April 19, 2013 (Amended May 1, 2013)
MEMORANDUM OF CONFERENCE
PROJECT
Montgomery County Public Schools
Potomac Elementary School Feasibility Study
ARCHITECT’S PROJECT NO.
522030
DATE AND LOCATION
April 18, 2013, Potomac Elementary School Work Session #5
PRESENT
See attached sign-in sheet
DISCUSSIONS AND DECISIONS.
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the options under development:
1.
Moseley reviewed the process that has occurred in the development of all the options. There are
currently four options remaining. Options one and two are new construction, number three utilizes
renovations and additions, and the fourth investigates new construction on the Brickyard site.
Through the previous meetings, option one was identified as the preferred option. Each of the options
on the existing site have been developed with two site plans, one showing a single entrance in the
location of the existing and the second with two entrances off of River Road.
2.
Comments from the community regarding the building layout and site layouts:
Q: Why doesn’t the proposed second story cover the entire footprint of the building?
A: There is not enough program space to necessitate a larger second story based on the
enrollment projection and the capacity of the new building.
Q: Where is the stem service road located in relationship to the existing site?
A: A county right of way exists about mid way along the western edge of the school property. This
right of way contains a drainage channel that is now considered (by Montgomery County
Department of Environmental Protection) a stream and a buffer is required to protect it from
disturbance, rendering this portion of the site undevelopable.
Q: Where is the stream? Is it underground?
A: The stream is channeled underground and runs out at the other side of the site.
Q: Where is the right-of-way easement?
A: There is a state right-of-way easement that runs along the front of the Potomac ES site, along
River Road.
Comment: A deceleration/acceleration lane may be required for a second entrance off of River
Road.
MA-10
RE: Potomac Elementary School Feasibility Study, Montgomery County Public Schools
Page 2
04/19/13 (Amended 5/1/2013)
3. The potential use of the Brickyard site generated many comments and questions. A summary of
those questions are below.
Q: Has MCPS ever looked at an alternate site during the feasibility study process for a school that
was up for modernization?
A: Yes. For example, Fairland Elementary School was located on Old Columbia Pike. It was
moved into a neighborhood and the students remained in the old building until the new building
was complete. Then the old building became the Fairland Holding Center.
Q: MCPS is not doing due diligence since it is not doing a traffic study now
A: MCPS does not normally do a traffic study this early in the process, during the feasibility study
process. The funding has not yet been allocated.
Q: MCPS should do a traffic study now, for both the Potomac site and the Brickyard site.
A: MCPS will look into assesses the traffic conditions.
Q: What is the proposed use for the existing site?
A: At this time MCPS does not have plans for the existing Potomac ES site. MCPS does not plan
to sell the property.
Q: What is the proposed use for the green area of the Brickyard site?
A: MCPS does not have plans for the remainder of the Brickyard site. The Brickyard site is 20
acres in size as compared to the current 9.6 acre site. There would be a considerable amount of
green space preserved if the Brickyard site were used.
Q: What are the steps of the feasibility study process?
A: A series of meetings are held with the community to develop options for the building and the
site. At the culmination of these meetings, a brochure is prepared that documents the options
developed and the cost associated with each. This information is utilized during the CIP process
to plan for the allocation of funding for the design and construction of the school. This fall is the
“on-year” of the CIP and the superintendent will be recommending funding for design and
construction of the Potomac ES modernization. In addition, the superintendent will recommend
which site should be used.
Q: Will there be a cost-benefit analysis done for both sites?
A: Yes
Q: Would Brickyard Road be widened?
A: This question cannot be answered until a traffic study has been completed.
Q: When does the superintendent make his recommendation on whether the Potomac ES
modernization would happen on the Potomac site or the Brickyard site?
A: The recommendation will be released in late October 2013. The Board of Education will
review the recommendation, conduct public hearings, and take action in November 2013. Early
in 2014 the county executive will make his recommendation on CIP projects, and in late spring
the County Council will take action on CIP funding.
Q: Will the Superintendent meet with the community prior to making his recommendation?
A: Concerned community members are encouraged to attend these meetings to voice concerns
or to write letters, and MCPS will include this feedback in the meeting notes and pros and cons
for the building options.
RE: Potomac Elementary School Feasibility Study, Montgomery County Public Schools
Page 3
04/19/13 (Amended 5/1/2013)
Q: Will new infrastructure, such as water and sewer, be needed for the school at the Brickyard
site?
A: MCPS will investigate.
Q: Will an urban planner look at the impacts to the community?
A: Yes, both Bruce Crispell, director, Division of Long range planning and Julie Morris, planner,
Division of Long range planning have an urban planning background and will continue to be
involved in this project.
Q: Did MCPS send out notices to the adjacent neighbors, and if so, when? Neighbors on Gary
Road and behind the site did not receive anything.
A: Yes. MCPS will be resending notices shortly. MCPS will use the Regional Services Center list
and SDAT database in addition to the Park and Planning listing.
Q: Only one out of ten civic associations was notified.
A: MCPS will now use the Regional Services Center list in instead of the M-NCPPC list.
Q: Please clarify where the eastern boundary of the service area is. Is it Seven Locks?
A: A map of the school service area is available at
http://gis.mcpsmd.org/ServiceAreaMaps.shtml.
Q: Concern was expressed about the Brickyard location being all of the way at the edge of the
service area.
A: MCPS acknowledges this concern.
Q: Why wasn’t a sign posted at Brickyard?
A: Typically the feasibility signs are posted in front of the elementary school but MCPS will ask
that an additional sign be posted at the Brickyard site.
Q: Carderock Springs families are within walking distance of the Brickyard site, but would not be
able to go there.
A: MCPS acknowledges this concern.
Q: There are speeding and traffic issues along Brickyard Road. Speed bumps and circles were
installed. What will happen to Brickyard Road if Potomac ES moves to that site?
A: MCPS will need to do a traffic study of the Brickyard site.
Q: The Brickyard site is the most southeasterly site and involves driving through one of the five
busiest intersections in the county, Falls Road and River Road, to get there. This is a concern
that will be shared by everyone who would need to drive to the site. There are many ways to
approach Potomac ES and many people do not need to drive through that intersection.
A: MCPS acknowledges this concern.
Q: Families moved specifically to be near the Potomac ES site.
A: MCPS acknowledges this concern.
Q: How would the Potomac ES students benefit from their school being moved to the Brickyard
site?
RE: Potomac Elementary School Feasibility Study, Montgomery County Public Schools
Page 4
04/19/13 (Amended 5/1/2013)
A: The Brickyard site would have a larger walk area than the Potomac ES site. It is located within
a community and not along a busy state road. Potomac ES would not need to move to a holding
center and could stay at Potomac ES until the new building is completed.
Q: If the school is built at the Brickyard site, would the kids stay at Potomac until the new site is
complete?
A: Yes.
Q: Why can’t we find out whether we can get a second entrance off of River Road at the existing
site before the feasibility study wraps up?
A: The state Department of Transportation wants more detailed plans to make a decision about a
second entrance off of River Road, MD 190. More detailed site plans had not been developed in
the early stages of the feasibility study. MCPS will ask the DOT in the near future.
Q: Information about this feasibility study ought to be better disseminated to the greater
community.
A: MCPS will take names and addresses of any adjacent neighbors who did not receive
notification and make sure those notifications are sent, and MCPS will work on better ways to
inform the wider Potomac community and will add another meeting if needed.
Q: Who is in charge of scheduling the feasibility study meetings? Can we postpone the
recommendation and have more meetings?
A: MCPS will decide at the next meeting whether there ought to be an additional meeting held.
Q: When will these questions be answered, and where can the community go to see the
responses?
A: The meeting notes and presentations will be available via the school website and the MCPS
Division of Construction website, available at
http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/construction/projects/pes.shtm.
We will also respond to these questions at the next meeting on April 30.
Q: There is a rumor that the Potomac ES site would be used for low income housing.
A: MCPS responded that this rumor is untrue.
Q: The existing Potomac ES site is perfect because of its location proximate to Potomac Villages’
social and political life. It is near the public library, shops, etc. Parents can combine trips to pick
up students from school and run errands.
A: MCPS acknowledges this as a benefit of the existing site.
Q: The Brickyard site would create unnecessary and longer trips.
A: MCPS acknowledges that the Brickyard site is not as centrally located within the service area
as the current Potomac ES site.
Q: The community feels that it will depend on what the Potomac site would be used for, in order
to make an informed decision about which site is best for Potomac ES.
A: MCPS acknowledges that this is of concern.
Q: Potomac ES has unsuccessfully tried to get a traffic signal at the school entrance for many
years.
A: It is considered unlikely that a traffic signal will be approved in the future. This is due to the
proximity of other the signal at River Road and Falls Road,
RE: Potomac Elementary School Feasibility Study, Montgomery County Public Schools
Page 5
04/19/13 (Amended 5/1/2013)
Q: There is concern that politics would delay the modernization.
A: MCPS needs to keep the Potomac modernization on schedule, except due to possible
budgetary delays, in order to keep the modernizations of other elementary schools on schedule. It
is in our collective best interest to keep this project on schedule. There is no anticipated delay by
exploring the Brickyard site during this feasibility study stage.
Q: Families purchased homes and moved to be close to the Potomac ES site so that their
children could benefit from the Chinese Immersion program.
A: MCPS acknowledges this concern.
Q: There are fears that if the school did move, that it would be more susceptible to future
boundary redistricting.
A: There is no future boundary redistricting under consideration.
Q: The Brickyard site would result in a longer commute for most Potomac ES bus and car riders,
due to its location at the eastern edge of the service area.
A: MCPS acknowledges this concern.
Q: How long is the commute from Potomac ES to the Radnor Holding Center? What will the bus
routes be? What time will students be picked up and dropped off?
A: The distance from door to door is 6.8 miles and the estimated commute would be 16 minutes,
according to Google maps. The MCPS Department of Transportation would determine bus
routes when and if the Brickyard site is chosen for the modernization.
Q: There are concerns about safety, particularly with the relocatable classrooms at Potomac ES.
A: MCPS acknowledges this as a countywide concern, with a significant number of relocatable
classrooms, particularly at the elementary school level. With the enrollment growth in the county,
MCPS is in the process of catching up to provide the needed capacity in our facilities. The future
Potomac ES will be built with additional capacity well over that of the current facility and will
include a future planned addition.
Q: IS MCPS forward-funding this project?
A: Yes.
Q: Would using the Brickyard site mean a delay in the project completion date because of the
need to construct on a new site?
A: No delay is anticipated.
4. Utilizing a new site will not require the current Potomac Elementary school to move to the holding
school in Bethesda during construction.
5. It was mentioned by a community member that opposition to Potomac Elementary improvements has
occurred many times and it is the children who are suffering from the school not being allowed to be
improved.
6. The Brickyard site is a designated school site.
7. Mr. Shuman questioned the 27 community participants “who is in favor of moving the
(Potomac Elementary) school to the Brickyard Road site?”. Only one person responded in
favor of the Brickyard Road site (Amended May 1, 2013).
RE: Potomac Elementary School Feasibility Study, Montgomery County Public Schools
Page 6
04/19/13 (Amended 5/1/2013)
The above information is the writer’s recollection of the discussions and decisions at the meeting. Should
there be any additions or corrections, please notify the writer within two weeks of distribution for
correction.
NOTES BY:
REVIEWED BY:
Eric Garcia
Project Manager
James Henderson
Vice President
Montgomery County Public Schools
POTOMAC ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL MODERNIZATION
STUDY
WORK SESSION #5 – APRIL 18, 2013
Jim Henderson, AIA, LEED BD+C
Managing Principal
Eric Garcia, LEED BD+C
Project Manager
Meeting Schedule
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Work Session #1 – February 6, 6:30pm
Work Session #2 – February 21, 3:45pm
Work Session #3 – March 7, 7:00 pm
Work Session #4 – March 19, 3:45pm
Work Session #5 – April 18, 7:00pm
Work Session #6 – April 30, 7:00 pm
PTA Presentation – May 15, 7:00 pm
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Work Session #1 – Idea Mining
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Work Session #2
1
2
4
3
5
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Work Session #3
1.1
2.1
3.1
5.1
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Work Session #4 (Options re-numbered)
1
2
3
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Existing Site Plan – River Road Site
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 1 – Site Plan – Two Entrances
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 1 – Site Plan – One Entrance
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 1 – Lower Floor Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 1 – Upper Floor Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 2 – Site Plan – Two Entrances
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 2 – Site Plan – One Entrance
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 2 – Lower Floor Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 2– Upper Floor Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 3 – Site Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 3 – Lower Floor Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 3 – Upper Floor Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Existing Site Plan – Brickyard Road Site
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 4 – Site Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 4 – Lower Floor Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Option 4 – Upper Floor Plan
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
Meeting Schedule
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Work Session #1 – February 6, 6:30pm
Work Session #2 – February 21, 3:45pm
Work Session #3 – March 7, 7:00 pm
Work Session #4 – March 19, 3:45pm
Work Session #5 – April 18, 7:00pm
Work Session #6 – April 30, 7:00 pm
PTA Presentation – May 15, 7:00 pm
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study
www.moseleyprojects.com
Potomac Elementary School Modernization Study