FCPS Boundary Review Updates

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s pretty unsettling to me is the lack of public engagement on the school purchase - a hugely significant and consequential decision for the country’s . There was no mention that this was on the table until shortly before the vote yesterday and they quickly approved it with no actual discussion.

The school system really hurts their credibility when it jams something through this quickly without even raising the possibility of it to the public beforehand. So much for transparency and community engagement.

They do not need public engagement for this! It’s been in the cip for decades and you can’t have public engagement while you’re trying to negotiate and purchase a property.

It’s been in the CIP for years as a future, largely unfunded project.

So where is the money coming from to buy this property? What gets deferred or cancelled if this moves forward? Centreville? Dunn Loring? Renovations of elementary schools in the CIP previously planned over the next five years?

And where is the realistic estimate of how much it will cost to convert a private, religious school w/Muslim iconography into a public HS?

Based off of dunne’s crowing at yesterday’s meeting, his numbers assume that it will cost zero dollars to convert the school.

It was bizarre to see the Mount Vernon rep trying to take all the credit for the acquisition of a new school in Sully. Dixit had to push back and then the others made a point to say she was involved.

Right now they are giddy but there will be additional costs.

Saudis in original Mount Vernon HS - magically/mysteriously became the owners of land zoned for a school next to Carson with no public hearing. Mount Vernon and Francona districts owe Western Fairfax County including Sully District a school site. So cost is 150m less $ to public entity for the land plus minor reno costs. Anyone know the amount the Saudis paid for the land and who got the $?

This in incomprehensible babble.

[Anonymous]

Saudis in original Mount Vernon HS - magically/mysteriously became the owners of land zoned for a school next to Carson with no public hearing. Mount Vernon and Francona districts owe Western Fairfax County including Sully District a school site. So cost is 150m less $ to public entity for the land plus minor reno costs. Anyone know the amount the Saudis paid for the land and who got the $?

To address comments posted here:

The school may have been in Mt Vernon earlier, but the planned Saudi school at the time was in Burke. I don't think it had anything to do with Mt Vernon or Franconia. It was supposed to be near Braddock Rd somewhere. The Burke community put up a very big protest when they found out about it. All of a sudden, "magically" the School Board said they no longer needed the property (the excuse was that it was too small for a high school--which is absolutely not true, especially since fields could be shared with Carson.) Then, Fairfax BOS gave the property to the Saudis. I am guessing there may have been political pressure from the feds since it was embarrassing to offend the Saudis.
Then FCPS started looking for another site. But, Carson site is a good one for the need.

I've no idea why Mateo Dunne is speaking up. Maybe, he just think it makes sense to get the property back.

2. I've no idea what they sold the property for. It is not listed on the realty tax website. There are indications that Saudis pay taxes on it, but I'm not 100% on that. There is also other county property adjacent, so claiming it was not large enough for a high school was just a cop out --IMHO

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So were the board members specifically saying they wanted to use this as a high school? Not some other purpose like special programming or anything?

Cue all the Emerald Chase people saying wait no forget we said Chantilly we want to go to the new school! LOL.

Noooo don’t send us to one of the two high schools that are closest to our community! We prefer for our kids to have to drive further to high school.

[Anonymous]

I think a lot of people commenting on here do not understand the location and the adjacent communities.

I don't live in Emerald Chase, but it certainly is very close to the KAA site.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So were the board members specifically saying they wanted to use this as a high school? Not some other purpose like special programming or anything?

Cue all the Emerald Chase people saying wait no forget we said Chantilly we want to go to the new school! LOL.

Noooo don’t send us to one of the two high schools that are closest to our community! We prefer for our kids to have to drive further to high school.

But there you go again, trying to insert yourself into other families’ education decisions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s pretty unsettling to me is the lack of public engagement on the school purchase - a hugely significant and consequential decision for the country’s . There was no mention that this was on the table until shortly before the vote yesterday and they quickly approved it with no actual discussion.

The school system really hurts their credibility when it jams something through this quickly without even raising the possibility of it to the public beforehand. So much for transparency and community engagement.

They do not need public engagement for this! It’s been in the cip for decades and you can’t have public engagement while you’re trying to negotiate and purchase a property.

It’s been in the CIP for years as a future, largely unfunded project.

So where is the money coming from to buy this property? What gets deferred or cancelled if this moves forward? Centreville? Dunn Loring? Renovations of elementary schools in the CIP previously planned over the next five years?

And where is the realistic estimate of how much it will cost to convert a private, religious school w/Muslim iconography into a public HS?

Based off of dunne’s crowing at yesterday’s meeting, his numbers assume that it will cost zero dollars to convert the school.

It was bizarre to see the Mount Vernon rep trying to take all the credit for the acquisition of a new school in Sully. Dixit had to push back and then the others made a point to say she was involved.

Right now they are giddy but there will be additional costs.

There has been a topic on this board since the day the Saudi's announced the school was closing. Most of us in that area were hoping this would happen.

I'm delighted they are going to save $281 million with this purchase and look forward to their letting us know who else stands to benefit from this strategic move.

Let me guess, you’re the type of person who goes shopping and buys crap they don’t need just because it’s on sale?

But we do need this. It's been in the CIP for years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s pretty unsettling to me is the lack of public engagement on the school purchase - a hugely significant and consequential decision for the country’s . There was no mention that this was on the table until shortly before the vote yesterday and they quickly approved it with no actual discussion.

The school system really hurts their credibility when it jams something through this quickly without even raising the possibility of it to the public beforehand. So much for transparency and community engagement.

They do not need public engagement for this! It’s been in the cip for decades and you can’t have public engagement while you’re trying to negotiate and purchase a property.

It’s been in the CIP for years as a future, largely unfunded project.

So where is the money coming from to buy this property? What gets deferred or cancelled if this moves forward? Centreville? Dunn Loring? Renovations of elementary schools in the CIP previously planned over the next five years?

And where is the realistic estimate of how much it will cost to convert a private, religious school w/Muslim iconography into a public HS?

Based off of dunne’s crowing at yesterday’s meeting, his numbers assume that it will cost zero dollars to convert the school.

It was bizarre to see the Mount Vernon rep trying to take all the credit for the acquisition of a new school in Sully. Dixit had to push back and then the others made a point to say she was involved.

Right now they are giddy but there will be additional costs.

There has been a topic on this board since the day the Saudi's announced the school was closing. Most of us in that area were hoping this would happen.

I'm delighted they are going to save $281 million with this purchase and look forward to their letting us know who else stands to benefit from this strategic move.

Let me guess, you’re the type of person who goes shopping and buys crap they don’t need just because it’s on sale?

But we do need this. It's been in the CIP for years.

DP. It's been the CIP for years and deferred again and again. The latest CIP didn't have any construction occurring until 2034, and the vast majority of the cost associated with the new school is unfunded.

Meanwhile they built addition after addition at other schools serving kids in western Fairfax.

The school may be great for those in that area but the mere fact that it was included in the CIP as something that might happen years from now doesn't by itself demonstrate the need.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s pretty unsettling to me is the lack of public engagement on the school purchase - a hugely significant and consequential decision for the country’s . There was no mention that this was on the table until shortly before the vote yesterday and they quickly approved it with no actual discussion.

The school system really hurts their credibility when it jams something through this quickly without even raising the possibility of it to the public beforehand. So much for transparency and community engagement.

They do not need public engagement for this! It’s been in the cip for decades and you can’t have public engagement while you’re trying to negotiate and purchase a property.

It’s been in the CIP for years as a future, largely unfunded project.

So where is the money coming from to buy this property? What gets deferred or cancelled if this moves forward? Centreville? Dunn Loring? Renovations of elementary schools in the CIP previously planned over the next five years?

And where is the realistic estimate of how much it will cost to convert a private, religious school w/Muslim iconography into a public HS?

Based off of dunne’s crowing at yesterday’s meeting, his numbers assume that it will cost zero dollars to convert the school.

It was bizarre to see the Mount Vernon rep trying to take all the credit for the acquisition of a new school in Sully. Dixit had to push back and then the others made a point to say she was involved.

Right now they are giddy but there will be additional costs.

There has been a topic on this board since the day the Saudi's announced the school was closing. Most of us in that area were hoping this would happen.

I'm delighted they are going to save $281 million with this purchase and look forward to their letting us know who else stands to benefit from this strategic move.

Let me guess, you’re the type of person who goes shopping and buys crap they don’t need just because it’s on sale?

But we do need this. It's been in the CIP for years.

DP. It's been the CIP for years and deferred again and again. The latest CIP didn't have any construction occurring until 2034, and the vast majority of the cost associated with the new school is unfunded.

Meanwhile they built addition after addition at other schools serving kids in western Fairfax.

The school may be great for those in that area but the mere fact that it was included in the CIP as something that might happen years from now doesn't by itself demonstrate the need.

Pretty much every school in the area is at 95% capacity or above. New townhouses and apartment buildings are going in alongside the Silver Line. Two of the overcrowded HS are in this area. It is needed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s pretty unsettling to me is the lack of public engagement on the school purchase - a hugely significant and consequential decision for the country’s . There was no mention that this was on the table until shortly before the vote yesterday and they quickly approved it with no actual discussion.

The school system really hurts their credibility when it jams something through this quickly without even raising the possibility of it to the public beforehand. So much for transparency and community engagement.

They do not need public engagement for this! It’s been in the cip for decades and you can’t have public engagement while you’re trying to negotiate and purchase a property.

It’s been in the CIP for years as a future, largely unfunded project.

So where is the money coming from to buy this property? What gets deferred or cancelled if this moves forward? Centreville? Dunn Loring? Renovations of elementary schools in the CIP previously planned over the next five years?

And where is the realistic estimate of how much it will cost to convert a private, religious school w/Muslim iconography into a public HS?

Based off of dunne’s crowing at yesterday’s meeting, his numbers assume that it will cost zero dollars to convert the school.

It was bizarre to see the Mount Vernon rep trying to take all the credit for the acquisition of a new school in Sully. Dixit had to push back and then the others made a point to say she was involved.

Right now they are giddy but there will be additional costs.

There has been a topic on this board since the day the Saudi's announced the school was closing. Most of us in that area were hoping this would happen.

I'm delighted they are going to save $281 million with this purchase and look forward to their letting us know who else stands to benefit from this strategic move.

Let me guess, you’re the type of person who goes shopping and buys crap they don’t need just because it’s on sale?

But we do need this. It's been in the CIP for years.

DP. It's been the CIP for years and deferred again and again. The latest CIP didn't have any construction occurring until 2034, and the vast majority of the cost associated with the new school is unfunded.

Meanwhile they built addition after addition at other schools serving kids in western Fairfax.

The school may be great for those in that area but the mere fact that it was included in the CIP as something that might happen years from now doesn't by itself demonstrate the need.

Pretty much every school in the area is at 95% capacity or above. New townhouses and apartment buildings are going in alongside the Silver Line. Two of the overcrowded HS are in this area. It is needed.

Herndon is at 81% capacity and projected to be at 69% capacity by 2029. Both Centreville and Chantilly, the overcrowded schools, are projected to lose kids, and Centreville was already slated for a renovation/expansion.

A new school in that area will be nice for those who've been redistricted in the past and/or could be looking at redistricting in the future. Have they made a compelling case that a new school is needed? No.

[Anonymous]

This is a classic case of "ready, shoot, aim."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So were the board members specifically saying they wanted to use this as a high school? Not some other purpose like special programming or anything?

Cue all the Emerald Chase people saying wait no forget we said Chantilly we want to go to the new school! LOL.

Noooo don’t send us to one of the two high schools that are closest to our community! We prefer for our kids to have to drive further to high school.

I don’t live there, but Chantilly and the new school would be the two closest to Emerald Chase. They’re already zoned for Carson I think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So were the board members specifically saying they wanted to use this as a high school? Not some other purpose like special programming or anything?

Cue all the Emerald Chase people saying wait no forget we said Chantilly we want to go to the new school! LOL.

I just listened to the meeting recording and they mentioned it alongside the "western HS". The intent is clearly to make it a HS and relieve overcrowding elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

If they’re concerned about the fuzzier issues of “community” and continuity - the new HS would help with that even if they technically have just enough capacity right now without it. The new HS would immediately become Carson MS’s feeder and those kids would no longer be split up between a larger number of HS. There would have to be other boundary adjustments too of course. But if you want to advocate for keeping kids with a stable cohort as much as possible from elementary-middle-high, another HS is what you need over there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So were the board members specifically saying they wanted to use this as a high school? Not some other purpose like special programming or anything?

Cue all the Emerald Chase people saying wait no forget we said Chantilly we want to go to the new school! LOL.

Noooo don’t send us to one of the two high schools that are closest to our community! We prefer for our kids to have to drive further to high school.

But there you go again, trying to insert yourself into other families’ education decisions.

PP oblivious to the fact that they aren’t the only ones in that situation. Why should they get first priority to be moved closer to home?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So were the board members specifically saying they wanted to use this as a high school? Not some other purpose like special programming or anything?

Cue all the Emerald Chase people saying wait no forget we said Chantilly we want to go to the new school! LOL.

Noooo don’t send us to one of the two high schools that are closest to our community! We prefer for our kids to have to drive further to high school.

But there you go again, trying to insert yourself into other families’ education decisions.

PP oblivious to the fact that they aren’t the only ones in that situation. Why should they get first priority to be moved closer to home?

When a ready-made school magically pops up for sale in your pyramid for 1/3 the amount already planned to spend on it why don't you pop in here and let us know?