PRESENT:
Mayor Williams Councilmember Clay Councilmember Robinson Councilmember Seamens Councilmember Snipper Councilmember Wright		City Manager Matthews Public Works Director Braithwaite City Clerk Carpenter Library Director Robbins Deputy City Manager Ludlow Finance Director Brooks Human Resources Manager Hampton

 

ABSENT: 

Councilmember Barry

 

Mr. Williams noted that he would be scheduling time on a future agenda to have Montgomery County Foster and Adoptive Parent Services talk about the opportunity for people to serve as foster parents.

Crystal Pittman, Houston Apartments, spoke in support of continued funding for the City’s tenant organizers (capacity building program).

Kathy Prentice, Cheney Drive, Takoma Park Cooperative Nursery School, explained how the Takoma Park Business Directory and Survival Guide is produced and how it benefits the City. She said the Survival Guide proceeds are the only source of income for the Nursery School, other than tuition. She said the City participates by purchasing 72 pages to provide information about the City in English and Spanish. Ms. Prentice said the school puts in 3,300 or more hours of volunteer time producing the guide.

Tim Cooper, Steve Frances Foundation, commented on the work the Foundation does for the community. He requested Council support and approval for the event the Foundation would be holding on July 4 at Ed Wilhelm Field.

Mr. Seamens thanked Mr. Cooper and the Foundation for the work done for the community. He said he hoped the City would expedite the permit to enable the event to be advertised. He said he appreciated the work done last year to keep drinking off the site.

Miriam Shapiro, commented on the Park Avenue parking lot issue. She said the City had showed a misleading plan and received reluctant Historic Preservation Commission approval, but did not consult with the neighbors. She said the Council had agreed previously to fund reconstruction of the parking lot.

Seth Grimes, Willow Avenue, President of the Old Takoma Residents Association, spoke in support of the City correcting the errors with the Park Avenue parking lot. He requested that the Council expedite having the work done. Mr. Grimes stressed the importance of getting the neighbors involved at the earliest possible time on issues such as this, the rerouting of Bus 25, and traffic calming.

Kay Daniels Cohen, 19 Sherman Avenue, thanked the Council for its work on getting the swimming pool reopened. As Chair of the Recreation Committee, she urged the Council to approve the Recreation Committee’s recommendation to start a winter basketball league this year.

Cindy Dyballa, Elm Avenue, spoke in support of the winter basketball league. She said it would be an early success for the Recreation Committee. She said the Committee would try to build partnerships with programs near here, and build on the volunteer network already existing for fall and spring sports.

____ Fernandez, 7600 Maple, spoke in support of the capacity building program.

Tanya Albanion, Hampshire Towers Tenant Association, spoke in support of the capacity building program.

Dan ________, resident of Park Avenue, requested that the Council follow through on its unanimous commitment to correct the situation with the Park Avenue parking lot.

_____Bergman, 120 Park Avenue, said she had taken improvements to the Park Avenue parking lot into consideration when she purchased her home. She said her neighbors had worked diligently to get the project completed correctly. She supported the Council funding for reconstruction of the lot.

Scott Hardy, 117 Park Avenue, said he lives next door to the parking lot. He reaffirmed what had already been said by his neighbors and requested that the Council fund completion of the project.

Sabrina Baron, Historic Takoma, Inc., spoke in support of reconstruction of the Park Avenue parking lot. She noted that HTI had been involved in arranging meetings with the neighbors that led to the agreement to make the changes. Ms. Baron also urged the Council to listen to the community about Takoma Junction.

Kathy Porter, Elm Avenue, Takoma Foundation Board Member, spoke in support of the request from the Takoma Foundation for the City to match $20,000 in funding for a mosaic project to be conducted at the Community Center in conjunction with the Arts and Humanities Commission.  Ms. Porter said that the Takoma Foundation was also supportive of the Community Indicators Project and may consider providing some funding towards the project. She said she also personally supported the indicators project.

Alice Sims, 7109 Carroll avenue, spoke as a member of the Recreation Committee. She supported the mosaic mural project.

Ms. Matthews noted additional information she had provided to the Council on the reconciliation items.

Ms. Matthews provided an update on SHA review of the roundabout proposal for Takoma Junction. She said they indicated that they would be happy to look at other alternatives, including a small scale approach that would not involve right-of-way acquisition or relocation of utilities. She said they would do further review in the fall, when school is back in session.

(1) WAH Land Use Committee Interviews

The Council interviewed Therese Breenhow-Robinson, Pamela Sparr, Kathleen Quinn, and Keith Berner.

(2) Ethics Commission Interview

The Council interviewed Aaron Lavallee for appointment to the Ethics Commission.

(3) Library

Ms. Ellen Robbins was present for the discussion of the budget for the Library and the Computer Learning Center. She provided information to the Council about the Library budget and answered the Council’s questions. Ms. Robbins reported that staffing levels remain unchanged; the budget increase was mostly personnel related. Supplies account for 14% of operational increases.

In response to a question about the replacement cycle for the Userful Computers, she noted that at the end of each three year cycle, the Library can keep the older computers and use them as backups.

Ms. Robbins answered a question about the Library’s contact with the Arts and Humanities Commission. She said the Commission has helped the Library publicize events and noted that the Commission is interested in having a representative on the Friends of the Library Board.

Ms. Robbins responded to questions about the non-English speaking population. She said that use of the Library by the Spanish-speaking population was growing. She noted that there is a native French speaker on the Library staff. She said there had been a volunteer English as a second language teacher in the mornings but it was difficult to capture participants at that time. She said the staff does refer interested individuals to ESL adult education programs offered by MCPS through Montgomery College.

Ms. Robbins responded to questions about circulation. She said that residents, students, or those who work in Takoma Park are eligible for free library cards. Others can receive a card for a fee. She noted that the Takoma Park Library circulation is not comparable with County libraries because they have much larger collections. A lot of the Takoma Park Library’s use is not in circulation, but in use of library materials and computers.

In response to a question about fines, Ms. Robbins said that they were raised a number of years ago to be the same as Montgomery County at that time. She said Montgomery County’s fines are now a bit higher for adults, but are the same for children.

BREAK

The Council recessed for a scheduled break at 9:14 p.m. and reconvened to continue the budget worksession at 9:24 p.m.

(4) Public Works Department and Stormwater

Ms. Braithwaite was present for the discussion of the Public Works and Stormwater Budgets.

In response to questions about the proposed renovation of the Public Works facility, she said that part of the initiative is to improve workplace conditions, and part is to improve environmental conditions. She said she needs to bring in expertise on heating and cooling. She commented on the improvement made by the new salt storage facility. She said the plan is to improve grading to ensure control of the source and flow of water through the facility. She said they have implemented good housekeeping practices to minimize pollutants in the runoff.

Ms. Braithwaite noted that the Stormwater Budget includes funding for some of the stormwater runoff control items.

In response to questions about climate change and the City’s carbon footprint, Ms. Braithwaite said that without an additional position devoted to the issue, her department can continue to do what they currently do. She noted that there is not an ability to track emissions. She said she does track spending and usage for gas, water and electricity in City facilities, but she does not have the ability to do the tracking city-wide or to track commercial vs. residential emissions.

In response to questions posed about expanding the recycling program for compact fluorescent bulbs, she explained that use of other drop-off sites might expose people to the mercury and other toxic materials.

Ms. Braithwaite commented on streetlights in response to Council questions. She said she is continuing to look into the possibility of use of LED lighting. She said that many of the decorative lights had been relamped with induction lights, which reduce energy usage and have a very long life.

Council asked about fuel usage. Ms. Braithwaite indicated that she believed her projection for the cost was accurate.

Council asked about the process for the WSSC match funding for renovation of streets they had patched after working on them.

In response to a question, Ms. Braithwaite provided information on the storage of the abandoned boat at Public Works. She indicated that they would be taking steps toward a process to lead to disposal of the boat.

Mr. Seamens commented on the Public Works facility renovation. He said he believed that the facility should be moved to a more suitable site in a commercial or industrial area.

The Council asked a number of questions about this option.

Ms. Braithwaite said that the City did look at moving the facility 10 years ago. She said she is not aware of a parcel that would be available in the footprint size needed. She said she would guess it would be in the $5 million range to construct a facility on a new site. She noted that if the City vacated the current site, there would be environmental issues to be dealt with there to bring the site up to certain standards.

In response to a question about regrading the driveway off Ritchie Avenue, she said she could add it to the design criteria, but that both the grade and turn are issues that would need to be dealt with. She noted that tractor trailers cannot use the Ritchie Avenue entrance.

In response to comments about the smell of the mulch facility, Ms. Braithwaite said that to ship the leaves off site would require doubling the solid waste budget. She said she would be happy to explore other options.

In response to questions about evaluation of streets, Ms. Braithwaite described the annual street evaluation that is done by the City Engineer. She said at the evaluation, a street can be moved from one quantified level to another (failed, very poor, etc.).

Ms. Braithwaite responded to questions about vehicle fuels and alternatively-fueled vehicles. She said the City does not yet have an application for a low speed vehicle because of the multi-purpose function needed.

Ms. Braithwaite responded to questions about the asphalt loader. She said she was recommending a miller and paver combination which would allow much flexibility in when the work is done, would allow her to control costs, and would expand and enhance what the Department can do for streets in the City. She said she believed it would pay for itself in two or three years.

Ms. Braithwaite commented on the green roof project for the Community Center deck. She noted that the deck would need to be sealed even if the green roof was not to be added.

In response to a question about adding a roof to make a pavilion, Ms. Braithwaite said she believed it would be fairly expensive to add that amenity.

In response to questions about the Stormwater Budget, Ms. Braithwaite said the staff is fairly comfortable with the funding available; given the staff available, they are doing as many projects as they can handle. She noted that for the next year, Linden Avenue, New York-Baltimore Avenue, and planning for Sligo Mill/Poplar Mill were on the schedule, along with a number of minor projects.

(6) Council Reconciliation Requests and Final Requests for Additional Information

Mr. Wright requested to have information on what is the percentage salary increase given to City staff, and how does that compare to the top 10% of compensated staff.

Ms. Matthews noted that management employees are on the same pay structure as other staff.

The Council adjourned for the evening at 10:50 p.m.