Option H is permanent and the old Wootton HS campus will be closed for good?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

Are you cold spring? I feel like cold spring is the furthest from crown though also far from Wootton. I would think Cold Spring closing and moving the CES to a different Wootton cluster elementary school and then move the local Cold Spring kids to Beverly Farms and the pocket of Beverly Farms near Cold Spring on the north side of Falls Rd to Wayside. Then all would go to Churchill with some plan for how to handle the middle school splits. Problem is Churchill is only going to get close to 100% utilized with no changes. I’d think a small addition at Churchill to bring its capacity up to 2100-2200 would be wise and further prevent Crown under an option H from getting overcrowded down the road. Also down the road QO definitely needs to be renovated and when that’s done its capacity should increase to 2000-2200 which could allow some overflow absorption. Both of these small additional costs would be a fraction of the Wootton replacement which isn’t needed now.

Of course Crown being built was a mistake but that’s with hindsight being 20-20. At the time it was clearly more justifiable, though I’d have argued at the time that money would be better spent renovating and making larger QO and Wootton, and then doing an addition at Churchill and RM.

This points out the MCPS folly in separating the Crown and Woodward studies. There's no need for Churchill to be overcrowded if there could be cascading shifts towards Whitman and WJ, and the same cascades from those areas & Woodward north.

From the beginning, it should have been all schools at all levels, and that should be done with some regularity. The shifts would not be nearly as dramatic, overcrowding would be a rare outlier, more easily countered with one-off operational considerations, and the system could more effectively and cheaply address CIP needs, from renovation/rebuild to expansion/contraction.

So, you are going to ignore the dcc schools being overcrowded?

Not at all. They are part of "all schools at all levels." "Could be" in the first paragraph indicates that the cascading shifts mentioned were an example, and, given the subject of this thread, the apropos one.

There could be cascading shifts in a number of directions, but constraining the studies has left many such options off the table, leaving the system much worse off than it otherwise could be.

If Wootton does not want Crown they should stay and get to the end of the line for repairs.

I don't think it's Wootton's responsibility to put up with MCPS mistakes. They knew MoCo was losing population and revenue.

That wasn't Wootton's fault, why should Wootton be punished?

There is not infinite money and not every high school will be rebuilt with declining enrollment. There is no fairytale ending where everyone gets what they want.

You and the Wootton community need to wake up to that reality.

That is what Wootton wants. They don't want or need a whole other "holding school" just to make rebuilding more convenient.

MCPS needs own up to their mistakes and stop construction.

They DO need a holding school as multiple schools need repairs and the quickest way to do it with the least disruption is to have a holding school.

[Anonymous]

There was another thread related to increase the class size of focus or title I elementary school. I would rather mcps spend some fund onto that to keep the small class size even though we don't attend any focus or title I school. I just want to say that mcps limited resource fund need to be spent wisely and not monopolized to be used by any specific communities. Think about the big picture. If mcps education system is declining, it is no good to any people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

Are you cold spring? I feel like cold spring is the furthest from crown though also far from Wootton. I would think Cold Spring closing and moving the CES to a different Wootton cluster elementary school and then move the local Cold Spring kids to Beverly Farms and the pocket of Beverly Farms near Cold Spring on the north side of Falls Rd to Wayside. Then all would go to Churchill with some plan for how to handle the middle school splits. Problem is Churchill is only going to get close to 100% utilized with no changes. I’d think a small addition at Churchill to bring its capacity up to 2100-2200 would be wise and further prevent Crown under an option H from getting overcrowded down the road. Also down the road QO definitely needs to be renovated and when that’s done its capacity should increase to 2000-2200 which could allow some overflow absorption. Both of these small additional costs would be a fraction of the Wootton replacement which isn’t needed now.

Of course Crown being built was a mistake but that’s with hindsight being 20-20. At the time it was clearly more justifiable, though I’d have argued at the time that money would be better spent renovating and making larger QO and Wootton, and then doing an addition at Churchill and RM.

This points out the MCPS folly in separating the Crown and Woodward studies. There's no need for Churchill to be overcrowded if there could be cascading shifts towards Whitman and WJ, and the same cascades from those areas & Woodward north.

From the beginning, it should have been all schools at all levels, and that should be done with some regularity. The shifts would not be nearly as dramatic, overcrowding would be a rare outlier, more easily countered with one-off operational considerations, and the system could more effectively and cheaply address CIP needs, from renovation/rebuild to expansion/contraction.

So, you are going to ignore the dcc schools being overcrowded?

Not at all. They are part of "all schools at all levels." "Could be" in the first paragraph indicates that the cascading shifts mentioned were an example, and, given the subject of this thread, the apropos one.

There could be cascading shifts in a number of directions, but constraining the studies has left many such options off the table, leaving the system much worse off than it otherwise could be.

If Wootton does not want Crown they should stay and get to the end of the line for repairs.

I don't think it's Wootton's responsibility to put up with MCPS mistakes. They knew MoCo was losing population and revenue.

That wasn't Wootton's fault, why should Wootton be punished?

There is not infinite money and not every high school will be rebuilt with declining enrollment. There is no fairytale ending where everyone gets what they want.

You and the Wootton community need to wake up to that reality.

That is what Wootton wants. They don't want or need a whole other "holding school" just to make rebuilding more convenient.

MCPS needs own up to their mistakes and stop construction.

They DO need a holding school as multiple schools need repairs and the quickest way to do it with the least disruption is to have a holding school.

No they don't they want one because they are incompetent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

They don’t have to make sense geographically. If Wootton had a major issue that makes it unsafe to send kids there - it will be unplanned and chaotic The priority will be space to accommodate new kids, not geography, and Kids will be split up and sent to whatever school has space. It’ll likely happen in the middle of the school year and kids will be separated from teachers and assignments that they’re working on and need to learn new ones. In high school this will impact their ability to apply to colleges, take SATs, etc

The idea of not taking a brand new school right now and avoiding the inevitable future chaos seems insane to me.

Chaos is by no means inevitable. As a PP mentioned, MCPS can find the money to remediate Wootton (not renovate) without much trouble. There are various buckets of money from which it could draw the funds, and it could even push out certain improvements on the CIP by a year or two. What MCPS is trying to do is fix its mistake in building Crown, and it's getting significant push back from Wootton parents who don't want a new school at the expense of moving locations to a more congested, high-traffic, non-walkable building. It doesn't help that MCPS has tried to screw over Wootton parents numerous times through questionable boundary studies that made no sense - but cost MCPS $10+ million over the years - money that could have been spent remediating Wootton.

Just to clarify, Crown is non-walkable to most, if not all, of the current Wootton walk zone. It is walkable from some of the current Wootton catchment, and would be walkable to an equivalently large number, if not a greater number, of students, overall, though many of those would not be in the current Wootton catchment.

So move Wootton to Crown, but in the process strip walkability from the current Wootton neighborhoods and give it to neighborhoods who aren't in Wootton today? Sounds like an indirect way of achieving the goal(s) of the failed boundary studies over the past several years.

Just to clarify-at least some of that area (not sure if all) is currently actually zoned for Wootton.

Yes, some of the Crown area still is part of Wootton - but by moving Wootton it is essentially rezoning it to include areas that Wootton parents opposed in previous boundary studies. Essentially, MCPS is saying that the only way Wootton is getting a new building is by agreeing to change its boundary - move the school, and thus the boundary moves.

Yeah, no, it's not up to Wootton families to keep certain areas out of their schools. It's acceptable for parents anywhere to have and express their opinion on what schools they do or don't want their kid to go to. But saying "we don't want certain kids/neighborhoods in our school, they need to go to their own school somewhere else" is totally unacceptable and no one in the county should expect that their opinions about that to be given any real weight. (Also it's gross.)

Well, theyve been successful so far, whiich means that MCPS respected their wishes.

How do you figure that?

Because the boundary wasn't moved to accomplish DEI goals.

[Anonymous]

drove past today- did they originally plan for crown to be so ugly? Also I feel bad for some of the townhouses-they have built this school so incredibly close to some of them, it looks like they will be able to open their windows and touch the school. awful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

Are you cold spring? I feel like cold spring is the furthest from crown though also far from Wootton. I would think Cold Spring closing and moving the CES to a different Wootton cluster elementary school and then move the local Cold Spring kids to Beverly Farms and the pocket of Beverly Farms near Cold Spring on the north side of Falls Rd to Wayside. Then all would go to Churchill with some plan for how to handle the middle school splits. Problem is Churchill is only going to get close to 100% utilized with no changes. I’d think a small addition at Churchill to bring its capacity up to 2100-2200 would be wise and further prevent Crown under an option H from getting overcrowded down the road. Also down the road QO definitely needs to be renovated and when that’s done its capacity should increase to 2000-2200 which could allow some overflow absorption. Both of these small additional costs would be a fraction of the Wootton replacement which isn’t needed now.

Of course Crown being built was a mistake but that’s with hindsight being 20-20. At the time it was clearly more justifiable, though I’d have argued at the time that money would be better spent renovating and making larger QO and Wootton, and then doing an addition at Churchill and RM.

This points out the MCPS folly in separating the Crown and Woodward studies. There's no need for Churchill to be overcrowded if there could be cascading shifts towards Whitman and WJ, and the same cascades from those areas & Woodward north.

From the beginning, it should have been all schools at all levels, and that should be done with some regularity. The shifts would not be nearly as dramatic, overcrowding would be a rare outlier, more easily countered with one-off operational considerations, and the system could more effectively and cheaply address CIP needs, from renovation/rebuild to expansion/contraction.

So, you are going to ignore the dcc schools being overcrowded?

Not at all. They are part of "all schools at all levels." "Could be" in the first paragraph indicates that the cascading shifts mentioned were an example, and, given the subject of this thread, the apropos one.

There could be cascading shifts in a number of directions, but constraining the studies has left many such options off the table, leaving the system much worse off than it otherwise could be.

If Wootton does not want Crown they should stay and get to the end of the line for repairs.

I don't think it's Wootton's responsibility to put up with MCPS mistakes. They knew MoCo was losing population and revenue.

That wasn't Wootton's fault, why should Wootton be punished?

There is not infinite money and not every high school will be rebuilt with declining enrollment. There is no fairytale ending where everyone gets what they want.

You and the Wootton community need to wake up to that reality.

That is what Wootton wants. They don't want or need a whole other "holding school" just to make rebuilding more convenient.

MCPS needs own up to their mistakes and stop construction.

Stopping construction at this point would be an even worse financial mistake. They would lose the land and the amount that they put into the 40% that is complete.

At this point, the financially prudent move is to move Wootton to Crown.

It's not prudent a prudent move when you consider the overall impact on the community. Since when has MCPS been financially prudent? If it is a paragon of financial prudence, why did it build Crown in the first place?

You make it sound like moving Wootton to Crown is the ONLY option. It isn't and never has been. Stop privately salivating about how your house value in Gaithersburg will increase.

The financially prudent move is to open Crown for Gaithersburg, use its excess capacity as a holding school for schools on the CIP in the next 5 years, remediate Wootton's immediate problems over the summer of 2026 or 2027, then fully renovate Wootton in 2035.

I’m not sure this is financially prudent, given that so many schools are already in poor condition and that construction would be nonstop regardless of whether Wootton is renovated. Taxes will be raised anyway. Since there would be significant financial gains for certain areas if Wootton moves to Crown, some people on this board are coercing the community to give up the heart of their neighborhood.

That's the point. When faced with ripping out the heart of a community that has been in its current location for 55+ years (3 generations of graduates), why would the community ever agree to this move in exchange for a new school building in a location they never asked for?

The parents who don't live in Wootton (who may not even have kids in school at all) will never understand this. The decision must be made by Wootton parents, not bureaucrats or other people with a personal financial agenda that is NOT aligned with what is in the best interests of the community.

I don't think the community would care if there are 3 generations of graduates - it means their kids have already graduated. No one is staying in grandma's house to go to Wootton.

Wootton moving to Crown means the newer generation will get newer houses in that area and the Wootton reputation which is a win win for them. I bet all the naysayers are those worried about property values and those with old homes in that neighborhood, not people with kids going to Wootton.

[Anonymous]

PP. I meant great grandma's house

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

Are you cold spring? I feel like cold spring is the furthest from crown though also far from Wootton. I would think Cold Spring closing and moving the CES to a different Wootton cluster elementary school and then move the local Cold Spring kids to Beverly Farms and the pocket of Beverly Farms near Cold Spring on the north side of Falls Rd to Wayside. Then all would go to Churchill with some plan for how to handle the middle school splits. Problem is Churchill is only going to get close to 100% utilized with no changes. I’d think a small addition at Churchill to bring its capacity up to 2100-2200 would be wise and further prevent Crown under an option H from getting overcrowded down the road. Also down the road QO definitely needs to be renovated and when that’s done its capacity should increase to 2000-2200 which could allow some overflow absorption. Both of these small additional costs would be a fraction of the Wootton replacement which isn’t needed now.

Of course Crown being built was a mistake but that’s with hindsight being 20-20. At the time it was clearly more justifiable, though I’d have argued at the time that money would be better spent renovating and making larger QO and Wootton, and then doing an addition at Churchill and RM.

This points out the MCPS folly in separating the Crown and Woodward studies. There's no need for Churchill to be overcrowded if there could be cascading shifts towards Whitman and WJ, and the same cascades from those areas & Woodward north.

From the beginning, it should have been all schools at all levels, and that should be done with some regularity. The shifts would not be nearly as dramatic, overcrowding would be a rare outlier, more easily countered with one-off operational considerations, and the system could more effectively and cheaply address CIP needs, from renovation/rebuild to expansion/contraction.

So, you are going to ignore the dcc schools being overcrowded?

Not at all. They are part of "all schools at all levels." "Could be" in the first paragraph indicates that the cascading shifts mentioned were an example, and, given the subject of this thread, the apropos one.

There could be cascading shifts in a number of directions, but constraining the studies has left many such options off the table, leaving the system much worse off than it otherwise could be.

If Wootton does not want Crown they should stay and get to the end of the line for repairs.

I don't think it's Wootton's responsibility to put up with MCPS mistakes. They knew MoCo was losing population and revenue.

That wasn't Wootton's fault, why should Wootton be punished?

There is not infinite money and not every high school will be rebuilt with declining enrollment. There is no fairytale ending where everyone gets what they want.

You and the Wootton community need to wake up to that reality.

That is what Wootton wants. They don't want or need a whole other "holding school" just to make rebuilding more convenient.

MCPS needs own up to their mistakes and stop construction.

Stopping construction at this point would be an even worse financial mistake. They would lose the land and the amount that they put into the 40% that is complete.

At this point, the financially prudent move is to move Wootton to Crown.

It's not prudent a prudent move when you consider the overall impact on the community. Since when has MCPS been financially prudent? If it is a paragon of financial prudence, why did it build Crown in the first place?

You make it sound like moving Wootton to Crown is the ONLY option. It isn't and never has been. Stop privately salivating about how your house value in Gaithersburg will increase.

The financially prudent move is to open Crown for Gaithersburg, use its excess capacity as a holding school for schools on the CIP in the next 5 years, remediate Wootton's immediate problems over the summer of 2026 or 2027, then fully renovate Wootton in 2035.

I’m not sure this is financially prudent, given that so many schools are already in poor condition and that construction would be nonstop regardless of whether Wootton is renovated. Taxes will be raised anyway. Since there would be significant financial gains for certain areas if Wootton moves to Crown, some people on this board are coercing the community to give up the heart of their neighborhood.

That's the point. When faced with ripping out the heart of a community that has been in its current location for 55+ years (3 generations of graduates), why would the community ever agree to this move in exchange for a new school building in a location they never asked for?

The parents who don't live in Wootton (who may not even have kids in school at all) will never understand this. The decision must be made by Wootton parents, not bureaucrats or other people with a personal financial agenda that is NOT aligned with what is in the best interests of the community.

I don't think the community would care if there are 3 generations of graduates - it means their kids have already graduated. No one is staying in grandma's house to go to Wootton.

Wootton moving to Crown means the newer generation will get newer houses in that area and the Wootton reputation which is a win win for them. I bet all the naysayers are those worried about property values and those with old homes in that neighborhood, not people with kids going to Wootton.

The reference to 3 generations of graduates was to drive home the point that Wootton has been a part of the local community for over half a century, with grandparents, parents, and now kids going there. Also, did it ever dawn on you that houses turn over, many to parents who went to Wootton and now have kids that are or will go there?

Finally, thanks for saying the quiet part out loud and admitting that you're among those who would benefit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

Are you cold spring? I feel like cold spring is the furthest from crown though also far from Wootton. I would think Cold Spring closing and moving the CES to a different Wootton cluster elementary school and then move the local Cold Spring kids to Beverly Farms and the pocket of Beverly Farms near Cold Spring on the north side of Falls Rd to Wayside. Then all would go to Churchill with some plan for how to handle the middle school splits. Problem is Churchill is only going to get close to 100% utilized with no changes. I’d think a small addition at Churchill to bring its capacity up to 2100-2200 would be wise and further prevent Crown under an option H from getting overcrowded down the road. Also down the road QO definitely needs to be renovated and when that’s done its capacity should increase to 2000-2200 which could allow some overflow absorption. Both of these small additional costs would be a fraction of the Wootton replacement which isn’t needed now.

Of course Crown being built was a mistake but that’s with hindsight being 20-20. At the time it was clearly more justifiable, though I’d have argued at the time that money would be better spent renovating and making larger QO and Wootton, and then doing an addition at Churchill and RM.

This points out the MCPS folly in separating the Crown and Woodward studies. There's no need for Churchill to be overcrowded if there could be cascading shifts towards Whitman and WJ, and the same cascades from those areas & Woodward north.

From the beginning, it should have been all schools at all levels, and that should be done with some regularity. The shifts would not be nearly as dramatic, overcrowding would be a rare outlier, more easily countered with one-off operational considerations, and the system could more effectively and cheaply address CIP needs, from renovation/rebuild to expansion/contraction.

So, you are going to ignore the dcc schools being overcrowded?

Not at all. They are part of "all schools at all levels." "Could be" in the first paragraph indicates that the cascading shifts mentioned were an example, and, given the subject of this thread, the apropos one.

There could be cascading shifts in a number of directions, but constraining the studies has left many such options off the table, leaving the system much worse off than it otherwise could be.

If Wootton does not want Crown they should stay and get to the end of the line for repairs.

I don't think it's Wootton's responsibility to put up with MCPS mistakes. They knew MoCo was losing population and revenue.

That wasn't Wootton's fault, why should Wootton be punished?

There is not infinite money and not every high school will be rebuilt with declining enrollment. There is no fairytale ending where everyone gets what they want.

You and the Wootton community need to wake up to that reality.

That is what Wootton wants. They don't want or need a whole other "holding school" just to make rebuilding more convenient.

MCPS needs own up to their mistakes and stop construction.

Stopping construction at this point would be an even worse financial mistake. They would lose the land and the amount that they put into the 40% that is complete.

At this point, the financially prudent move is to move Wootton to Crown.

It's not prudent a prudent move when you consider the overall impact on the community. Since when has MCPS been financially prudent? If it is a paragon of financial prudence, why did it build Crown in the first place?

You make it sound like moving Wootton to Crown is the ONLY option. It isn't and never has been. Stop privately salivating about how your house value in Gaithersburg will increase.

The financially prudent move is to open Crown for Gaithersburg, use its excess capacity as a holding school for schools on the CIP in the next 5 years, remediate Wootton's immediate problems over the summer of 2026 or 2027, then fully renovate Wootton in 2035.

I’m not sure this is financially prudent, given that so many schools are already in poor condition and that construction would be nonstop regardless of whether Wootton is renovated. Taxes will be raised anyway. Since there would be significant financial gains for certain areas if Wootton moves to Crown, some people on this board are coercing the community to give up the heart of their neighborhood.

That's the point. When faced with ripping out the heart of a community that has been in its current location for 55+ years (3 generations of graduates), why would the community ever agree to this move in exchange for a new school building in a location they never asked for?

The parents who don't live in Wootton (who may not even have kids in school at all) will never understand this. The decision must be made by Wootton parents, not bureaucrats or other people with a personal financial agenda that is NOT aligned with what is in the best interests of the community.

I don't think the community would care if there are 3 generations of graduates - it means their kids have already graduated. No one is staying in grandma's house to go to Wootton.

Wootton moving to Crown means the newer generation will get newer houses in that area and the Wootton reputation which is a win win for them. I bet all the naysayers are those worried about property values and those with old homes in that neighborhood, not people with kids going to Wootton.

The reference to 3 generations of graduates was to drive home the point that Wootton has been a part of the local community for over half a century, with grandparents, parents, and now kids going there. Also, did it ever dawn on you that houses turn over, many to parents who went to Wootton and now have kids that are or will go there?

Finally, thanks for saying the quiet part out loud and admitting that you're among those who would benefit.

And finally thanks for admitting that property values is what drives all your petitions, not the walkability or community or anything else

And MCPS should not care if your property value tanked. They need to do what is right for the county, not just your little neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

PP. I don't live in Crown and we are not zoned for any school near Crown nor will we be affected by the rezoning. My kid goes to Northwest, and I am able to look at this with an open mind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

Are you cold spring? I feel like cold spring is the furthest from crown though also far from Wootton. I would think Cold Spring closing and moving the CES to a different Wootton cluster elementary school and then move the local Cold Spring kids to Beverly Farms and the pocket of Beverly Farms near Cold Spring on the north side of Falls Rd to Wayside. Then all would go to Churchill with some plan for how to handle the middle school splits. Problem is Churchill is only going to get close to 100% utilized with no changes. I’d think a small addition at Churchill to bring its capacity up to 2100-2200 would be wise and further prevent Crown under an option H from getting overcrowded down the road. Also down the road QO definitely needs to be renovated and when that’s done its capacity should increase to 2000-2200 which could allow some overflow absorption. Both of these small additional costs would be a fraction of the Wootton replacement which isn’t needed now.

Of course Crown being built was a mistake but that’s with hindsight being 20-20. At the time it was clearly more justifiable, though I’d have argued at the time that money would be better spent renovating and making larger QO and Wootton, and then doing an addition at Churchill and RM.

This points out the MCPS folly in separating the Crown and Woodward studies. There's no need for Churchill to be overcrowded if there could be cascading shifts towards Whitman and WJ, and the same cascades from those areas & Woodward north.

From the beginning, it should have been all schools at all levels, and that should be done with some regularity. The shifts would not be nearly as dramatic, overcrowding would be a rare outlier, more easily countered with one-off operational considerations, and the system could more effectively and cheaply address CIP needs, from renovation/rebuild to expansion/contraction.

So, you are going to ignore the dcc schools being overcrowded?

Not at all. They are part of "all schools at all levels." "Could be" in the first paragraph indicates that the cascading shifts mentioned were an example, and, given the subject of this thread, the apropos one.

There could be cascading shifts in a number of directions, but constraining the studies has left many such options off the table, leaving the system much worse off than it otherwise could be.

If Wootton does not want Crown they should stay and get to the end of the line for repairs.

I don't think it's Wootton's responsibility to put up with MCPS mistakes. They knew MoCo was losing population and revenue.

That wasn't Wootton's fault, why should Wootton be punished?

There is not infinite money and not every high school will be rebuilt with declining enrollment. There is no fairytale ending where everyone gets what they want.

You and the Wootton community need to wake up to that reality.

As someone who’s been very much on the side of Crown was a boondoggle and a huge mistake since early this year, you hit the nail on the head. They went forward with Crown based on 2019 data which clearly meant a high school was likely needed. However by the time construction started a few years ago, I believe it was likely already showing a downward enrollment trend, but it was too late. Given the need for new schools for the three aged ones, with a new one being built very close to Wootton and closer to three of Wootton feeder schools than they are to Wootton, I can see why this makes sense.

[Anonymous]

I know one thing, other parts of the county are tiring of this Wooten debate, quickly. Giving the amount of repairs and continuously aging infrastructure in MCPS, having a community be upset about a brand new school is not a good look.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know one thing, other parts of the county are tiring of this Wooten debate, quickly. Giving the amount of repairs and continuously aging infrastructure in MCPS, having a community be upset about a brand new school is not a good look.

+1 makes them look whiney

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

Are you cold spring? I feel like cold spring is the furthest from crown though also far from Wootton. I would think Cold Spring closing and moving the CES to a different Wootton cluster elementary school and then move the local Cold Spring kids to Beverly Farms and the pocket of Beverly Farms near Cold Spring on the north side of Falls Rd to Wayside. Then all would go to Churchill with some plan for how to handle the middle school splits. Problem is Churchill is only going to get close to 100% utilized with no changes. I’d think a small addition at Churchill to bring its capacity up to 2100-2200 would be wise and further prevent Crown under an option H from getting overcrowded down the road. Also down the road QO definitely needs to be renovated and when that’s done its capacity should increase to 2000-2200 which could allow some overflow absorption. Both of these small additional costs would be a fraction of the Wootton replacement which isn’t needed now.

Of course Crown being built was a mistake but that’s with hindsight being 20-20. At the time it was clearly more justifiable, though I’d have argued at the time that money would be better spent renovating and making larger QO and Wootton, and then doing an addition at Churchill and RM.

This points out the MCPS folly in separating the Crown and Woodward studies. There's no need for Churchill to be overcrowded if there could be cascading shifts towards Whitman and WJ, and the same cascades from those areas & Woodward north.

From the beginning, it should have been all schools at all levels, and that should be done with some regularity. The shifts would not be nearly as dramatic, overcrowding would be a rare outlier, more easily countered with one-off operational considerations, and the system could more effectively and cheaply address CIP needs, from renovation/rebuild to expansion/contraction.

So, you are going to ignore the dcc schools being overcrowded?

Not at all. They are part of "all schools at all levels." "Could be" in the first paragraph indicates that the cascading shifts mentioned were an example, and, given the subject of this thread, the apropos one.

There could be cascading shifts in a number of directions, but constraining the studies has left many such options off the table, leaving the system much worse off than it otherwise could be.

If Wootton does not want Crown they should stay and get to the end of the line for repairs.

I don't think it's Wootton's responsibility to put up with MCPS mistakes. They knew MoCo was losing population and revenue.

That wasn't Wootton's fault, why should Wootton be punished?

There is not infinite money and not every high school will be rebuilt with declining enrollment. There is no fairytale ending where everyone gets what they want.

You and the Wootton community need to wake up to that reality.

That is what Wootton wants. They don't want or need a whole other "holding school" just to make rebuilding more convenient.

MCPS needs own up to their mistakes and stop construction.

Stopping construction at this point would be an even worse financial mistake. They would lose the land and the amount that they put into the 40% that is complete.

At this point, the financially prudent move is to move Wootton to Crown.

It's not prudent a prudent move when you consider the overall impact on the community. Since when has MCPS been financially prudent? If it is a paragon of financial prudence, why did it build Crown in the first place?

You make it sound like moving Wootton to Crown is the ONLY option. It isn't and never has been. Stop privately salivating about how your house value in Gaithersburg will increase.

The financially prudent move is to open Crown for Gaithersburg, use its excess capacity as a holding school for schools on the CIP in the next 5 years, remediate Wootton's immediate problems over the summer of 2026 or 2027, then fully renovate Wootton in 2035.

I don't live in an area impacted by this. It's just common sense to move Wootton to Crown given the variables - declining enrollment, huge budget shortfalls in the coming years, neighboring HS that is falling down, and by Wootton families own mouths, unsafe.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:What will happen is that Wootton parents will reject option H. The county does not have the money to renovate Wootton. Wootton will eventually become too unsafe. Wootton kids will then be split up, separated from their friends, and sent on long commutes to different high schools around the county.

Wootton parents are completely screwing their own kids with their lack of realism on limited money and their magical belief that Wootton HS will ever be renovated.

As a parent in the Wootton cluster-I actually would prefer this than the current choices. I imagine if what you are saying does happen-the schools the different neighborhoods would be sent to would have to make sense geographically. For us as a whole to go to Crown does not.

Are you cold spring? I feel like cold spring is the furthest from crown though also far from Wootton. I would think Cold Spring closing and moving the CES to a different Wootton cluster elementary school and then move the local Cold Spring kids to Beverly Farms and the pocket of Beverly Farms near Cold Spring on the north side of Falls Rd to Wayside. Then all would go to Churchill with some plan for how to handle the middle school splits. Problem is Churchill is only going to get close to 100% utilized with no changes. I’d think a small addition at Churchill to bring its capacity up to 2100-2200 would be wise and further prevent Crown under an option H from getting overcrowded down the road. Also down the road QO definitely needs to be renovated and when that’s done its capacity should increase to 2000-2200 which could allow some overflow absorption. Both of these small additional costs would be a fraction of the Wootton replacement which isn’t needed now.

Of course Crown being built was a mistake but that’s with hindsight being 20-20. At the time it was clearly more justifiable, though I’d have argued at the time that money would be better spent renovating and making larger QO and Wootton, and then doing an addition at Churchill and RM.

This points out the MCPS folly in separating the Crown and Woodward studies. There's no need for Churchill to be overcrowded if there could be cascading shifts towards Whitman and WJ, and the same cascades from those areas & Woodward north.

From the beginning, it should have been all schools at all levels, and that should be done with some regularity. The shifts would not be nearly as dramatic, overcrowding would be a rare outlier, more easily countered with one-off operational considerations, and the system could more effectively and cheaply address CIP needs, from renovation/rebuild to expansion/contraction.

So, you are going to ignore the dcc schools being overcrowded?

Not at all. They are part of "all schools at all levels." "Could be" in the first paragraph indicates that the cascading shifts mentioned were an example, and, given the subject of this thread, the apropos one.

There could be cascading shifts in a number of directions, but constraining the studies has left many such options off the table, leaving the system much worse off than it otherwise could be.

If Wootton does not want Crown they should stay and get to the end of the line for repairs.

I don't think it's Wootton's responsibility to put up with MCPS mistakes. They knew MoCo was losing population and revenue.

That wasn't Wootton's fault, why should Wootton be punished?

There is not infinite money and not every high school will be rebuilt with declining enrollment. There is no fairytale ending where everyone gets what they want.

You and the Wootton community need to wake up to that reality.

That is what Wootton wants. They don't want or need a whole other "holding school" just to make rebuilding more convenient.

MCPS needs own up to their mistakes and stop construction.

Stopping construction at this point would be an even worse financial mistake. They would lose the land and the amount that they put into the 40% that is complete.

At this point, the financially prudent move is to move Wootton to Crown.

It's not prudent a prudent move when you consider the overall impact on the community. Since when has MCPS been financially prudent? If it is a paragon of financial prudence, why did it build Crown in the first place?

You make it sound like moving Wootton to Crown is the ONLY option. It isn't and never has been. Stop privately salivating about how your house value in Gaithersburg will increase.

The financially prudent move is to open Crown for Gaithersburg, use its excess capacity as a holding school for schools on the CIP in the next 5 years, remediate Wootton's immediate problems over the summer of 2026 or 2027, then fully renovate Wootton in 2035.

I’m not sure this is financially prudent, given that so many schools are already in poor condition and that construction would be nonstop regardless of whether Wootton is renovated. Taxes will be raised anyway. Since there would be significant financial gains for certain areas if Wootton moves to Crown, some people on this board are coercing the community to give up the heart of their neighborhood.

That's the point. When faced with ripping out the heart of a community that has been in its current location for 55+ years (3 generations of graduates), why would the community ever agree to this move in exchange for a new school building in a location they never asked for?

The parents who don't live in Wootton (who may not even have kids in school at all) will never understand this. The decision must be made by Wootton parents, not bureaucrats or other people with a personal financial agenda that is NOT aligned with what is in the best interests of the community.

Sorry, it doesn't work that way. Never has. And never should it. The funds used to fix Wootton and build Crown are MoCo taxpayer funds, not Wootton parents funds. The community absolutely does have a say in how taxpayer monies should be spent.