MCPS and Starr will probably need to change boundaries

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"The status quo, with virtually no FARMS rates or middle-income housing in the W school areas, is a policy choice. It could be changed by means of different policy choices.


One simple way to increase socioeconomic residential integration, with less cost to government, would be to allow people to have accessory apartments in their houses, without having to jump through a lot of hoops and meet multiple limiting requirements."

Agree that given that county policy has overly concentrated lower income living spots in certain areas, we now need to counterbalance that by requiring more in the areas with less affordable housing. But I highly doubt someone in Bethesda is going to have a poor family living in their "accessory apartment". Unlikely.

You would be wrong. Plenty of single moms in small apts in Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In small places where everyone can go to one or two high schools..not comparable to large county based systems.

You are missing the point, which is: Socioeconomic residential integration is achievable.

Why would you believe that when MoCo's recent history shows the opposite. You basically have the higher-income families hanging on to a few areas, a bunch of older homeowners without kids aging in place in areas with poor schools, and a county government more interested in abstract social policy than shoring up the tax base? If the goal is to turn both Whitman and Kennedy into replicas of Rockville, people might as well move to DC and just take their chances with Wilson.

More generalizations. In Bethesda's good school districts you have plenty of empty nesters, including retirees who have downsized from Potomac.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not give those who qualify for affordable housing a voucher to attend a school of their choice. If they are willing to put up with longer commutes for their kids then they can sent them to school in Potomac

Or how about locating housing for them in Potomac and throughout Bethesda/Chevy Chase?

Why should the burden be on those least able to shoulder it?

[Anonymous]

"You would be wrong. Plenty of single moms in small apts in Bethesda."

The earlier post was not about small apartments. It was about the accessory apartments attached to houses or on a SF home's property. You are telling me there is a lot of that going in especially situations of true economic diversity and not simply a family who is middle class due to living on a teacher salary for instance?

[Anonymous]

"Anonymous wrote:
Why not give those who qualify for affordable housing a voucher to attend a school of their choice. If they are willing to put up with longer commutes for their kids then they can sent them to school in Potomac


Or how about locating housing for them in Potomac and throughout Bethesda/Chevy Chase?

Why should the burden be on those least able to shoulder it? "

Because the reality is that it is quote unlikely to put sizable amounts of low income housing in the W districts. Vouchers to section 8 residents is more possible even though W school families would likely fight this tooth and nail since they want some other school to have to aborb all of those kids instead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not give those who qualify for affordable housing a voucher to attend a school of their choice. If they are willing to put up with longer commutes for their kids then they can sent them to school in Potomac

Montgomery County's definition of affordable housing includes households with up to 120% of the area median income (currently $107,000, so $128,400). You're going to allow everybody with a household income of less than $128,000 send their children to a MCPS school of their choice? Won't that be interesting.