Mayor’s Report
Summer
has come and is fast retreating into fall.
Soon we will be discussing the removal of snow and emergency
parking. For now, the Mayor and Council is
in recess for the month of August. This
brief break in Council meetings and work sessions provides an ideal time for
Mayor and Council to enjoy family, friends and a little vacation during the
summer months.
Even
though the Mayor and Council have not met during the month of August, each
member of the Council has continued to be directly involved in the day-to-day
operation of our City’s affairs. The
following is a brief recap of some of the Mayor and Council activities prior to
and during the month of August (and we still have about two weeks of August
left).
1.
Reviewed and approved the City
Attorney Contract. The City Attorney contract had not been
reviewed and updated since it was issued in 1994. As I am sure you are aware, the needs of the
City have changed, almost as often as the Mayor and Council since 1994. This update was long over due. In addition, the Mayor and Council conducted
its first formal evaluation of the services rendered by the City Attorney, and
entered into a dialogue that will help to enhance future services and working
relationships. The new contract is for a
period of two years, and requires ongoing dialogue between the Mayor and
Council. In addition, the Mayor and
Council will periodically host a mixer to allow Mayor and Council to become
better acquainted with the attorneys and the staff of Silber and Perlman P.
A. The first mixer will be held in the
next few months at City Hall.
2.
National Night Out at
3.
Lobbyist for the City.
Mayor and Council are taking a close look at engaging Steve Proctor and
Associates to represent the City as lobbyist at the County, State and Federal
levels. In looking at its financial
situation and the continued tightening of the belt, the City is seeking to find
new sources of revenue. Other
municipalities (Seat Pleasant,
4.
Recreation, employment, and our
youth. This continues to be a major issue for the
Mayor and Council even though funds were appropriated in the last round of
budget development last fiscal year. There
is no easy solution to this long standing problem. During budget deliberations, the Mayor and
Council voted to set aside $30,000 for recreation, employment and our youth in
this fiscal year’s budget. At a Council
meeting in July, I proposed that $5,000 of that money be used to employ some of
our youth to paint curbs and do other odd jobs around the City, but to not try
to spend the remaining $25,000 for these activities until spring of next
year. The rationale for this decision is
that 1) our budget is a “paper” budget, and 2) during this period (May through
September) the City has a serious cash flow problem and must draw down on its
line of credit just to pay staff and keep the City functioning. In my opinion, it would have been an unwise
decision to spend money for these activities while being unable to pay staff
and/or critical City vendors. In
addition, the spring date provides the City with time to carefully plan viable
activities, seek additional matching funds, and engage someone with the
necessary expertise to develop and implement a viable youth program.
5.
The Mayor and Council have also
started looking toward the next financial audit.
Based on a review of our financial records, I believe that the City’s
financial books and supporting documentation is in better order than it has
ever been. Because of the work of Mr.
6.
Major construction problems with
Artspace, Police Station, Bunker Hill Fire Station and City Hall.
Over the past few years, the City has been faced with the issue of
addressing major construction problems with newly constructed buildings. These problems have resulted in the issuance
of temporary Use and Occupancy permits that have expired.
a)
City Hall – in the past year, City Hall’s
lower chambers have been flooded and resulted in large repair bills (some
damages were covered by insurance, but most were not). If you have wondered why Council Chambers
were moved upstairs, the flooding of the lower chambers was a great
incentive. Working is being done to
correct the flooding and to install larger suck pumps. The roof has also required repair, and the
front door is being replaced. Another
major problem is that of little or no storage space for City records. This problem is not the fault of the contractors,
but the design of the building. In
addition, the City has spent limited funds over the years in maintenance and
upkeep of this facility.
b)
Police Station – This building has not passed
inspection, and does not meet the County’s standards for issuing a
U&O. The City is working to correct
the many violations on this building, however, the building is more than two
years old and many of the problems identified should have been corrected by the
contractor prior to the City signing off on the contract. As I am sure you know, each phase of the work
on new construction should be reviewed, evaluated and signed off on by a County
building inspector. According to our
records, each phase of the work was signed off on in its current incomplete
state, and now it is up to the City to follow up with the County to get the
corrections made and the U&O issued.
c)
d)
Artspace – If you were watching or in
attendance at the July Council meeting, I am sure you heard the horror stories
told by the new residents of Artspace.
Many of the corrections are being made, but others are still under
discussion. It is also a building that
was inspected by the County’s housing inspectors.
From a
surface view of the many problems in each of these buildings, there seems to be
a pattern of incomplete and unacceptable work being approved by County that
later comes back to haunt the City or occupants of the buildings. The problems are major enough to warrant the
County issuing only temporary U & O’s.
One would think that the County would insure that its use and occupancy
requirements are met by its contractors prior to signing off on its
contracts. In three of the above
buildings, this did not happen, and now the City is seeking to prevail upon the
County to come back and correct the deficiencies.
The City
Manager, at the request of the Mayor and Council has written a letter to the
appropriate County authorities to see redress of these issues, and will stay on
top of these issues until full redress has been accomplished.
7.
Police Union Contract Negotiations – The City Manager and the Chief
of Police have received an initial proposal from the Police Union for upcoming
negotiations. This is a long process and
in light of the recent turnovers, and intensified recruitment of County police
officers, this process will be even longer.
The City is looking at ways to increase salaries, and benefits for our
officers, but recognize that there is a limit to the amount of money available
for staff and services. A major problem
for the City is the recruitment and retention of officers.
8.
The Cable Commission started meeting in late June and
are looking at ways to increase the use of our cable channel. As the City continues to enhance its image,
it is important to keep the citizenry informed of activities and events in the
City. In addition, with the fast rise of
new cable and internet services, it is important that the City has a voice in
decisions that are being made in this industry.
Currently the City holds a franchise with Comcast Cable that provides
almost $65,000 to our revenue. Some of
this money goes into our general revenue funds while other money is restricted
to the purchase of equipment and other cable needs specified in the franchise
agreement. The $65,000 revenue to the
City comes from the number of subscribers using cable services. The more users of Comcast Cable services the
larger the increase in revenue to the City.
In the past few weeks, Verizon has been attempting to carve an inroad
into this area to provide cable services and more, however, Verizon does not
want to enter into any franchise agreements with the municipalities. If allow to do this, Comcast would no longer
have to honor its franchise agreement because the proposed new law would
require that they get the same deal given to Verizon. PGCMA and its members believe that Verizon
should have to follow the same rules and regulations as Comcast, and that
municipalities should have a voice in the way Verizon or any future similar
service is made available to our constituents, and that their should be some
compensation to the municipalities.
Currently, municipalities have “no” say in telephone decisions, and
Verizon is proposing the same for cable.
Should this proposed legislation be passed by Congress, the City would
almost immediately lose more than $65,000 in its budget with no replacement. This bill is on a fast track in Congress and
you are encouraged to contact your congressional representative to ask him to
oppose this bill. This bill is being
supported by Congressman Albert Wynn, but it is not good or friendly to
municipalities.
9.
Prince George’s County Fair will be hosted at the
10.
CSAFE Grant – The City has again
been approved for the CSAFE Grant. This
grant given to the City’s Police Department provides for Victim
Services - $8,150, personnel - $7,000, contract service - $780,
and operating - $370; Community
Policing - $15,328 for all overtime; Coordination
- $22,300, personnel - $20,200; contract service - $1,100, other
- $500; Youth Prevention (After
School) - $23,615, personnel -$22,250, operating - $1,050, and equipment
- $500. Our CSAFE Coordinator is Ms. Monica Slade. You can reach Monica at 301-985-6595.
11.
Security Cameras – A few years ago, the City
partnering with the
12.
Mount Rainier Police Department – There has been a lot of unrest
in the Police Department over the past few months. Much of the unrest has been between members
of the Mayor and Council and the Police Union.
In my sincere opinion, the unrest is more of an issue of communications,
respect, trust, and a willingness to adhere to a chain of command for
processing complaints, information, and reporting to the Mayor and Council. It has been my personal observation that the
Mayor and Council are provided only positive information about activities in
the Police Department. Complaints and
other information are not shared at any level, and there appear to be a
consensus that that is all the information Mayor and Council needs, however,
Mayor and Council is obligated to pay any cost incurred by the police
department for hearings, investigations, lawyer fees, lost time and wages, etc.
in addition to salaries and benefits.
The Mayor and Council are divided on this issue, and the Police Union
has not come before the Mayor and Council to have a discussion on this
matter. Over the next few weeks, efforts
will be made to create a dialogue with the Police Union, and set policy
regarding communications needs between the Police Department, Mayor and
Council, and the Police Union.
Chief Keeney Host
Community/Police Relations Meeting – On July 18, Chief Keeney hosted a very challenging and
rewarding community relations forum at the Police Department. The forum was well attended but did not
reflect the number of residents in the City or very many of those who perceive
the Police relations with the community as troublesome. Two outside facilitators were brought in to
host the meeting, and they were able to generate a healthy dialogue about the
current state of affairs in the City with constituents and the police
department. Some of the issues discussed
included a need to see more police officers on foot or bike patrol, gang
related issues, communications and community interaction in our diverse
communities, professionalism and sensitivity to different cultures (e.g.,
Black, White and Gay Relations) not uniform, lack of community awareness of
police processes and services, consistent police services/mutual respect and
trust, police community expectations need to be identified, etc. There was also positive feedback from the
participants which included recognition of the overall improvement of the
police department in reducing and addressing serious crime, recognition of
individual excellence by officers, increased outreach by police department, improvement
of police professionalism and attitudes, and increased two-way communication
between police and the community. It was
emphasized that this meeting was just the tip of the iceberg for creating a
dialogue and action plan. It left
participants with the question of where do we want to go from here. Stay tuned; I am sure there will be follow up
meetings to continue discussing relationships in the City.
13.
Reports from
Committees/Departments – One effort being made to create better communications between all
levels of City government is to receive monthly reports from each department and
City appointed committees. Effective
September 1, all departments and committees will be notified of this change in
policy, and requested to make reports to the Mayor and Council, either in
writing or in person (preferred method).
In addition, meetings of committees will be recorded and/or televised
live on our cable Channel 71. I believe these
changes will open up dialogue, provide more timely information, and meet the
requirements of
14.
15.
Liquor Board to Appeal Circuit
Court’s Bass Liquor Decision – This is not an effort to over rule the closing of Bass
Liquors. It is an effort to
clarify/appeal a portion of the Court’s decision with regard to the testimony
of the officers in the case. Because of
its low level impact on the outcome of the decision, the City has decided to
become a party of records and go in with the Liquor Board on its appeal to the
Circuit Court. This is a minimal cost to
the City, and will help to keep the City in the loop of any decisions that are
being made on this subject matter.
Class D Licenses – In addition to the appeal issue
listed above, the City is requesting information from the Liquor Board about
Class D licenses that are issued to businesses without requiring them to serve
food. This is a very important issue for
the City to avoid having just bars open up in the City. It is the intent of the Mayor and Council to
support the opening of good restaurants and cafes that are allowed to serve on
site liquor, but to restrict single and off site sales. To address this issue, the Mayor and Council
has sent a letter to the Liquor Board addressing our concerns and seeking
clarification and support.
16.
Annexation – The City has remained the same
size for many years, and has attempted different annexations over those years
with little or no results while Hyattsville has successfully annexed several
properties to increase its taxable base.
During the coming months, Mayor and Council along with City Staff
17.
Development of the South Side of
18.
Community Tool Shed and
19.
Streets, Curbs, and Gutters – In a recent public announcement
County Executive Jack Johnson indicated that there would be $1 million
available to cities and town for streets, curbs and gutters. A few weeks ago, I sent out an email asking
for your help in identifying streets, curbs and gutters that require
attention. Several of you responded, and
I appreciate your input. Your streets
are being included in the list that must be provided to the
20.
The Message (the City’s Newsletter)
– Over the past
few months, there has been a lot of discussion regarding the timely
distribution of The Message and other form of communications to
constituents. As a possible way of
producing a more meaningful and timely document, I am proposing that the City
create a newsletter board with responsibility for generating news worthy items
for inclusion in The Message, working with the City Manager and the editor to
get The Message to print and to residents in a timely manner, and to ensure
that The Message is reaching all constituents.
To date, I have received volunteer information from Mrs. Melissa
Barringer and Mr.
Community Listserv -- Another area of information sharing has
also been revised and is ongoing. It is
the listserv hosted by
Mount Rainier Website – Another source of
information about news in the City as well as a wealth of other information is
the City’s own website. If you haven’t
visited it recently, I encourage you to do so.
It will continue to improve and grow as our webmaster takes on the
awesome job of keeping it up to date with timely and useful information.
Channel 71 – If you subscribe to Comcast Cable, you can also
get up-to-date information about activities in
21.
Maryland
and the District of Columbia Partner to Enforce Drunk Driving laws - Mount
Rainier Police Department, along with neighboring police departments
(Hyattsville, Riverdale, Bladensburg and Riverdale) and the Washington Metropolitan
Police Department conducted simultaneous DWI enforcement and educational
checkpoints on Rhode Island Avenue on Friday evening, July 22 from 8:00 pm
until 3am.
22.
New
Memorial Park to be built at
23.
$3,800 for our Neighborhood Watch Program – Obie Pinckney on behalf of the
24.
25.
Public
Hearing - The
The
transit district development plan area encompasses the West Hyattsville Transit
District. The public hearing is part of
a process leading to the approval of a new transit district development plan
(TDDP) and sectional map amendment, which will amend the 1998 West Hyattsville
Approved Transit District Development Plan and the 2002
The hearing is important
to
For additional
information or copies of the plan, call the M-NCPPC Community Planning Division
at 301-952-3972.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
GRAND OPENING OF NEW GROCERY STORE, ALDI - Thursday, August 18,
Alan Binstock’s Art Exhibit on display at the
University of Maryland University College.
It was my pleasure to attend an all day retreat at the University of
Maryland Conference Center and to see Alan’s work on display there. I could not help telling everyone that Alan
lives in
City
Offices Closed -
MRBA in
Recess – MRBA will resume its monthly meetings on Wednesday, September 14 at
The following web sites may be of interest to you.
Historic Mount Rainier Maryland
--- http://www.mountrainiermd.org
Mount Rainier Police Department
-- http://www.mountrainiermd.org/government/mrpd/index.html
Bunker Hill Volunteer Fire and
Rescue Company --- http://www.mrvfd.org
Friends
of the Mount Rainier Library (FOL) --- http://www.mtrainierfol.org/
Gateway Community Development Corporation www.gateway-cdc.org
Mount Rainier Business Association (MRBA) www.mrbassociation.org