commute from Madison HS to Oakton HS

[camer]

Originally Posted by JEB77

According to the FCPS 2010-14 Capital Improvement Program, FCPS Staff proposes to make recommendations on a county-wide study in September 2009. And that would only be the start of the process; many more meetings would follow. It's impossible to imagine anything happening on a county-wide basis "in the near future." Redistrictings generally aren't very popular, and it's possible the whole thing will never really get off the ground before the next School Board elections in 2011.

Redistrictings involving only a limited number of schools take place every year or two, depending on which schools are perceived as over-crowded or under-enrolled, and when new schools are constructed. The current redistricting at the high school level under consideration does not involve either Oakton HS or Madison HS, but instead Annandale, Falls Church and Lake Braddock HS.

As others have pointed out, Oakton HS and Madison HS are very close to one another. [In fact, Fairfax HS is also close to Oakton HS.] No one starting on a blank slate would build two high schools in this part of the county so close to one another. One consequence of their proximity is that their boundaries (particularly, the Oakton HS boundaries) are redrawn more often than the boundaries for some schools. However, the general consensus seems to be that, while not required by law, students living in the Town of Vienna will always be assigned to Madison HS.

Without any real understanding as to where FCPS may end up a few years later, I'd try to stay east of Hunter Mill Road or in the Town of Vienna if I wanted to stay in the Madison district. Oakton's boundaries are so funky (a long east-west swath in the central/western part of the county) that it's hard to offer any suggestions. You can travel a short distance from Oakton HS and be in the current attendance zones for not only Oakton, but also Madison, Falls Church, Woodson and Fairfax HS.

Good luck.

Thanks again Jeb77. You are always very helpful.

[JEB77]

Originally Posted by camer

Thank you for being williing to answer questions. I appreciate your helpfulness. On the commute into DC (Georgetown Med Ctr) from Vienna Metro: I hear the metro parking lot fills up quickly. Augh. My husband would hope to leave Vienna around 6-6:15 AM. Will there be a problem with metro parking @ that hour? If not, when does the rush/congestion for parking spaces start?

Should he decide to drive in, would the commute @ 6 - 6:15 AM be 30 min or less? Could you tell me how long it would take him to drive back, say to the Madison HS area, @ 6 pm? Not.....?????!!!!!

He would also have to work some weekends. Is the metro more convenient EVEN on the weekends?

A few reactions:

1. Your husband should not have a problem finding Metro parking certainly before 6:45 AM or perhaps even later - others will know better when the parking lots in Vienna really start to fill up. [I only take Metro when I want to get in the city quite early and have never had a problem finding a spot before 6:45 AM.] Would he catch a shuttle bus in Arlington or downtown DC to get to Georgetown Medical Center? There's no Metro station in Georgetown.

2. I think the drive from the Madison HS area to Georgetown leaving at 6 - 6:15 AM would be around 30 minutes, or maybe even a bit shorter. The drive back to Madison HS area - whether leaving at 6 PM or trying to arrive at 6 PM - would surely take longer, but I couldn't say how much longer.

3. Metro is also convenient on the weekends - it's certainly easier to find parking in the Vienna lots, although the trains run less frequently. Of course, there's less traffic on the roads to DC at most times during the weekends as well, although people are sometimes surprised at how heavy the traffic into DC can be on a Saturday evening or into Virginia from DC on a Sunday afternoon. If there are sporting events downtown, that can have a big impact, too.

[michgc]

I think he'd be fine getting a parking space at the Metro at 6:00-6:15 in the morning. I'm pretty sure it doesn't fill up that early. But I'll let someone answer who takes the Metro on a regular basis. I also don't know how long driving into the city would take. I've never done that commute from here. Traffic in the afternoon is generally worse than in the morning. On the weekends, I think driving in is more convenient because the Metro trains don't run as frequently.

[terrence81]

Originally Posted by camer

Thank you for being williing to answer questions. I appreciate your helpfulness. On the commute into DC (Georgetown Med Ctr) from Vienna Metro: I hear the metro parking lot fills up quickly. Augh. My husband would hope to leave Vienna around 6-6:15 AM. Will there be a problem with metro parking @ that hour? If not, when does the rush/congestion for parking spaces start?

Should he decide to drive in, would the commute @ 6 - 6:15 AM be 30 min or less? Could you tell me how long it would take him to drive back, say to the Madison HS area, @ 6 pm? Not.....?????!!!!!

He would also have to work some weekends. Is the metro more convenient EVEN on the weekends?

From my understanding the parking lot should still have spaces at 6 but don't quote me. During the height of rush hour his commute would be about an hour. The earlier he starts his commute the better. Please keep in mind that during rush hour I-66 turns into carpool only. So he'd have to take the overcrowded route 50 into the city. At 6 it shouldn't be too bad. I would be surprised if it was under 30 minutes.

As far as being more convenient? Well that's really in the eye of the beholder. For me the answer would be a quick no. Despite my 18 mile commute and the fact I drive a gas guzzling SUV I still save money by driving. They double the price of metro during rush hour and they charge $4.50 a day to park.

I don't work closer in but still in VA so it's a little different driving into the city. Also there's free parking at my job so there's not a lot of incentive for me to leave the car at home. The commute time for your husband would be about the same particularly counting door to door stuff like walking to work once in DC and driving to the metro station. So time isn't saved and money isn't saved.

So why bother? Well, the only people I know who do metro (that have cars and live in VA or MD) and enjoy it really hate driving. The traffic on 50 is stressful at best. Stop and go stop and go. I'd rather crawl really slowly than constantly pump the brakes. On the train there's none of that. So I will say that his commute will be equally inconvenient it's all a matter of preference. I perfer to drive, some people do not. I would say he should do both and then make up his mind about which he prefers.

[michgc]

Originally Posted by JEB77

This only affected some GT students in Vienna. A large number of the Vienna-area GT students continue to attend Kilmer, which is also located in Vienna (Jackson is in Falls Church) and would be these students' base school in any event.

Yes, not all of Vienna is affected - Archer, Flint Hill, Marshall Road, Cunningham Park, and Vienna (?), I believe. I was just pointing out that districting changed a couple of years ago.

[JEB77]

Originally Posted by michgc

Yes, not all of Vienna is affected - Archer, Flint Hill, Marshall Road, Cunningham Park, and Vienna (?), I believe. I was just pointing out that districting changed a couple of years ago.

Vienna ES area is assigned to Jackson as well, together with the other schools you mentioned. Wolftrap, Westbriar, Freedom Hill and Stenwood GT students all stayed at Kilmer (that includes some students from the last three schools whose base middle school otherwise would be Thoreau).

[Denton56]

I have heard from more than one school board member that some of them want to hire an outside contractor to look at all county schools and redo ALL of the boundaries. One member said "it would have to be a group who we all trusted, and whose recommendations we would accept". I can't imagine them all agreeing, but then they only need 7 votes. Last I heard, they 5 or 6 members who supported this large redistricting.

Just to add to the fun, two of those 5 or 6 will be resigning soon. One won a democrat primary tonight for the House of Delegates, beating an incumbent. Since her district is very democrat, she'll win in November. The only question is, will she resign now, or in November. In any event, there will have to be a special election in that district. Another democrat on the school board has accepted an appointment with the Obama administration. Rumors are that he will soon resign from the board.

So who knows if they will have the votes, during the next school year, to redistrict the whole county? They won't wait longer than 2010 since 2011 is an election year. No school board wants to deal with a redistricting during an election year.

It is good advice to move close to the school that you want your children to attend. But we must remember this county does crazy things. Thoreau is a great example. It sits in the Kilmer district. Nothing is guaranteed in FCPS.

[JEB77]

Originally Posted by Denton56

I have heard from more than one school board member that some of them want to hire an outside contractor to look at all county schools and redo ALL of the boundaries. One member said "it would have to be a group who we all trusted, and whose recommendations we would accept". I can't imagine them all agreeing, but then they only need 7 votes. Last I heard, they 5 or 6 members who supported this large redistricting.

Just to add to the fun, two of those 5 or 6 will be resigning soon. One won a democrat primary tonight for the House of Delegates, beating an incumbent. Since her district is very democrat, she'll win in November. The only question is, will she resign now, or in November. In any event, there will have to be a special election in that district. Another democrat on the school board has accepted an appointment with the Obama administration. Rumors are that he will soon resign from the board.

So who knows if they will have the votes, during the next school year, to redistrict the whole county? They won't wait longer than 2010 since 2011 is an election year. No school board wants to deal with a redistricting during an election year.

It is good advice to move close to the school that you want your children to attend. But we must remember this county does crazy things. Thoreau is a great example. It sits in the Kilmer district. Nothing is guaranteed in FCPS.

I may be reading your comment too literally, but students in the neighborhood in which Thoreau sits attend Thoreau, not Kilmer Middle. These students are assigned to Marshall High, however, which draws most of its students from Kilmer, rather to than Madison, which draws most of its students from Thoreau.

It's definitely a bit of a quirk, and some parents have suggested to the School Board that it would be a good idea to adjust or align the boundaries so that all Kilmer students are assigned to Marshall, and all Thoreau students are assigned to Madison. That has never happened - and who knows if it would it a "restructuring czar" were appointed. It's not a huge deal, but the kids in that particular neighborhood near Thoreau end up attending a different high school than most of the kids who attended the same elementary and middle school. Currently, there are about equal number of students from Marshall transferring to Madison, and vice versa, and I expect a fair number of the kids transferring to Madison come from that neighborhood.

[neighborhoodfind]

You can cut through back roads and hardly go on 123 at all. You could easily walk between the two they are so close to each other.