Mayor Williams announced that the resolution regarding Betty Barclay would be rescheduled to a future meeting as the family wishes to provide additional information.

Pat Loveless, Maple Avenue, urged the Council to work to make the City better and continue to lead the country. Mr. Loveless asked the Mayor when he would schedule the resolution from Montgomery Peace Action.

Lorig Charkoudian, Ethan Allen Avenue, commented in support of the Zoning Text Amendment that would allow a community commercial kitchen at Takoma Park Presbyterian Church. Such a commercial kitchen could provide economic opportunity and lead to environmental sustainability, health benefits, food security, and hunger alleviation.

Michele Levy, Park Avenue, Crossroads Community Food Network, commented that there is a real dearth of community kitchen space in Montgomery County. She said the Takoma Park Presbyterian Church plan would provide an opportunity to have a commercial kitchen in the community.

Vicki Warren, Elder at Takoma Park Presbyterian Church, commented that the commercial kitchen idea grew out of a listening campaign that the Church held a year ago. The kitchen was used in the past, but in 2004 a zoning regulation prohibited its use. The Church has raised $8,000 to bring it up to code standards, but the Zoning Text Amendment is needed for the kitchen to serve the community.

Kathy Breckbill, Woodland Avenue, spoke in favor of hiring a contract employee or contracting with a firm to serve as the sustainability coordinator. She said she is in favor of the contract idea because we don’t know exactly how our budget and the position will play out. A contract position will be easier to control and the number of hours can be limited if needed. Later, if a full time employee is needed, the position can be added. Additionally, the City might have access to much more experience if it goes with a small firm.
 
Elizabeth Wallace, Holly Avenue, asked if the City has a policy of responding to questions within 24 hours.

Ms. Matthews said that it is part of the City’s customer service policy.

Kathy Breckbill commented on the position descriptions for the sustainability positions. She questioned that some of the language in the descriptions may be discriminatory against people who are not native English speakers.

Ms. Matthews said the language was developed in coordination with the City’s personnel consulting firm. She offered to raise the question with the consultant and get back to Ms. Breckbill.

Mr. Snipper commented that over the holidays he was made more aware of the many in our community and nearby who are suffering as a result of the economy.

Ms. Daniels-Cohen congratulated Gregory Clark on being appointed as Recreation Director. She thanked Ward 3 residents Ellen Zavian and Adam Hatton for stepping up to serve on City committees. She commented on the new five-cent bag tax in Montgomery County, indicating that she thinks that it is a good thing.

Mr. Schultz announced a meeting on January 12 in the Auditorium where the County Planning staff will make a presentation on the Sector Plan Design Guidelines. He also announced a meeting on January 26, 7 p.m., at Sligo Adventist School, for the community to discuss criminal activity along the New Hampshire Avenue corridor. Chief Ricucci and Prince George’s County District 1 Commander Hector Valez will be at the meeting.

Mr. Schultz asked about the status of the Flower Avenue right-of-way annexation and the sidewalk policy.

Ms. Matthews responded that the annexation was completed. She noted that the sidewalk policy is scheduled for discussion on January 9.

Mr. Grimes reported that he and Councilmember Daniels-Cohen met with D.C. Ward 4 Councilmember Muriel Bowser to discuss crime along the New Hampshire Avenue corridor near the D.C. border. He suggested that she be invited to attend a City Council meeting.

Mr. Grimes reported on a conversation with Dan Maxwell of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service Investigative Branch, regarding the fire at Walt Rave’s house. The investigation will not be concluded for several more weeks. There has been no final determination as to the cause of the fire yet, but there is no suspicion of foul play.

Mr. Seamens said that he had met with the Liberian Community Association of Takoma Park at Franklin Apartments over the holidays. The Liberian Ambassador to the U.S. was there.

Mr. Seamens announced that a group of residents is organizing a Martin Luther King, Jr. Day celebration to include service projects in the community. He invited people to contact him with ideas.

Mr. Male announced a meeting scheduled for the week of January 9 regarding a sidewalk request for Jackson Avenue.

Mr. Male commented on the Zoning Text Amendment regarding commercial kitchens. He said he is extremely supportive of the idea, but allowing the kitchens in church facilities raises some questions for him. He said he hopes to explore the issue further before the Council discusses it.

Mr. Male asked for information on why the City’s rental and owner occupied housing code enforcement are handled differently.

Ms. Matthews said she will provide additional information on the issue.

Mr. Williams provided details on the new Montgomery County Bag Law.

Mr. Williams distributed a handout on immigration law to the Council.

Ms. Matthews reported that the Public Works Facility has passed its electrical inspection. The Fire Marshal has noted a few issues, but the project is close to being done.

(1) Resolution of Condolence - Betty Barclay

This item was deferred to a future meeting.

(2) Resolution of Condolence - Walt Rave

Mr. Grimes noted that Compassion Over Killing will hold a memorial event on January 8.

Mr. Seamens commented that Mr. Rave was a charismatic character who was well known for his stand on animal rights.

Pat Loveless, Maple Avenue, commented that he used to see Mr. Rave at various events. Mr. Loveless said his work needs to be continued.

Karin Anderson, Woodland Avenue, said that Walt Rave had been part of the community. She had known him for 35 years. He dedicated his life to nonviolence and helping people and animals. She noted that he was an amateur astronomer. Ms. Anderson said that he had done a lot of good in the world and would be missed.

Lorraine Pearsall, Takoma Avenue, honored Walt Rave’s memory. She said he was an important conscience for Takoma Park in his respect for nonhuman species.

Motion to adopt Resolution 2011-1 Offering Condolences to the Friends of Walt Rave. Moved by Councilmember Grimes, seconded by Councilmember Daniels-Cohen.    (VOTING FOR: Mayor Williams, Councilmember Daniels-Cohen, Councilmember Grimes, Councilmember Male, Councilmember Schultz, Councilmember Seamens, and Councilmember Snipper)

Resolution 2011-1 (attached)

(3) Zoning Montgomery Presentation

City Planner Erkin Ozberk introduced Rollin Stanley, Planning Director, Montgomery County Planning Department, and Pamela Dunn, project manager. Rollin Stanley made the presentation on the rewrite of the Zoning Code. He encouraged the Council to let him know of other groups that may wish to have a presentation. He also offered to have his staff set up in the Atrium so that residents can stop in to review the zoning maps.

(4) Sustainability Coordinator Position

Ms. Matthews presented the two position specifications: one for a sustainability manager that would oversee the City Arborist, the City Engineer, and the Sanitation Division; the other would be a sustainability coordinator. The work plans would be similar, the main difference being the managerial functions.

Ms. Braithwaite noted that the sustainability manager could gather the people who are the backbone of the City’s sustainability efforts to create a team to maximize and coordinate the efforts.

Mr. Williams said he had been a proponent of a contract position because circumstances change and once the program is started, there may be a need to change direction. As we go along, then it may make sense to create an in-house position.

Mr. Male, who served on the Task Force on Environmental Action, said he was most focused on energy and climate change and doing some hard things. The harder challenge is helping the community to take steps. By hiring a firm, there would be access to a depth of experience in figuring out how to address complicated issues. If the focus is to be on the public works related issues, then there may be a benefit to the structure the City Manager recommended.

Ms. Daniels-Cohen said she would like to see a sustainability manager, with permanence and longevity, rather than a contractor that can be easily eliminated. She said that some of her constituents have said they support the sustainability manager rather than a contractor.

Mr. Grimes noted that the Task Force had favored bringing on a City staff member. He said he thought the focus of the coordinator would be an internal City focus and then to partner with those in the community who provide services. He worried that a manager in the Public Works Department would not have authority across City functions. Mr. Grimes said he thinks the person should report to the City Manager or Deputy City Manager.

Mr. Seamens said the proposal on the table varies from what he had in mind when the Council approved the budget. He said that if there is a need for additional Public Works management staff, the Council should address that issue. He favored starting out with a contractor for the sustainability position.

Mr. Schultz said he has not yet made up his mind. In hiring an outside contractor, it is important to have as much specificity as possible in the RFP. He said that the Task Force report points to many different tasks that may benefit from an outside firm, but that may not get us what we want.

He said he favors the manager position over the coordinator position if the person is brought on staff. Creation of a team through this approach may be a good thing. There may be an advantage in having someone become familiar with the community. If a consultant is hired, there may be a loss of continuity when the consultant’s work is completed.

Mr. Snipper said the Task Force did a tremendous amount of work and presented a very good report. The staff went over the report and produced a lot of material reacting to many of the proposals. He said when he envisioned a sustainability coordinator, he envisioned an initial phase where a person or firm would take all the material and develop an implementation plan, with short, medium, and long term goals. It would include what the City should do, what the community should do, a time line, measurement of outcomes, and recognition of budget realities. Once the implementation plan is completed, the Council can pick and choose what to do and get it going. The plan would include what staffing is needed to accomplish the goals. Once that is done, it would shift to an in-house person and discussion of other staffing.

Mr. Snipper said that without a full action plan that includes budget, staffing and performance, it can be very scattershot.

Ms. Matthews commented that there were certainly a number of items where there was not a resource allocation, for example, purchasing the street lights. Technical expertise would be needed in this area. Where the Council wants to go will drive the skill set that we’re looking for. Since there seems to be some uncertainty as to what the Council wants to do, the implementation plan suggested by Councilmember Snipper may be needed. If there is uncertainty, having someone from outside may be a good first step.

She said that an option is to take the Task Force report, figure out what it will cost to implement the recommendations, and determine the best model to move forward. Ms. Matthews suggested that she draft an RFP for the Council to review.

Ms. Daniels-Cohen said she was interested in getting the process moving. She does not want to waste the $150,000 on a firm that will come back with what was already done by the Task Force.

Mr. Male noted that a consultant cannot figure out what the City’s priorities are. The report included recommendations, some of which can be done without hiring a person. He said the area of energy was the subject of many of the discussions of the Task Force. If the City wants to be in the pack (not a leader), an obvious place to work would be on the Mayor’s Climate Protection Agreement. In this economy, you have to justify things and create savings for residents. The goal of the contractor’s job could be to save residents $150,000 on home heating bills. You could hire a firm to develop a public private partnership. There is a clear need for this and there are clear models. Additionally, working on issues around energy would allow the City to hook into State, County, and Federal programs.

Mr. Snipper noted that a lot of the recommendations could be done now, but we need to have good budget information before we decide which to do. He said he would like to have an evaluation built in as well. He observed that City staff are quite stretched and there are not extra staff resources to do what we are talking about. It is important to hire someone who can do these tasks and present the information to the Council for a decision.

Mr. Williams noted that the City has signed on to the Sustainable Maryland Certified program, but does not have the capacity to do the work involved.

Mr. Schultz said that Mr. Male’s points were well taken. If the Council decides that energy conservation and reduction is what we want to do, by making that decision, we are moving in the direction of hiring someone to write the RFPs who understands what other levels of government are doing. It seems to make less and less sense not to hire someone. Someone will need to manage the consultant, and we need to build the staff capacity to get the things done.

Mr. Seamens suggested that the Council needs to better define what it wants to accomplish. He suggested that Councilmembers Male and Snipper prepare an outline of what is to be accomplished so that the Council can decide whether to hire or contract for the work.

Mr. Male commented that the last Council agreed with hiring a sustainability coordinator on a contract bases. He said he would be happy to move forward with hiring a single contractor or a firm. If the Council wishes to narrow the scope of work, it can be done during the process. He said he felt there is enough certitude to move forward. Either option will result in more work by City staff. He said he would be happy to work on something with Councilmember Snipper, but would like to do it in the context of the RFP.

Ms. Daniels-Cohen said she would like to see the Council move forward with either the RFP or the sustainability manager, and is willing to compromise to get this to go forward.

Ms. Braithwaite indicated that she felt a lack of clarity on what the Council wants to accomplish -- internal work or external work.

The Council agreed to hold another discussion to pick what the Council wants to accomplish with the sustainability coordinator contract.

The Council adjourned for the evening at 10:52 p.m.