MCPS fails to address G87 mold concerns

 Story by Gavin Tribble of the Walter Johnson Pitch newspaper reprinted in The Sentinel. Full story here.

After every class period when students rush through the hallways, ceramics teacher Kimberly Venesky wipes water off her cabinets in G87. The water coats her cabinets, running down the front, settling atop cabinet doors and pooling on the floor.

“Just people washing their hands and splashing or whatever, water is running down the stainless steel [countertop] and down towards the front,” Venesky said. “It’s sitting on top of the [cabinet] door, so when you open the door water is falling onto the floor.”

This has caused the cabinets, which are new, having to be replaced over the summer, to start deteriorating. Parts of the cabinet have begun to buckle under repeated contact with water and the door has started to split apart.

These cabinets have had issues long before they were replaced, having leaked for several years until, finally on March 13, 2024, a Work Order Request was filed to replace the counters. A day later, plumbers reported suspected mold, requesting an Indoor Air Quality investigation in a second work Order Request.

The Indoor Air Quality investigation was completed on March 18, 2024, finding a decayed root structure on a piece of rubble in the cabinet. It is also unclear if mold was properly checked for, as the cabinets were not removed, so the wall behind was not assessed, where Venesky argues the mold was located.

While the Indoor Air Quality investigation was complete, the cabinets were not replaced.

Eventually on June 18, over a year after the request was first filed, new cabinets were installed. However, it was unclear what happened when they put the new counters in.

“I don’t know how they addressed the mold, whether or not they just put the cabinets on top of it, wiped it down, whether it’s actually up to code, and that’s my concern right now, that it’s just going to come back,” Venesky said.

Message to B-CC & WJ Communities

Sent: Saturday, January 18, 2020
Subject: Message to B-CC & WJ Communities

 

Dear Walter Johnson High School and Bethesda-Chevy Chase Community Members,

We wanted to alert our communities that after the basketball game at B-CC there were several altercations among the students. Both schools had administrators, security and police present. Despite these measures, altercations still broke out on and off campus, eventually resulting in three arrests. We believe these incidents were a continuation of vandalism on both campuses earlier in the week. Apparently, B-CC students spray painted the WJ shed that the seniors paint as a tradition going into their senior year. In retaliation, apparently WJ students spray painted the brick building and the school’s electronic sign at B-CC. These acts resulted in thousands of dollars of damage to the schools and a full police investigation. These acts are all completely unacceptable and both schools will work collaboratively to determine the facts and administer appropriate consequences. At any school event safety is our top concern and our expectation is always that students will follow all school rules and laws in order to assure they are able to enjoy school events with their peers. Please speak to your children about the importance of school rules and their key role in helping all school events be fun, safe and enjoyable activities.

Sincerely,
Shelton Mooney
Acting Principal, Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School

Jennifer Baker
Principal, Walter Johnson High School

More development in WJ Cluster

The Planning Board, which is appointed by the County Council, is starting another Master Plan along the Pike Grovesnor-Strathmore. Staff is introducing the Scope of Work at the Planning Board today.

From the Scope of Work:
"The Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro Area Minor Master Plan Amendment will address approximately 105 acres of land located on the east side of Rockville Pike (MD 355), from Rock Creek Park to the south, to Strathmore Avenue to the north."

Community Facilities The 2016 Subdivision Staging Policy indicates that the Walter Johnson cluster is close to a moratorium for all school levels.  Additional residential development and the pace of its delivery will affect the Walter Johnson cluster, as well as the adjacent Downcounty Consortium secondary schools.  This planning process will assess the impact to the cluster from proposed residential development in the minor master plan area, given anticipated residential development elsewhere in the cluster.

According to the Scope of Work, a meeting was held on July 7, which included Walter Johnson cluster representatives, but that information never appeared in the WJHS listservs.

Schedule:

September 15, 2016: Scope of Work to the Planning Board 

January 2017: Working Draft to Planning Board 

February 2017: Planning Board Public Hearing

March - April 2017: Planning Board Worksessions

May 2017: Planning Board Draft Approved and Transmitted to County Council and County Executive

http://www.montgomeryplanningboard.org/agenda/2016/documents/GrosvenorScope-Final_000.pdf

Rock Spring and White Flint II Master Plan Meeting Sept 17

This is a reminder about the September 17 meeting at WJHS for the Rock Spring and White Flint 2 master plan efforts.  The Planning Department staff and staff from MCPS will spend the first part of the meeting describing how their agencies address schools in the planning process.  They will then take comments for thirty minutes before transitioning to smaller table discussions as show below:

 

I.             Welcome and Introductions (Casey Anderson, Roger Berliner)- 10 minutes

II.           Purpose of Tonight’s Meeting (Gwen Wright, Glenn Kreger)-5 minutes

III.          Comprehensive (Master) Planning (Nkosi Yearwood)- 10 minutes

IV.          School Facility Planning (Bruce Crispell)- 20 minutes

V.           APFO and the Regulatory Environment (Pam Dunn)- 15 minutes

VI.          Comment Period-30 minutes

VII.         Individual Conversations with Staff @ 4 tables- 30 minutes

∙             Rock Spring (Don Zeigler, Nancy Sturgeon)

∙             White Flint 2 (Nkosi Yearwood, Andrea Gilles)

∙             MCPS (Bruce Crispell)

∙             APFO/Regulatory (Pam Dunn)

VIII.        Wrap-Up/Next Steps (Glenn Kreger)- 5 minutes

 

The Planning staff is well aware of how important this issue is to the community.  That’s why we have begun the schools discussion early in the Rock Spring and White Flint 2 master plan efforts. Some in the community are already familiar with the process and have been actively engaged.  Other community members are not, however, and it is important for everyone to have a basic understanding of the process in order to provide effective input.  We hope that all attendees will be patient while we try to explain the process.

 

 

Andrea Gilles

Area 2 Planning Division

Montgomery County Planning Department

Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

8787 Georgia Avenue │Silver Spring, MD 20910

Direct: 301.495.4541│Web: www.montgomeryplanning.org