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[quote=Anonymous]It was clear last night that DGS and DCPS are very disorganized.  It's pretty shocking that they have thrown out this "option" and only now doing any of the legwork.  Not only in soliciting community feedback but also in doing any assessment of the logistical practicalities and impracticalities of using at least this Lafayette option.  Who knows what such work they have done about any of the other proposed sites.

DGS/DCPS acknowledges that they do not have any criteria for evaluating the supposed factors that go into making their ultimate decision.  They state that safety (traffic safety, safe use of all gym/recess/playground spaces, or safety in emergency situations, evacuation, etc., emotional wellbeing of young children in having an appropriate learning environment) is of paramount concern, but their actions truly belie their empty words.  They have done NOTHING to analyze traffic, they acknowledged that there would not really be enough time to do things like make streets one way or install speed bumps or institute other safety enhancing measures.  Their plan was seriously to do a quick "traffic study" next week when 0 teachers, staff, students or parents would be anywhere near the school.   :shock:   They have not done any analysis of the ability of the playground equipment to handle this level of (over)use at Lafayette Park.  The equipment has already broken twice since September and the space was closed for repairs anyways while they were fixed.  Apparently, there are already safety concerns during recess as it is, and it's unclear, given that these spaces are already used all day every day to accommodate one set of school's kids (and that the playgound at Lafayette School would not be able to be completed until the trailers come down as they will occupy that same space), how on earth the additional kids would even be able to have any outdoor time anyways, let alone the safety of it.  They have not done any analysis of whether this # of students in the indoor and outdoor spaces here is in line with zoning requirements.  They have not done any analysis of whether any safety/emergency/evacuation procedures for the 1,400+ kids on site would comply with fire codes and other DC laws (likely because they also have not put any thought into any such plans to begin with).  They had no #s at all for actual costs of any of their options under consideration, let alone cost savings associated with this plan.

It's a clusterf$%&.  I don't blame the Lafayette parents for being upset.  They have actually asked these very same people at DGS and DCPS if this option was on the table and have repeated been told "No."  There is a now a trust issue and it's definitely not a small ask or inconvenience, as some on here are making it out to be.  It's going to be a massive overcrowding situation for 1400+ students for over 2 years (DGS acknowledged that the Murch reno will probably go over 2 years).  It's going to triple their own completion times for their spaces, and it's going to triple the car situation.  It's true that the park spaces used for recess etc. are public spaces, but they all being used exclusively by school children to the detriment of and at the expense of other folks in the neighborhood being able to use them.  That's not entirely fair.  They confirmed last night that no other school or neighborhood has ever been put in this kind of situation before.  IMO, it's pretty unreasonable on it's face, but adding in the extent of the poor planning, it's entirely ill-conceived.

I do feel for the Murch community and the amount of turmoil they have had to go through -- their delays and DCPS/DGS's lack of planning for their renovation are completely beyond the pale and unreasonable.  But this option seems like it's going to prove the "best option" only on a theoretical level before it's actually underway.  On a practical level, it's riddled with issues that at least to date have been addressed.

Oh yea, and they acknowledged that they are also not necessarily exactly on schedule as far as the Lafayette renovation itself is concerned, and they have no contingency in place as to what to do with 700-800 students in the not impossible event that come mid-August, the actual Lafayette building is not ready to accommodate all the classes.   :shock: [/quote]

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