Silver Chips Online

A Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)-commissioned contractor completed the addition of two sets of stairways along the hills behind Blair and a handicap ramp adjacent to the baseball field this week to enhance campus safety conditions and improve access to the baseball field.

The stairways were built on the hills leading down to Blair's grass field to allow for safe and efficient passage during evacuations. "The addition of two sets of stairs was necessary for our evacuations and easy access to the fields," principal Darryl Williams said. "When moving 2,800 students and over 200 staff members to our designated areas during evacuations, it was necessary for us to have these stairs."

James Funk, Blair's business manager and coordinator of the construction project, rallied for MCPS to fund the additions after realizing the danger of walking on the hills. "People are going down hills with no steps," he said. "It's just dangerous to have people go down them without steps, especially if the weather is bad."

Funk claims that the stair additions have been necessary since Blair's move to the corner of Colesville Road and University Blvd. "We've wanted to get [the stairs] for years," he said. "The hill is a hazard - the steps should have been there when the school was built."

The process included numerous talks with MCPS officials to lobby for approval of the project, as well as the necessary funding, according to Funk. He was pleased with the contractor's prompt completion of the additions. "The project moved very quickly," Funk said. "I'm very happy about how efficient it was."