Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1950-12-17

|
time we submitted a detailed pro-
gram of the schools we proposed
to build with this money.
THE public knew what the pro.
gram was. The people approved
the bonds. And we built the
schools, as we said we would
within the limits of the bone
issue"
Costs Called Excessive.
Nevertheless, the criticism ha!
come. In an exhaustive analyst.
of costs. a committee of the Ar.
lington Ridge Civic Association
described expenditures as exces.
sive. 1t made comparisons with
school costs in some neighborins
communities. What it reported
did not make Arlington look good
A fair comparison is difficult, a
best. Exact comparisons are i'm
possible. This is due in part Il
the fact that no two buildings ar,
alike and nc two are constructed
under precisely the same condi.
tons. Material prices fiuctuate
Labor wages vary between tn.
times contracts are let. Building
costs are affected by topography
There are other factors.
Sometimes, costs are compared
by the rate of expenditure pei
cubic foot. Sometimes they are
figured by the square foot. Occa-
sionally. effort is made to de-
termine the outlay per classroom
But the technical experts say all
these methods have objections.
Cost Per Pupil Cited.
One fairly widely accepted
standard is the cost per pupil
Under this method, 1t is de-
termined how much is spent at a
given building for the rated
capacity" of the school. This
means the local number of pupils
to be enrolled. It does not refer
to the number that would be
crowded into the building under
emergency conditions.
In using any yardstick it is de-
sirable to compare schools which
contain approximately similar IA
cilities and are constructed under
similar market conditions.
This Is not easy in Arlington.
For, as Mrs. Campbell said, the
county is building better schools
than most. The structures are
more nearly complete. Some con-
tain auditoriums or have more
space or larger and better
equipped cafeterias.
That is not to say Arlington
has the only fine new schools in
this area. All communities have
some.
School Board supporters insist
Arlington's new buildings are
similar to those in various Vir-
ginia cities. and declare that in
fair comparison costs are not out
of line.
To emphasize it's contentious,
the Arlington Ridge report COM
pared costs at Mckinley elemen-
tary school in Arlington (now
under construction) and the
Thomas S. Stone elementary
school in Mount Rainier Brent
wood prince Georges.
Allowance Made for War.
In this comparison, an allow
ance must be made for the fact
that the Mckinley contract was
let after war broke out in Korea.
The contract price, therefore, was
higher. Arhngton's Assistant Supt.
Braun estimated the cost jumped
Is per cent because of war.
In spite of this differential, the
Mckinley expenditure runs ap-
higher than that at the
Prince Georges school. Here are
the figures:
fPr. Geo. (Arlington)
ClaSSrooms IL IA
Contract ---$286,448 $548,779
Square feet - 1920 37,217
So. IT. cost - $1,000 $14.60
Cubic feet 80 377,475 583, 400
Gu. It. cost - $076 1894
Per pupil cost
go to room)- $500 1900
Each of the schools has a Ii
brary, a multipurpose room with
stage, a kitchen. an infirmary or
clinic, administrative offices, a
lounge for teachers, storage and
supply rooms. The Arlington