Crystal Springs Uplands School has proposed a plan to build a middle school in Belmont.
The middle school would be on Davis Drive, off of Ralston Avenue. There currently are empty corporate buildings at Davis, buildings which have been listed as available for rent for quite some time.
The president of Crystal Spring’s Boards of Trustees stated that “Crystal Springs Uplands School will present a proposal to the City Council for a new middle school to be constructed on Davis Drive. The campus will accommodate up to 240 students and 35 faculty and staff, and includes an academic center, multipurpose building, gymnasium, and all-weather soccer field.”
There are both pros and cons for the proposal to build a school on Davis Drive, as the school would be a main center of attraction for Belmont, but would also have a serious impact on traffic, noise, and other disruptions that would affect the community of Belmont.
The proposal includes a 52,000 square-foot campus on what is currently occupied by 84,000 square feet of office and warehouse space. This campus will include a main academic center, a cafeteria, a gymnasium, and an all-weather artificial grass soccer field.
As stated by the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, Crystal Springs Upland School is one of the top middle schools in the entire United States.
CSUS has a 29% acceptance rate, and enrolls 350 students from 66 elementary schools and 53 middle schools. The school’s financial aid program annually awards two million in grants to 23% of the student body. For those that do not receive financial aid, the tuition is 33,000 dollars a year.
Furthermore, local residents in the Belmont Canyon area argue that the school will add unwanted noise to their community. Additionally, all of CSUS’s sponsorships go to under-privileged households, which means that the great majority of Belmont residents will not qualify.
Belmont resident Sharon Thompson raised concerns over the amount of traffic at Ralston Avenue. “With 450 students at Fox, and almost 1,000 at Ralston, plus the kids who are driving to Carlmont and Notre Dame high schools, everyone will all converge at the same time on Ralston Avenue. And that also adds extra stress and pressure on the Belmont Police Department.”
However, fellow Belmont resident Charles Stone believes the school would benefit Belmont: “[The Belmont] Council is in a position to increase revenues not only to the City, but to BRSSD [Belmont-Redwood Shores School District], SUHD [Sequoia Union High School District], and other taxing agencies.”
Now that the arguments have been made for both sides, it is up to the Belmont City Council to approve or reject Crystal Springs Uplands School’s proposal.
The Belmont Council will vote Oct. 23.
