Gesher Jewish Day School will be building a slightly different facility than had initially been planned. The private school, which is housed in the Jewish Community Center, 8900 Little River Turnpike in Fairfax, is moving to a 28-acre site at 4700 Shirley Gate Road.
In April 2002, the Board of Supervisors granted a special exception that would allow Gesher to build a new school with an enrollment of 540 students. The school operates for children in kindergarten through Grade 8. The first phase of the project is expected to house up to 350 students, and the school plans eventually to grow to the full enrollment permitted.
The school had applied for some minor modifications that had been granted at the administrative level. This time, Fairfax County planning staff felt that Board approval would be necessary.
The school will have the same enrollment as it had previously been granted. It has also committed to a minimum of 40 percent of students using a carpool or bus. “I note with interest and pleasure the commitment to carpooling and ride sharing,” said Commissioner Ken Lawrence (Providence).
The new plan more accurately defines the septic system and storm-water-management ponds on the Shirley Gate Road site. It also allows for the construction of a pool and allows the school to construct a baseball field on top of the already approved soccer field.
“Our land-use committee recommended that the application be approved,” said Planning Commission chair Peter Murphy (Springfield). As is typical, Murphy did not chair this hearing, because it concerned land in the area he represents.
The citizens had asked that a previously required connection between the school and Swarts Drive be deleted, and the Commission obliged.
The revised plan must now be approved by the Board of Supervisors. It is scheduled for a public hearing on Monday, Jan. 24, at 3:30 p.m.
“This is very anxiously awaited,” said Alan Goldblatt, president of the school. There are no plans on when the school will break ground, Goldblatt said.