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MCPS and County Council discuss FY26 CIP and a financing gap at Woodward campus
Summary
Board Chair Yang and MCPS leaders told the council the FY26 school CIP will prioritize finishing major projects on time; MCPS described a financing and state-reimbursement discrepancy related to the phased Woodward High School project that staff are working to reconcile while keeping an August 2027 opening target.
Montgomery County Public Schools officials briefed the County Council on the FY26 capital-improvement program on March 25 and described priorities, schedule targets and a financing reconciliation related to the Woodward campus.
Board Chair Yang said the district's CIP approach this year focuses on finishing major capital projects and exercising financial stewardship amid rising construction costs. "Number 1 is deliver the major capital projects keeping them whole and finish on time," Yang said, citing Woodward, Crown and Northwood as priorities.
The superintendent (MCPS) told the council the district is "still on schedule for a 2027 opening" for the Woodward campus projects but acknowledged choices in project phasing and the way contracts were bid led to a reimbursement request to the state that exceeded the funding mix. "We requested a state reimbursement for the 2nd phase of the project that was beyond what the funding mix would allow," the superintendent said, explaining that MCPS must reconcile that issue with the State while proceeding with bids and trying to maximize state participation.
Adnan Mamoon, deputy chief of facilities for MCPS, said the district is reviewing recent bid numbers and continuing to work with the state to determine the total package and available reimbursement. When Councilmember Lukey asked whether there was any anticipated fiscal liability to the county from the prior bidding approach, the superintendent said the matter is "an ongoing issue" being worked with the State and did not provide a timetable for resolution.
Councilmembers also pressed MCPS on deferred maintenance and the need for a more robust pay-as-you-go maintenance program to address building condition issues at schools such as Magruder; the superintendent noted a facility condition-index review due by summer 2026 that will inform priorities.
MCPS said the district reallocated resources in the FY26 CIP to keep major projects intact and that future CIP cycles will incorporate facility-condition data and community engagement. Councilmembers thanked MCPS staff and signaled continued oversight as the operating-budget and CIP reconciliation proceed.
