MCPS explores reimagining Carver campus and public-private partnerships to consolidate central services

Montgomery County Public Schools staff proposed reimagining the Carver Educational Services Center (CSC) and the adjacent former Rock Terrace property as a consolidated central-services campus and possible P3 opportunity. Staff said the current estate spans roughly 31 acres across Carver and a vacant Rock Terrace footprint and houses a number of disparate administrative and program uses spread across several outdated buildings.

Why it matters: staff said the district operates many support functions from multiple, aging buildings and that a consolidated central-services hub would reduce inefficiencies, improve public access (particularly by public transit), and create opportunities to right-size office and program space for staff, families and community partners. Staff emphasized they would preserve historic elements and the Carver name while reimagining underused portions of the site.

P3 and financing options: staff described a public-private partnership as an alternative financing and delivery model in which a private developer, designer and financier build and may operate parts of a campus under long-term agreements. The benefits staff cited included potential faster delivery, cost certainty, and the opportunity to include long-term maintenance obligations in a single contract. Staff cautioned that P3 contracts require tight and well-defined scopes to avoid scope creep and loss of public control over design details. Staff said the district will hire an adviser with funding identified in the CIP to evaluate the portfolio and potential P3 packaging.

Next steps: staff plan to study the Carver/Rock Terrace footprint in more detail, solicit a market adviser to evaluate P3 feasibility (funding included in FY27 CIP planning dollars), and return with options that preserve public oversight and honor the site's historic legacy.