Surplussing the old Hardy School, again

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

I too have heard that the cost to renovate the Old Hardy School is prohibitive, and that the reason for the jaw-dropping fifty-year term of the proposed lease is primarily so that Lab can see some return on its investment after making these expensive repairs. That sounds reasonable, until you look at the equally jaw-dropping sums that DCPS is plowing into underutilized facilities elsewhere in the District simply to make political hay.

I also live near GDS and would love to see a DCPS school go in there -- it's right on the stretch of MacArthur that was almost re-zoned from Key to Hyde -- but it wouldn't likely be a high school. The GDS campus is currently a lower-middle school and would also require capital improvements before a high school would work well there. And I don't see DCPS investing in a fixer-upper in order to establish a new NW high school, particularly at a location so poorly-served by public transit and difficult to reach even by car. Perhaps we can dream about a charter middle school...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I too have heard that the cost to renovate the Old Hardy School is prohibitive, and that the reason for the jaw-dropping fifty-year term of the proposed lease is primarily so that Lab can see some return on its investment after making these expensive repairs. That sounds reasonable, until you look at the equally jaw-dropping sums that DCPS is plowing into underutilized facilities elsewhere in the District simply to make political hay.

I also live near GDS and would love to see a DCPS school go in there -- it's right on the stretch of MacArthur that was almost re-zoned from Key to Hyde -- but it wouldn't likely be a high school. The GDS campus is currently a lower-middle school and would also require capital improvements before a high school would work well there. And I don't see DCPS investing in a fixer-upper in order to establish a new NW high school, particularly at a location so poorly-served by public transit and difficult to reach even by car. Perhaps we can dream about a charter middle school...

The state of the current building is a red herring. The true value here is the land, it's worth millions.

For decades the city has been giving away valuable former DCPS properties to the politically well-connected, this is no different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

There aren't enough students that live in Ward 3/2 to justify any new schools. The enrollment pressure comes from oob students. Fix that issue (by making those student's home schools more attractive) and stop wishing that some magic enclave is going to fix this issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

There aren't enough students that live in Ward 3/2 to justify any new schools. The enrollment pressure comes from oob students. Fix that issue (by making those student's home schools more attractive) and stop wishing that some magic enclave is going to fix this issue.

I agree that it is debatable whether new schools are needed (and certainly not a school to "replace" Hardy). But your characterization that all pressure comes from OOB students is not in every case correct. Certainly several elementary schools are bursting at the seems and their OOB percentage is low to non-existent. The current enrollment in these elementary schools will make the middle and high schools overcrowded even without any OOB students. I also very strongly agree that the city needs to make schools across the city more attractive -- but that isn't in principle because of overcrowding in Ward 3; that is needed because it is the equitable thing to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

Here's the thing: NWDC does have another high school: Roosevelt. But, like Hardy, many (if not most) IB families don't send their kids there. DCPS needs to fix the schools it has - only that will alleviate overcrowding at Deal and Wilson. The problem is that there are so few decent options out there, the whole city would send their kids to Deal and Wilson if they could.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

I too have heard that the cost to renovate the Old Hardy School is prohibitive, and that the reason for the jaw-dropping fifty-year term of the proposed lease is primarily so that Lab can see some return on its investment after making these expensive repairs. That sounds reasonable, until you look at the equally jaw-dropping sums that DCPS is plowing into underutilized facilities elsewhere in the District simply to make political hay.

I also live near GDS and would love to see a DCPS school go in there -- it's right on the stretch of MacArthur that was almost re-zoned from Key to Hyde -- but it wouldn't likely be a high school. The GDS campus is currently a lower-middle school and would also require capital improvements before a high school would work well there. And I don't see DCPS investing in a fixer-upper in order to establish a new NW high school, particularly at a location so poorly-served by public transit and difficult to reach even by car. Perhaps we can dream about a charter middle school...

The GDS Macarthur site is very tight from a parking and drop-off perspective. Even members of the community acknowledge this. Some even claim that the Obamas were all set to enroll at GDS instead of Sidwell back in 2008, but that the Secret Service vetoed GDS because the access and egress points were so jammed up. Take the story with a big grain of salt, but there it is.

My guess is that GDS will sell to a developer who pay top dollar and then raze the school and plunk down McMansions on the site, of the type that already exist next to GDS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ward 3 needs a new middle school. Half the ward no longer has access to Deal and few ward residents consider Hardy an option because of the significant quality gap with Deal.

Ward 3 doesn't need a new high school, middle school or elementary school for that matter.

DGS should charge the Lab School true market rate for a 20 year lease and keep it moving.

My ward 3 elemrntary jids are in trailers. Are yours?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

There aren't enough students that live in Ward 3/2 to justify any new schools. The enrollment pressure comes from oob students. Fix that issue (by making those student's home schools more attractive) and stop wishing that some magic enclave is going to fix this issue.

Wrong. Our W3 school is over capacity by 50 and there are a handful of OOB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

There aren't enough students that live in Ward 3/2 to justify any new schools. The enrollment pressure comes from oob students. Fix that issue (by making those student's home schools more attractive) and stop wishing that some magic enclave is going to fix this issue.

Wrong. Our W3 school is over capacity by 50 and there are a handful of OOB.

Would you build a school for 50 kids? No. The demographic trends would need to much stronger and sustained to even begin to consider it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

There aren't enough students that live in Ward 3/2 to justify any new schools. The enrollment pressure comes from oob students. Fix that issue (by making those student's home schools more attractive) and stop wishing that some magic enclave is going to fix this issue.

Wrong. Our W3 school is over capacity by 50 and there are a handful of OOB.

Would you build a school for 50 kids? No. The demographic trends would need to much stronger and sustained to even begin to consider it.

Every school in ward 3 is overcrowded. You could add another Mann or Key and they would still be overcrowded.

[Anonymous]

About "value" the city offers its "friends"...

The city sold the Fillmore school to the Corcoran in about 1999 for 1.5 million. Within weeks of the sale the Corcoran had used the property to secure a 4 million dollar loan. Last month the property was sold for about 14 million dollars.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what it's worth, I see the stats show that the IB % for Hardy MS is growing. It used to be 12% a year or two ago IIRC; now it's 15% according to the DCPS website. Much more of a concern though is the Hardy MS math and reading proficiency. They are 15-20 percentage points below that of Deale.

I hear the old Hardy/Lab building is too small for a modern DCPS school, whether elementary or middle school, so perhaps it works well as an overflow building for Lab. I agree with a prior poster who wondered about the to-be-sold GDS school on MacArthur -- I'd love to see DCPS buy that space and renovate it into a new school. While I'd like to see a new middle school as an option other than Hardy MS, perhaps what NW DC needs is another high school other than Wilson (Ellington doesn't "count" as a regular NW DCPS high school due to its arts focus). If NW DC had a high school option there, I think NWDC would be more accepting of Hardy MS out of a desire for continuity -- DCPS from K-12 -- and all at DCPS schools in NW DC. Some have said DCPS wouldn't buy a school (like GDS) because they already have too much excess real estate; however, that's not the case I don't think for NW DC. And, GDS would probably be a bargain compared to the recent renovation costs the city has recently been enduring, such as for Ellington and Dunbar (not to mention Wilson and others).

There aren't enough students that live in Ward 3/2 to justify any new schools. The enrollment pressure comes from oob students. Fix that issue (by making those student's home schools more attractive) and stop wishing that some magic enclave is going to fix this issue.

Wrong. Our W3 school is over capacity by 50 and there are a handful of OOB.

Would you build a school for 50 kids? No. The demographic trends would need to much stronger and sustained to even begin to consider it.

Every school in ward 3 is overcrowded. You could add another Mann or Key and they would still be overcrowded.

Because they're good schools, and a new school on the same model might be, too. Hardy is not such a good school, which is why IB parents largely avoid it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ward 3 needs a new middle school. Half the ward no longer has access to Deal and few ward residents consider Hardy an option because of the significant quality gap with Deal.

Ward 3 doesn't need a new high school, middle school or elementary school for that matter.

DGS should charge the Lab School true market rate for a 20 year lease and keep it moving.

This, exactly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ward 3 needs a new middle school. Half the ward no longer has access to Deal and few ward residents consider Hardy an option because of the significant quality gap with Deal.

Ward 3 doesn't need a new high school, middle school or elementary school for that matter.

DGS should charge the Lab School true market rate for a 20 year lease and keep it moving.

This, exactly.

I disagree. DC should find a public purpose for public land. Not necessarily a school, but keep it under public control. Think of how much the education landscape in DC has changed in the past 10, 15 and 20 years. Think of how much the city overall has changed. All projections are that the city population is going to surge in the next decade. Public land is going to be at a premium.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ward 3 needs a new middle school. Half the ward no longer has access to Deal and few ward residents consider Hardy an option because of the significant quality gap with Deal.

Ward 3 doesn't need a new high school, middle school or elementary school for that matter.

DGS should charge the Lab School true market rate for a 20 year lease and keep it moving.

This, exactly.

I disagree. DC should find a public purpose for public land. Not necessarily a school, but keep it under public control. Think of how much the education landscape in DC has changed in the past 10, 15 and 20 years. Think of how much the city overall has changed. All projections are that the city population is going to surge in the next decade. Public land is going to be at a premium.

How about a STEM school for at-risk youth.