DCPS and DGS will hold their next community meeting on the renovation on Thursday, March 24 at 7 pm in the gym/cafeteria “bubble” at Lafayette Elementary, 5701 Broad Branch Rd NW. They will present the latest plans at that time and will take questions and comments from the community about the plans and the status of the project. We encourage Murch families, neighbors, and community members to attend.

Please note the location change from our initial announcement. Meeting at Lafayette will give parents an opportunity to see the swing space at Lafayette and avoid a conflict with the Murch Blood Drive. The HSA still plans to provide babysitting during the event, at Lafayette. Babysitting is for Murch students only and we ask that you sign up in advance.

At a School Improvement Team (SIT) meeting this week, the architects and project managers for the Murch modernization project presented their third attempt to redesign the building to reduce the cost of construction. Like the earlier redesigns, this latest design has fallen far short of solving the problems that the community hoped to fix with the modernization. The newest version of the design includes:

• a cafeteria in the new wing
• the media center in the current gym/multi-purpose room
• an above-ground parking lot with 17 spaces off Reno Road
• the gym on a mid-level over the Reno Road parking lot
• a delivery entrance off Reno Road with a turn-around area to be designed for trucks
• a parking lot at the corner of Davenport and 36th Streets, with an entrance off Davenport Street.

DCPS and DGS proposed that the parking lot at the corner of Davenport and 36th Street could be replaced with a PreK/K playground and outdoor space if they receive approval from zoning for fewer parking spaces and/or parking for teachers on streets around the school.

The drawings below show the currently proposed layouts, including a rendering of what the Reno Road entrance might look like. The SIT has asked for clarification and more detailed drawings to show the slope, proposed fencing and other details at that location so that the community can better understand how the entrance would look and operate.

 

 

Can’t keep the various redesigns straight? See a comparison here.

In July 2015, the SIT and the Murch community gave their support to a design plan for modernizing and expanding Murch. This design was also given preliminary approval by the Historic Preservation Review Board, the federal Commission of Fine Arts, and the National Capital Planning Commission. That original design, which the community believes best meets the needs of the school, can be seen here.

In February 2016, DCPS announced that the cost of swing space plus building the design concept that the community agreed to seven months before would be $20 million over the current project budget. The city was determined to”value engineer” more than 10% of the value of the project out of the design by taking out any spaces that were to have gone underground (the cafeteria and the parking). The architects and project managers have made three attempts to redesign the building within the cost limit. Each redesign has fallen far short of solving the problems that the community hoped to fix with the modernization.

The most current redesign of the plans for Murch was presented to the SIT on March 14, 2016. This version of the design includes:

• a cafeteria in the new wing
• the media center in the current gym/multi-purpose room
• an above-ground parking lot with 17-19 spaces off Reno Road
• the gym on a mid-level over the Reno Road parking lot
• a delivery entrance off Reno Road with a turn-around area to be designed for trucks
• a parking lot at the corner of Davenport and 36th Streets, with an entrance off Davenport Street.

DCPS and DGS proposed that the parking lot at the corner of Davenport and 36th Street could be replaced with a PreK/K playground and outdoor space if they receive approval from zoning for fewer parking spaces and/or parking for teachers on streets around the school.

The drawings below show the currently proposed layouts, including a rendering of what the Reno Road entrance might look like. The SIT has asked for clarification and more detailed drawings to show the slope, proposed fencing and other details at that location so that the community can better understand how the entrance would look and operate.

 

 

Prior attempts to redesign the space can be found here (February 24) and here (February 11).

DCPS has asked Principal Cebrzynski to share the attached letter from Dr. Nathaniel Beers, Chief Operating Officer of DCPS.

The Murch School Improvement Team (SIT) and HSA and outraged by the way that he portrays the cuts to the project in this letter. In the letter he minimizes the effects of the cuts on our children. Here is what Dr. Beers is not telling you in this letter:

• In 2014, DCPS and DGS conducted a feasibility study at Murch to develop a design and a budget to build a school that would meet the needs of our students and the increased population they expect to have here. That study concluded that the only way to have a school of this size in this location, is to put substantial elements of the building underground.
• The feasibility study also showed that the project was more expensive than its budget at that time. The SIT was assured by city officials and the mayor that $68 million would be enough to go underground and build what was needed for a school this large. The budget was increased to $68 million.
• An architect came up with a plan based on that budget and the educational specifications that DCPS developed in consultation with the school and the SIT. The architect worked with the Murch community, DCPS, the National Park Service, Historic Preservation, and the federal Commission of Fine Arts, and the National Capital Planning Commission to find a balance that would work for all involved while still meeting the educational needs of our kids. The final design was budget conscious and narrowly drawn to the many unique restrictions on the project.
• DCPS and DGS then hired a builder without a bid on the proposed design.
• DCPS selected swing space for Murch that cost significantly more than was budgeted and significantly more than at least one other available option.
• After being hired, the builder told DCPS that they cannot meet the budget.
• The $10 million that has been added to the budget is primarily to cover swing space costs.
• DCPS’s solution to deal with the remaining shortfall is to hastily redesign the building. Their attempts to redesign the building do not meet the programmatic needs of our children in the following ways not mentioned in the attached letter from Dr. Beers:
  • The significantly reduced outdoor play and learning space remaining after the compromises made in the first design will be further reduced to make room for two surface parking lots. The cuts eliminate the PreK playground, the school garden and outdoor classroom. The footprint of the building will be larger.
  • Classroom and collaboration space sizes have been reduced.
  • The cafeteria size has been reduced, so that there will need to be four separate seatings in order to accommodate the entire school. PreK and K students, however, will have to eat in their classrooms, because the early-childhood common room has been cut.
  • There will be no space in the school large enough for a whole school assembly or meeting because the gym is 1000 square feet smaller than what DCPS said is required for a school our size.
  • The media center (library/computer lab) will be smaller and located in the middle of the PreK and K spaces, potentially disrupting the younger students as all grades come and go from that space.
  • The loading dock has been moved from 36^th Street to Reno Road which means either trucks will have to back out onto the road throughout the day or the educational space will have to shrink to allow a turn around area. Trucks coming in and out of that location will cause increased traffic delays and more frustrated drivers, putting pedestrians at risk.
  • There is also a serious safety concern with trucks coming in and out of the Reno Road entrance because Reno Road is the main entry point to the playground for students coming from or going to the south and west of the school.

Attached are the latest drawings and renderings from DCPS showing the current redesign and the traffic study on which they are relying. These designs are undergoing constant changes as DCPS and DGS attempt to find a way to include the necessary components of the building without putting any elements underground and still get the approval of the many agencies and authorities that are required to review the project.

At this point, the SIT and the HSA do not share DCPS’s confidence that they can deliver “a world-class building” — or even an adequate one — by redesigning the building in a few short months to fit a substantially under-estimated budget. Members of the HSA and the SIT are continuing to lobby for the project to be fully funded at $88 million. We have been meeting with city officials, including the Deputy Mayor for Education, working with members of the Council, testifying at a council hearing on DGS oversight, and working with the other groups that have oversight of the project and must give approval for the project to move forward.  We will not stop lobbying the Mayor and other city officials until the project is brought back on track, and we welcome your help in doing so.

On February 25, Murch HSA Co-President Martha McIntosh testified at the DC Council Committee on Transportation and the Environment’s Hearing on performance oversight of the Department of General Services.

Read the testimony here.

Below is the proposed redesign of the Murch modernization, as presented on February 24, 2016. Click here to see what the Reno Road entrance and raised gym might look like from street level.

 

 

 

 

Check out stories in the news about the Murch modernization:

The Washington Post, February 26, 2016

The Northwest Current, February 24, 2016

 

This week, DC Public Schools (DCPS) and the Department of General Services (DGS) presented their latest attempt to design a new Murch and outlined the costs of the project. DCPS also participated in a community meeting on February 24 to answer questions about the process and show the newest proposed design.

The shifting news about costs and budgets has been confusing, however, the bottom line is that the project is still $10 million underfunded for the design that the community saw last year. According to DCPS and DGS:

• The cost to build the school (as it was developed in schematic designs last year) and move students to UDC for two years would be $88 million.
• The current budget for the project is $78 million.
• The budget was previously $68 million. Last week, the administration approved $10 million to be added to the project to help cover some additional costs, primarily for swing space.
• The trailers at UDC will cost more than $6.5 million to install and lease for two years. There are additional costs to the swing space as well, including agreements with UDC. It was not clear what the total cost of swing space will be as some of these costs are not yet public.
• DCPS and DGS are still under direction to redesign the project to fit the current $78 million budget. DCPS has told the administration that they believe they can build to at least 90% of the specifications for that cost.

It is clear that city leaders are attempting to keep costs for the project at the same level as budgeted for Lafayette Elementary. (The Lafayette project is currently budgeted at $78.65 million.) What needs to be made clear is that the cost of the Murch project is higher for reasons outside of the control of the community or the design team. Specifically:

• The portion of the site upon which the school can be build is compact.
• There are stricter limits on the Murch project from historic preservation and federal commissions than on many other schools.
• The building is particularly old and has never seen upgrades, so structural components need more work.
• The total square footage of the building needs to be doubled from the existing structure.

The HSA and the SIT are continuing to work with Mayor Bowser and her administration to try to find a solution. This week, we have:

• Spoken directly to the Mayor about our concerns.
• Testified before the DC Council regarding DGS.
• Spoken directly to Deputy Mayor for Education Jennifer Niles and DGS Director Christopher Weaver to discuss concerns and possible solutions.
• Spoken to Councilmember Mary Cheh about the project and possible solutions to the funding concerns. (You can read The Northwest Current for more on Councilmember Cheh’s response to the current situation.)
• Met with the DC Auditor to discuss why the project will cost the city so much and whether anything can be done to bring down costs without affecting the final building.

The Mayor, the Deputy Mayor for Education and DGS Director have all indicated that they will meet with Murch to review the current plans and try to understand the concerns of the community. We will continue to press the issue so that the school and community get the building that is needed for generations to come.

What can you do to help? Please continue to reach out to the Mayor, the Deputy Mayor for Education, the Chancellor, and members of the Council to let them know that this remains a critical issue without a solution. We need our leaders to understand that the Murch community is upset with the high cost of this project, but also needs the school to be built in a way that makes sense and serves the future. The city has had more than enough time to plan this properly and we do not want a delay. But the community also cannot accept a design that is ill-conceived and inadequate.

For more information, be sure to check out:

Latest Design Proposal for Murch – February 24

Murch Modernization in the News

Also be sure to check out “Swing Space Updates,” for an ongoing list of updates and information.

On February 24, DCPS and DGS presented new proposed design for Murch. This is an attempt to cut $10 million in costs out of the project to bring it within the current budget of $78 million. The newest design would:

• Move the cafeteria to the current multi-purpose room, with a kitchen between the cafeteria and the main entryway to the building.
• Move the service entrance to Reno Road. DCPS and DGS are currently assessing how deliveries would travel from the service entrance to the kitchen and front office. Deliveries would either need to come through the main school corridor, outside the PK and Kindergarten classrooms, or outside, around the parking area and through the playground.
• Build two parking lots at ground level. One would be along Reno Road, under the gym. The other would be at the corner of 36th and Davenport Streets, next to the main entry.
• Raise the gym by 8 feet (to accommodate parking below), putting the gym at mid-level to the rest of the addition.
• Move the media center to the area by the PK and Kindergarten classrooms.
• Move the PreK and K playground to a courtyard by the PK and K classrooms. Currently, access to the playground is shown through the media center.
• Shrink the front office space and move the Special Education Classroom in the office corridor.

 

 

 

 

DCPS needs to hear from you! What: Come find out more about the renovation and ask DCPS your questions! When: 7pm, Wednesday, February 24, 2016 Where: Murch Gym (babysitting will not be provided, but kids welcome) Why: Construction on our long-awaited construction project is supposed to start in June. But suddenly DCPS says the project is underfunded and has proposed significant design changes, which the School Improvement Team and HSA oppose. What will this mean for Murch’s future? Representatives from DCPS, the Murch SIT, and HSA will discuss: What’s driving up the cost of the Murch project. Why, despite the mayor’s office allocating an additional $10 million a few days ago, DCPS insists it still can’t afford to build the school as designed. How proposed design changes would affect Murch students and staff. Details about the new swing space plan at UDC. Another way to make your voice heard: Attend one of the Mayor’s Budget Forums and raise the issue! Thursday, February 25, 6:30-8:30 pm at Roosevelt Senior High School (Sign up here to attend.) Saturday, February 27, 1-3 pm, DC Department of Employment Services (Sign up here to attend.) Monday, February 29, 6:30-8:30 pm, Greenleaf Recreation Center (Sign up here to attend)