Dear Greenspring families –
After years of work and planning, the day has finally come! The trucks have arrived on campus – our Great Foundation, Great Future Project has officially begun! This week Southway Builders will be on campus removing the play structure that is at the top of our campus next to our chicken coop, installing fences that will delineate the construction zone from the accessible and safe areas on campus, and installing the access road that will cross the Falls Road end of the soccer field.
So much work has been done to make this much-awaited day a reality:
- We have worked with architects from GWWO to ensure that every square foot of space serves the child and that every dollar is used toward that end – no bells and whistles, no extras, only what the children need to further their growth – a truly Montessori approach. Our new classrooms and villages will be constructed to meet the developmental qualities of the age group they serve.
- We have received all of the needed permitting and approvals from the state, county, and community organizations. This has been no small task! We have spent a year on the front end of the project working with community groups and the past 17 months working with the county.
- We officially have the funds needed to build and renovate the Multipurpose Building. This building will be demolished and reconstructed to create the Toddler and Children’s House Village East – housing four Children’s House classrooms and three Toddler classrooms. This will be the first building to be complete – hopefully by the end of summer – allowing us to move right in for the start of the new school year.
- We also have the funds needed to fully renovate our historic Main Building, which will become our Toddler and Children’s House Village West and be home to two Children’s House classrooms, two Toddler classrooms, a our Montessori Teacher Training Center, the Library, the nurse’s office, and numerous administrative offices. Our intent is to begin renovations on this village after school lets out for the summer, allowing us to move back into the beautiful new spaces for January 2018.
A heartfelt thank you to those of you who have helped us make these two major phases possible with your leadership donations to our Capital Campaign. Your gifts have made it possible for us to offer two newly updated and appointed buildings for our children. You have made a real difference for our community, our families, and our students!
We aren’t finished our Big Work yet! Our master plan also includes new classrooms to be constructed between Little Barn and Friedberg to serve our Elementary Community. This group of buildings will be our Elementary Village, housing the Lower and Upper Elementary classrooms, a community kitchen, an art studio and maker’s space, and a courtyard designed for outdoor learning. This part of the project, however, is yet to be funded. The Campus Master Plan stemmed from our commitment to serving all our children, and we need our community to help fulfill that commitment. We will be asking for your support to complete it in the upcoming weeks and months.
We are planning a series of classroom dinners to allow every family to learn about the project and to have the opportunity to give. Look for information coming about the date of your classroom’s event in the coming months!
We want you to be informed! Going forward, we will be communicating with you in a few different ways to share our progress:
- We have a new Capital Project page on our website which we will use to share pictures and updates as well as archived project communications. Visit GreenspringBigWork.org for more information!
- We will keep you informed through our weekly Connection and Look Aheads which you receive via email on Fridays.
- We will use social media – Facebook and Instagram – to share pictures and updates on a regular basis.
- We will continue to send emails when direct communication to you is needed (e.g. carline announcements, big project events).
Without a doubt, this project is a major undertaking for our humble community. Therefore, it will continue to require our community’s strength, flexibility, and love each step of the way. We stand ready and eager, knowing we are doing the absolute best for our children and families. Thank you for your support in this project – and in all we do here at Greenspring Montessori. We could not do it without you.
Warmly,
Tamara Sheesley Balis
Head of School
The time is finally here! We are delighted to share that our building project is finally beginning! There will be a great deal of activity on campus beginning next week as we begin the big work of creating a truly prepared environment for our children and adolescents.
I want to make you aware of a few of the major undertakings you will see and hear about over the coming month or so.
The first signs that the project is underway will appear this coming Monday, January 30. During the inaugural week there will be a growing stream of activity as sediment controls will be staked out and set in place along with various site and building boundary markers, surveying of roadways and utility lines will commence, test pits will be dug in various locations to gauge water pressure, and fencing will be set in place. If all goes well, we are also hoping to see the installation of a gravel road running along the Falls Road end of the soccer field. We will be installing fencing to ensure that the playground and the roadway are safely separated and that we can maintain the use of our soccer field and play equipment.
Once the initial site prep is complete, we will be constructing a bio retention pond up near the old chicken coop location. As we are required to install this first to address the environmental issues associated with run-off during and after the project, we will need to remove the play structure that is currently there. You will be pleased to know that we have found a good home for it at the Boys and Girls Club of Howard County.
We are told that we can maintain access to the Multi-Purpose Building for three more weeks, until February 17. That is very good news. At that time, Discovery for Children’s House, Elementary and Adolescents will be moved to the gym. Toddlers will stay happily nestled in their classroom in the Main Building.
Due to the need for widening, repaving and the utilities work all around the loop road at various intervals during the construction period, sections of the roadways will be torn up for extended and intermittent periods. When this happens you will be sure to be given plenty of advanced notice that we will move to the new carline procedures attached herein. (Note that carline for children in the Main Building will not change for the time being.)
We will do our very best to keep you posted each step of the way. We thank you now for your patience and flexibility as our community self-constructs – and builds a beautiful, updated home away from home for your children.
With much excitement,
Tamara Sheesley Balis
Head of School
Though there still is nothing visible stirring on campus, children aside, the project is alive, active, and moving in the desired direction. To spend a little time with the intricacies of the site plan—the engineering design that documents and directs all construction activity related to changes to the campus lay of the land—one quickly comes to appreciate the complex, shared, and highly sensitive environmental responsibility that exists between the school and its watershed and neighbors downstream. In essence, the quality and quantity of every drop of water that falls upon and eventually runs off of the campus is under scrutiny and must be controlled so as to limit its impact on species, habitats, and communities beyond our sight. Ultimately, obtaining site plan approvals—the element of the state and county approvals process that assesses the proposed management and control of changes to the school’s precious seven acres of earth, and which rest between this update and groundbreaking—boils down to an agreement to do no harm when it comes to disturbance of soils, streams, and the balance of the local ecosystem in general all the way out to and including the natural and struggling wonder that is the Chesapeake Bay.
So, in many ways, the site design and the agreements made therein are at the very heart of developing a green campus, reducing the school’s eco-footprint, and being the good Montessori land steward we strive to be. When one considers the extensive site plan review process through this more holistic prism, while a tedious and often frustrating endeavor, it is non-negotiable necessity. Could it be a more streamlined yet equally diligent process on the county end? Probably. Could we be more patient with the county’s role as the designated protector of the area’s natural resources? Probably. In the end, is it worth the time, effort and expense on the part of all involved to get it right? Absolutely.
With this in mind here is where things stand in the approvals chain: There are four remaining, interlocking steps to obtaining the coveted building permits:
- Grading permit: In its last review for concept approval (fingers and shovels crossed); final approval typically is soon to follow.
- Storm Water Management permit: Same status as Grading.
- Erosion & Sediment Control permit: This is a state permit and the last to be navigated. The application was recently submitted, and we are working closely with the state to expedite the review period.
- Environmental Agreement: The final step in which the school provides the county with a form of financial security that ensures completion of the all of the site work exactly as approved. This process is underway.
How does this all translate into timing? In our last update we presented a best-case scenario of a November start and, even though that might be November 30, we are still striving to maintain that schedule. As always, the timetable is a goal, not a given.
A final note on a developing construction topic that is sure to be near and dear to your hearts: traffic management. To do everything possible to minimize inconvenience—and there will certainly be a degree of shared inconvenience, especially during Phase 1 that stretches throughout this school year—the project team has been working to develop as many traffic flow and coordination options as are practical to ease congestion during the morning drop off. Our construction management firm, Southway Builders, is doing all it can to accommodate the need to create ample and reliable access and egress patterns during critical times of the day. And while we will all need to be part of the solution in some small way on a day-to-day basis, solutions are surfacing. As soon as they are more set in stone, or gravel or dirt or asphalt, we will share these plans with you well in advance of any changes to the current campus routines. Promise.
As always, should there be any questions or concerns, please reach out to Shanie Nelson, Director of Advancement, at snelson@www.greenspringmontessori-b.dev. We will continue to keep you updated.
Greenspring Montessori School hosted a ceremonial Groundbreaking on Wednesday, June 8, 2016 for a building project to renovate nearly 30,000 square feet and construct 7,500 square feet of additional classroom space on its historic seven-acre campus. Head of School, Tamara Balis, spoke to the community about our progress, and our Chair of the Board of Trustees, Fred Brown, and Councilwoman Vicki Almond shared their support. Students, parents, and staff dug in with their shovels, ceremoniously marking the beginning of this transformation.
Originally known as Emerson Dairy Farm, the iconic white barns and silos have been an important part of the Greenspring history since the 1920’s. Currently home to over 250 children, toddler through grade 8, Greenspring Montessori School is committed to its mission of “igniting purpose and voice in a fully engaged learning community.”
True to the Montessori philosophy, the upcoming building project will provide thoughtfully designed classrooms with free access to outdoor space, community kitchens, and child-sized features such as cabinets, sinks, toilets, and more.
The school is compelled to complete this renovation to improve its beloved but aging facilities to be safer, healthier, and more environmentally-friendly, with buildings reimagined to fit the school’s growing needs. This collaborative effort will provide lasting benefits – social, developmental, academic, physical, and financial – that touch every member of Greenspring Montessori School’s community.
Learn more about our Building Project.
