MCPS Staff told Board of Ed. $800,000 Artificial Turf Field for City of Gaithersburg is just a "tot lot." Staff never told Board of Ed. about $800,000 Expenditure or About Payment for New Bleachers!

Back on April 16, 2020, the Parents' Coalition reported that the City of Gaithersburg had made public a Land Acquisition deal with the Montgomery County Board of Education.

The City of Gaithersburg voted on that Land Acquisition deal on April 20th.

The next day, the Montgomery County Board of Education was supposedly voting on the same deal.

But when the Board of Education was presented with this deal, they were not given the actual Land Acquisition agreement.  Instead, Board members were treated to a Power Point Presentation shown in the videos below.

The City of Gaithersburg Land Acquisition Agreement detailed how the Board of Education was agreeing to expend up to $800,000 for an artificial turf field to be built on City of Gaithersburg land and the Board of Education would be paying for new bleachers for a City baseball field.

Page 5 of the Agreement the Board of Ed. Never Saw

The Board of Education was only told that the plans for the new elementary school at the Kelley Park site included a "tot lot."  

MCPS staff did not mention that the Board of Education was expected to agree to pay up to $800,000 to cover that "tot lot" with artificial turf and MCPS staff never mentioned the bleachers at all.  

And this amid a Global Pandemic.

April 21, 2020, video of Board of Education audio meeting:  Montgomery County Board of Education discussion and vote on acquisition of land from the City of Gaithersburg.  Listen as MCPS staff describes the "tot lot" that will be next to the school, but never mentions that the Board of Education will be paying for that "tot lot" to be covered with up to $800,000 of artificial turf and never mentions that the Board of Education will also be paying for new bleachers of an unknown cost!  

Part 1:



Part 2: