Imagine a 1,200 seat auditorium, 10,400 square feet of public school space left to rot.
That's exactly what happened in Montgomery County in 1999, the year that Blair High School moved to its new location in Silver Spring and Jerry Weast became MCPS' Superintendent. The old Blair High School was converted into two schools, but the 1,200 seat old Blair High School auditorium was shuttered and left to deteriorate.
Superintendent Jerry Weast and 10 years of Board of Education members have refused to make use of the space. The cost? Originally it would have been closer to $1 million but now after years of neglect it would cost about the same as
two artificial turf football fields.
It's easy to see what is a priority to Superintendent Weast and the Board of Education. You can read the
2006 Feasibility Report on the space, and take a look at the pictures from the report.
Remember that artificial turf is such a high priority to Superintendent Weast that MCPS is taking out a
TEN YEAR LEASE to pay for the $1.2 million plastic grass at Walter Johnson High School.
But a 1,200 seat school auditorium for students? Not so much of a priority.
Here is today's update from the Gazette.
Gazette, Curtain Closing on Old Blair Auditorium Project
Believe it or not, the auditorium has noticeably deteriorated since these pictures were taken in 2006!
ReplyDeleteOver the past 11 years, the community has worked very hard to correct the county's mistake, contributing over $60,000 in personal funds and countless hours of volunteer service.
Our District 20 delegation in the state legislature (Senator Jamie Raskin, Delegate Shelia Hixson, Delegate Tom Hucker, and Delegate Heather Mizeur) and our local County Councilmember Valerie Ervin have been enthusiastic.
Last year, the County Council funded an architect's feasibility study. We thought the county was on the right path. Sadly, in announcing his new capital budget, County Executive Ike Leggett was not with us. Despite his pre-election promises, and despite the large growth in this year's capital budget, especially for schools, the renovation was excluded. Previous state funding is now at risk.
We simply do not know what Ike Leggett's plan is. But we do know that the building will not repair itself and the deterioration will eventually affect the adjacent schools. And, of course, we cannot currently use this space.
If you would like to ask Mr. Leggett exactly what his plan is, you can call him at 240-777-2500 or send him e-mail at ocemail@montgomerycountymd.gov
Stuart Moore
Old Blair Auditorium Project
http://www.oldblairauditorium.org/
To: Ike Leggett , county.council@montgomerycountymd.gov, boe@mcpsmd.org
ReplyDeletePlastic fields versus Arts venue? MCPS and County executive Leggett go with plastic.
MCPS wants to put plastic (aka artificial turf) fields at every high school - 24 in all. The Blair Auditorium could have been renovated initially for the cost of Just ONE of these fields. But that won't be the end of it - EACH of those fields will need to be replaced at between half a million and a million dollars EVERY 5 to 10 years or sooner if much used and poorly maintained (as is proposed). WHAT IS THE RUSH? A grass field can always be converted to plastic but not the other way around (indeed at WJHS they purposely installed grass with irrigation, then ripped it out in the same season to install a plastic rug).
A problem with priorities?!! Not a cent for a wonderful arts resource for the community that would return the investment many times over. Not for lack of money though since no expense is spared for plastic/tire crumb fields which will keep gobbling millions of dollars forever as more are installed, degrade and need to be replaced over and over and over......
State of the art bermuda grass fields would cost a fraction and be durable practically forever- freeing up funds for worthy projects.
How can you justify committing the county to such obscene costs for plastic fields into perpetuity while claiming there is no money for truly needed and beneficial projects?
Best regards,
Kathy Michels