Committee Picks Preferred Layout for New Middle School

The feasibility study committee for the proposed middle school on Rock Creek Hills Park voted for a preferred school design at a meeting Wednesday, choosing a layout that preserves some green space on the park and includes a courtyard.

Kensington residents, Montgomery County Public School educators and architects from both the county and Samaha Associates convened at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School to rank three layouts, from most- to least-preferred.

After about 20 minutes of discussion, the group agreed that Option 5 was the preferred layout, with Option 4 a close second. Option 6 was not the first choice of anyone in the group, and several attendees asked if it had to be included at all.

Wednesday's meeting was the last of the public sessions. Once Samaha and MCPS incorporate the agreed-upon pros and cons and ordering of the plans, they will present a preferred option to the community on Sept. 8 at in Bethesda.

The layouts only incurred minor changes since the , based on the feedback of attendees.

Samaha architect Paul Falkenbury pointed out the changes, including moving some of the external athletic areas around, amending the administrative office to allow for better monitoring of the entrances and increased storm-water runoff space in some areas.

Much of the debate focused on the building’s footprint, the safety of children walking not only on Saul Road, but within the site itself, and on how usable the outside sports fields were.

Some of the two dozen or so attendees were "voting for Queen of the pigs," as one member of the community phrased it, but said they knew they were tasked with providing students with the best educational opportunities possible, while minimizing the impact on the surrounding neighborhoods.

Kensington resident Jon Van Winkle was very vocal during the 90-minute meeting, continually expressing his apprehension over the safety of issue of children having to cross paths with buses cars in several locations.

“I am looking at these plans as an engineer, which I am, and I am very concerned about the safety issue — but my feeling is that it was received as an ‘of course,’ but not taken very seriously.”

MCPS Project Manager Dennis Cross said none of the three plans are set in stone. In a few circumstances, new solutions to some of the on-going problems — such as whether the softball and soccer fields can be used concurrently — were proposed and discussed by the two architects.