and making it very dangerous. The entitlement extends beyond the field itself, that's for sure.