Parks Department Hasn't Given Up on Rock Creek Hills
Director Mary Bradford says department will work with MCPS to find a tenable solution.
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Mary Bradford, director of Montgomery County Parks, said her department will continue to stand up for Rock Creek Hills Park, which is being considered by the school board as the site for a new middle school.
"We have two very important public goods: good schools and good parks," Bradford said. "And they should not be placed in conflict."
Bradford said her department will form a working group this fall to work with Montgomery County Public Schools on balancing the two. She said Parks is also keeping an eye on the ongoing public design meetings hosted by MCPS.
"Our message is that open space is not the same thing as vacant land, and we urge the school board to consider purchasing our properties in areas where it doesn’t take away that public open space," she said.
In April, county Planning Chairwoman Françoise Carrier sent a letter to MCPS, saying that her department would not consider the site selection of a school as reason enough to do away with park land.
However, the deed to Rock Creek Hills Park contains a reclamation clause, allowing MCPS to buy the land back if it needs to build a school, according to Bruce Crispell, director of Long-Range Planning for the schools.
That transaction is yet to take place, and Bradford said her department does not yet know how much the property would cost.
Bradford said the Parks Department has long been amenable to sharing the use of sites with MCPS, but that the proposed middle school would leave no room for that.
"This is not a matter of finding a space where it works together with the park," she said. "It would obliterate the park, and that's different from sharing the site. We want to work to find a better way."
Bradford said her department will do its best to work with MCPS and ensure that all options are considered before any park land is done away with.
"Communities love their parks," she said. "It's a third place. You have work and you have home, and parks provide that third place."
The next public meeting on the proposed school is Thursday at noon.
Tom
8:35 pm on Tuesday, July 26, 2011
We are fortunate to have a Parks Department so dedicated to the need for green space in our communities. Thank you for being that persistent voice that brings clarity to our vision so we that recognize that true quality of life requires balance and places for retreat and refection, like our parks.
The land that the BOE now seeks to reclaim is not the middle school site that existed over 30 years ago. Since then, it was divided, and over 1/3 of the property, including the separate road access to the site, was transferred for the construction of an elder care facility. The BOE consistently fails to acknowledge this history, despite the fact that its transfer deed with the Parks Department expressly describes the site as “Being a PORTION OF the Kensington Junior High School site... .” (Emphasis added.)
As for the park, it is worth noting that the Parks Department stands in good company. The same deed that transferred the land for the park also referenced Council Resolutions and an Executive Order regarding the disposition of the site. Those documents contained language safeguarding the remaining land, stating that, “Any use must give primary consideration to the conservation of the trees and other unique natural features of the site for the continuing enjoyment of the surrounding community.” Let us hope that wisdom continues to prevail in the halls of the Council and Executive office building.
Jessica
8:21 am on Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Thank you Mary Bradford for understanding what is important to Montgomery County. Schools and parks. I hope the BOE reverses it's decision and looks for a site that does not take park land away from our children and community. The BCC cluster needs this park.