Montgomery County State Delegation Moves To Exempt Schools From City APFO
Nov 8, 2010 7:00 - 7 Comments
It appears that, just one day after the election, the Montgomery County state delegation has submitted a bill sure to raise hackles here in Our Fair City of Rockville.
College Garden Elementary School Portable Classrooms
The bill, sponsored by Senator Rich Madaleno but listed as being authored by the full County delegation, would make Montgomery County the only jurisdiction with authority to issue permits and enforce codes when it comes to building or remodeling school buildings, including the placement of so-called “portables,” or temporary classrooms.
Follow the progress of this bill here and read its full text here (pdf).
The Parents Coalition of Montgomery County reports that this bill and another bill (an also-sure-to-be-controversial bill allowing MCPS to charge bus fees) were announced in a November 3 email in an email from Sara Hartman on behalf of the delegation.
The bill appears aimed directly at the City of Rockville, as the City recently got into a dispute with the District over the placement of two new “portables” at College Gardens Elementary School. The Planning Commission had denied the District’s application because the portables did not comply with the City’s Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance. The District went ahead and began using the modular units anyway. It is within the rights of the district to do so (just as the State is not obligated by law to follow Rockville zoning requirements). However, the move has created some consternation, especially after a strongly worded letter to the City by superintendent Jerry Weast that has some Councilmembers and the Mayor a little cranky.
According to the annotations of the bill, it appears that it was in the works at least as early as October 27. (The same day MCPS announced it would look at building a new elementary school.) However, it apparently was not announced generally until the day after the election.
There is a hearing scheduled on this bill on December 6 in the County Council Office Building right here in town.
the planning commission is convening a commitee to study the APFO. the city sent a news release about it on friday and is accepting applicants until nov. 15. for whatever reason this is not featured on the city website or its facebook page nor has it been circulated by WECA.
http://www.rockvillemd.gov/news/2010/11-November/11-05-10.html
this would be an ideal subj to be reviewed.
Brad,
As I am sure you are well aware, there is not just one state delegation representing Montgomery County, so to say “the” delegation is misleading. I’m curious what the District 17 delegation has to say about this bill.
Also, the correct term is “learning cottages” not portables.
Matthew
Yes, I do know there a numerous Montgomery County delegations! I am eager to hear what OUR delegation, District 17, has to say.
And I stand by “Portables,” though I prefer the term “shack.” I can’t bring myself to type the Orwellian “learning cottages.”
The term is classroom trailer. They are trailers and they are being used as classrooms.
They are not meant to be used for more than a few years. However, MCPS uses them for decades. Old ones are moved around. MCPS uses them until chairs fall through the floor and the wood is covered in black mold.
You can inspect your portables and insist that they are in good shape. My child is in one this year and his and those of the rest of his grade are in great shape-and they are not new. For help inspecting your school’s portables and getting help for problems, go to this document from MCCPTA:
http://www.mccpta.com/safety_dir/Portable_look_forsv2.pdf
and this from MCPS:
http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/iaq/index.shtm
which includes complaint forms for parents and current contact information.
Too much fuss is being made about the temporary classrooms MCPS uses to manage the overcrowding school problem. Even with all the justifications to expand or build a new school; relocate and transport kids to another school, or change the school boundaries, progress is slow especially with lack of funds. All schools’ requirements need to be carefully addresses without emotion.
Last night many people spoke to the MCPS Board some without children in the school system. Priority should be given to the parents who currently have children in the schools. I believe if you gave the parents a choice of sending their children to another school they would prefer staying at their school in a temporary classroom, especially if there is a special program in that school.
Listening to all the testimonies for all the Montgomery County schools gave me an even more appreciation what the problems are. I remember the many years of parents fighting hard for Richard Montgomery High School. It took a long long time before it got the attention it needed to keep it from being closed. It is unfortunate that schedules can’t be accelerated but there are constantly new requirement and beauacracy does not operate fast.
I applaud all the hard work of the clusters in organizing their parents to speak to the MCPS Board, but I caution everyone to keep the emotion out of the equation and realize that a schedule must be made and not everyone can be first.
Although it was nice to have the City of Rockville Mayor and Council support the Rockville schools, they must also realize it is the MCPS who has final jurisdiction of running all the county schools. Superintendent Dr. Jerry Weast made a compelling statement about our county generating more tax revenue than what we get back. It is Annapolis that we need to lobby. Because of smart growth and all the development our county should be getting more school funds.
Other jurisdictions require less funds to edcuate each student. I venture to say those areas have different development requirements and don’t have an Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance such as was passed in Rockville. Before the next City of Rockville APFO is written, I hope both County and City gets the jurisdiction issue clear and that the City of Rockville and Montgomery County APFO are in better agreement. The Rockville APFO has been flawed for too long.
I do know that I posted this comment on another RC post.
The idea of a schedule is an interesting one.
MCPS doesn’t have one.
Superintendent Weast does what he wants, when he wants. How did Takoma Park ES jump to the top of the addition list?
How about Carderock ES this year - suddenly an addition. No one even knew the addition was needed. But Superintendent Weast decided to put an addition on the school, move a program and presto they went to the top of the “list.”
Don’t be fooled by thinking there is some “plan”. The only plan in MCPS is that Superintendent Weast calls the shots.
It isn’t “too much fuss” when students and teachers are sick from spending their days in outside classrooms. It isn’t “too much fuss” when the temporary structures leak, fall apart and grow mold. And it isn’t “too much fuss” when students are outside all day without supervision as they walk to the main building. We have already had one student abducted while making the walk to the main building from the classroom trailer, is that really a good plan? And it isn’t “too much fuss” when building services staff can’t open a school building on a snow day until they have cleared all of the paths to the classroom trailers by hand. It takes a lot of man/woman power to keep the paths to outside classroom trailers clear in bad weather.
And let’s go back to the sniper crisis. Do you think that students were all moved into the main school buildings during that month? They weren’t. Many were left outside in classroom trailers while the doors to the main building were locked. The students in the bricks and mortar buildings were deemed more important that those left outside to fend for themselves.
If classroom trailers are such a great alternative then let’s move all of the MCPS staff at 850 Hungerford Drive into trailers in the parking lot and put students back in that school building. (850 Hungerford Dr. is a former high school.) Staff should be perfectly fine in the trailers for years, right?