Wheaton-Edison High School Plans Revealed

This article has been corrected to clarify the next steps in the modernization project.

In it’s eighth meeting in three months, representatives from Montgomery County Public Schools's facilities management department and consultants on the project, Grimm and Parker Architects, presented the two options for modernization of and  that will be presented to the Board of Education.

In March, the Board requested the feasibilty study for the two schools' modernization study both one-building and two-building options (Wheaton and Edison are currently two schools in one building), after intense debate over Superintendent Jerry Weast's .

"We've been really firm that we want to see two buildings because we think that is best for the future of Edison and Wheaton,” said Theresa Defino, whose son attends Edison.

The two-building option features a baseball field dividing the two schools, with Edison and Wheaton switching their current positions. Grimm and Parker believe there will be a possibility to add a tennis courts with a parking garage underneath for cars used by Edison’s automotive program. According to Melanie Hennigan, the principal architect for the project, the football field would be rotated 90 degrees from its current position. 

There's no holding school for students to move to during construction, so the new schools must be built while keeping at least part of the existing building intact. Once Wheaton students move into the new school, the former Wheaton would be torn down and Edison would be built.

The one-building option is based on initial conversations with the Parks system that MCPS , as long as they replace the field somewhere else on the site.

Grimm and Parker went back to the figurative drawing board after members of the committee told them that the initial sketch did not differentiate the two schools enough. This new variation connects the schools at a wellness center and creates a seperate profile for each school driving east on Dalewood Drive.

According to Steve Parker, also of Grimm and Parker, about 90 percent of Wheaton and 95 percent of Edison could be completed with the old school intact. However, Wheaton will be without a gym for one year.

Both plans would take between five to seven years. The difference in costs between the two are still to be determined, however, Parker said different phases in the construction would make up the bulk of the cost difference.

The consensus in meetings so far has been toward two buildings. In a previous meeting, the attendees voted in a mock poll 25 to 1 in favor of two buildings.

The new superintendent, Dr. Joshua Starr, will issue an action sheet on the modernization project, to be voted on by the Board of Education in either August or September.

"In essence it's a recommendation, and the board will act on that," said Debbie Szyfer, a staff member in the Division of Long-Range Planning who has attended the meetings. She added that the Board will be able to amend the sheet if they do not agree with Dr. Starr's recommendation, and members of the public will be able to comment before the vote is taken.