The McLean Citizens Association (MCA) is calling for the Fairfax County School Board to delay the construction of a new Dunn Loring elementary school, arguing that the project is unnecessary given the ongoing decline in student enrollment at nearby schools.
The request comes ahead of a Fairfax County Board of Supervisors meeting tomorrow (Feb. 4), when officials are set to hold a public hearing and vote on whether to approve the project.
Last month, the Fairfax County Planning Commission backed a rezoning application that would allow the school system to replace a 1930s-era, two-story building at 2334 Gallows Road — now used as an administrative office — with a new, $80 million, four-story elementary school.
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) officials say the new school, designed to serve around 900 students, would help alleviate crowding at nearby elementary schools in the Providence District and prepare for long-term growth in the area, particularly as Tysons continues to develop.
But in a letter sent to the school board on Sunday (Feb. 2), the MCA challenged that justification, saying data shows enrollment at nearby elementary schools — including Freedom Hill, Shrevewood and Stenwood — has been declining. According to the school system’s fiscal year 2025–29 Capital Improvement Program (CIP), that downward trend is expected to continue, leaving hundreds of available seats in existing schools.
For instance, FCPS projects that Stenwood Elementary School — less than a mile from the proposed Dunn Loring site — will see enrollment drop from 99% capacity in the 2024-25 school year to 95% by 2029-30. Freedom Hill Elementary is expected to decline from 81% to 72% capacity, while Shrevewood Elementary is projected to drop from 84% to just 64% capacity over the same period.
The MCA argues those numbers undermine the need for a new school, suggesting that the county should instead focus its resources on maintaining existing facilities and addressing needs in areas where schools are over capacity.
“CIP enrollment data and projections show substantial current surplus capacity in the elementary schools around the Dunn Loring site, and that significant surplus capacity is projected to increase over the next five years,” the letter states. “To proceed on the current schedule would lead to even greater surplus capacity in August 2029, representing ineffective use of public funds and limiting FCPS’ system-wide flexibility to meet future capital needs.”
MCA’s Board of Directors approved a resolution last year requesting more data to support the proposed project.
Fairfax County School Board At-Large Member Kyle McDaniel has echoed the MCA’s concerns, questioning the project’s necessity with the school system facing billions of dollars in facility renovation and maintenance needs.
During a school board CIP work session last month, McDaniel argued that the new school would add to an already significant surplus of seats, creating excess capacity at a time when FCPS is struggling to fund renovations and critical infrastructure. He urged a reevaluation of the project, suggesting resources should be directed toward overcrowded or aging schools instead.
Neither McDaniel nor any other school board members, including Providence District representative and board chair Karl Frisch, responded to FFXnow’s inquiries about the project’s fate or concerns raised by their colleagues and residents.
At the planning commission’s meetings, which included a public hearing in October, Providence District Commissioner Jeremy Hancock argued that the new school is needed to accommodate future growth and increased demand for educational space, particularly as development in Tysons continues.
However, MCA leaders and critics of the plan contend that demographic trends don’t justify the immediate need for the school.
With the Board of Supervisors set to vote tomorrow, it remains to be seen whether the MCA’s objections will sway county leaders. If approved, construction could begin soon, with the new school expected to be completed by 2027.
