Town of Berwyn Heights

Worksession Minutes

September 5, 2006

The meeting was called to order at 7:03 p.m. Present were Mayor Calvo, CMs Dennison, Gourley, Jewitt and Lofgren. CM Jewitt arrived at 7: 18 p.m. due to work-related reasons. Also present were Town Administrator Murphy, Clerk Harper, Mary Burch and citizens.

1. Mayor

Announcements: Maryland primary elections will take place on September 12. Berwyn Heights residents will vote at Berwyn Heights Elementary School. The Ice Cream Social will be held on September 15 at 7:00 p.m. at the Town Center.

Calendar: A Halloween children's party was added for October 28. The Council will attend the Maryland Municipal League (MML) fall legislative conference, which will set 2007 MML legislative priorities.

Minutes: On a motion by CM Gourley and second by CM Dennison, the August 21 worksession minutes were adopted 5 to 0 with corrections. The August 9 Town Meeting minutes were reviewed for adoption at the September 13 Town meeting.

Department reports: CM Lofgren reported that the Public Works crew marked the no-parking areas in front of fire hydrants, applied herbicides to underbrush along Ballew Avenue and the 60^th Avenue walkway, had the school flasher repaired and contractors remove branches obstructing power lines on Cunningham Drive. Director Coleman is considering action against the sand and gravel business Branchville Road because of frequent spills from their trucks. Employee Mike McConnell gained approval to peruse WSSC's maps of water and sewer lines but the Town would first have to invest in expensive software to be able to access the system. In response to Mayor Calvo, CM Lofgren said he would ask Director Coleman about the status of removing graffiti from poles along Greenbelt Road.

CM Dennison reported that Town committees are reconvening after the summer break. Upcoming events include a September 15 Ice Cream Social and an October 28 Halloween party. The date for the December Tree lighting will be set soon. TA Murphy said that business licenses as well as notices to pay delinquent personal property tax bills have been mailed. CM Gourley reported that he has received an offer to repair the shed behind the Town Center and that he will work with TA Murphy on upgrading the Town's credit cards.

CM Jewitt reported that Charles Hall of 56^th Avenue has been hired as the new part time Code Enforcement Officer. Kap Kapastin, representative of Quantum Corporation, which manages the Staples/Blockbuster property, took action to remove election signs along Greenbelt Road after being notified by TA Murphy. An unlicensed rental property today paid $3,400 of $4,600 in outstanding fines. The property is in the process of being licensed.

Mayor Calvo reported that the 1993 police cruiser was sold to a retrofitting business for $2,000 in accordance with policy. Chief Murphy is in the process of hiring a 7^th police officer and is reviewing applications for an 8^th officer for the Commercial District authorized for January 2007. Further, Chief Murphy tracked down a motorist speeding and passing on Edmonston Road based on a license plate number supplied by Mayor Calvo. A 75 year old Greenbelt woman admitted to the offense and apologized. Mayor Calvo and CM Jewitt attended the Berwyn Heights Elementary School's Hello Huskies back to school picnic hosted by the PTA. The PTA thanked the Town for proclaiming September PTA month and appropriating $3,000 for the artist-in-residence program. CM Dennison noted that Councilmembers may become members of the PTA.

Citizen Comments: CM Jewitt received comments about mistakes in the September Bulletin regarding the Maryland primaries and about broadcasting an outdated worksession. CM Dennison received a comment regarding a hearing on a special exception for Best Pawn shop.

Mike Attick of 62^nd Avenue commented that, if the trucks spilling sand and gravel belong to a Branchville Road business, the County could be asked to clean up, as Branchville Road is a County road. TA Murphy has drafted a letter requesting the business to clean up. Mr. Attick asked whether the Town provides assistance to residents with serious health limitations during power outages, as reported in the July 12 Town Meeting minutes. Mayor Calvo said he believes he said that citizens with a medical condition should notify the Town. Mr. Attick said he was not aware of this policy but that citizens with health limitations could ask PEPCO to be placed on a priority list for restoring power.

2. Public Works (discussed out of order)

Recycling contract: Mayor Calvo welcomed Mary Burch of Burch Trash Service, Inc, the Town's recycling contractor. He explained that Burch Trash Service sent a letter asking the Town to approve a change in the recycling pickup day from Thursday to Saturday. Because Burch Trash has been awarded a contract to pick up recyclables for 12,000 homes, Burch can no longer provide recycling service to Berwyn Heights, unless the Town agrees to the change the pick up day from Thursday to Saturday.

Mary Burch said that her company signed a contract with the County, which makes it difficult to fit Berwyn Heights into the weekday schedule. It takes 4 – 5 hours to pick up recyclables in Berwyn Heights because the per capita recycling rate per household is very high.

Mayor Calvo said that a high recycling rate is a good thing. He noted that the recycling fee has recently been raised to $4.00 per month per housing unit, or $48 per year, and that Berwyn Heights has always paid its bills promptly. Further, the Town has been a 10-year customer of Burch Trash Service and should have deserved some consideration. Also, a change in the collection day would require a lengthy re-education campaign and would probably reduce the recycling volume. CM Jewitt added that Burch Trash Service is penalizing Berwyn Heights for being good recyclers because it has become inconvenient to pick up. The County contract is given preference because it is more lucrative.

Ms. Burch said that her company does not want to lose Berwyn Heights as a customer and therefore has offered a different day. If Berwyn Heights should decide to find a new recycling contractor Burch Trash will continue its service until new arrangements have been made. Mayor Calvo thanked Ms. Burch for coming.

TA Murphy said that he has an offer from a contractor serving as County Trash/Recycling Collector in District 5 to pick up recyclables in Berwyn Heights for the same price. The service would continue to be on Thursdays. Mayor Calvo said that the Town should ask for a contract when signing up with a new contractor. CM Jewitt moved to formally end the relationship with Burch Trash Service and enter into an agreement with the District 5 recycling contractor, ensuring that there is no lapse in service. CM Gourley seconded. TA Murphy explained that it may take a couple of months before the paperwork for a formal County contract can be signed. CM Jewitt asked for a written agreement in the interim, specifying the pickup date and price. The motion was approved 5 to 0.

1. Mayor (continued)

Commercial Clean Lot Ordinance: Mayor Calvo explained that a newly drafted Commercial Clean Lot Ordinance differs from the residential version mainly in its more stringent compliance provisions. Owners of commercial enterprises need not be granted the same courtesies and lead times for addressing violations and paying fines. A business may get one warning to comply, but once identified as a problem property, should be fined immediately.

TA Murphy said that the Commercial Clean Lot Ordinance is based on the residential version and highlighted the differences. These include a statement of purpose and authority (Section 1); subjecting all areas taxed as commercial property to the Ordinance's standards (Section 2); several new and refined definitions (Section 4); and different compliance periods (Section 7). The standard compliance period would be 15 days from notice of a violation before imposition of a fine and 5 days from notice of a violation, in the case of a high grass or litter violation.

Mayor Calvo commented 1) that fines should be imposed immediately once a property has been identified as a repeat offender or problem property, with the possible exception of violations pertaining to building repairs; 2) that standards for industrial properties should be differentiated from those of commercial properties; and 3) that standards for industrial properties should be phased in. CM Lofgren said that County ordinances should be consulted before finalizing the Berwyn Heights' Commercial Clean Lot Ordinance and that standards for industrial properties should be pragmatic.

CM Jewitt commented that the draft Ordinance is a good effort but that the Code Director should have been involved in the drafting. Mayor Calvo replied that TA Murphy drafted the Ordinance at his request. Time was too short for a collaborative effort. The first draft is intended to be a starting point of discussions and input will be obtained from all staff affected by the Ordinance before introduction. CM Jewitt said that he does not object to the Town Administrator taking the lead but that the drafting process should include those Directors and staff who would be primarily responsible for enforcing the Ordinance.

CM Dennison suggested that the Commercial District Management Authority (CDMA) be consulted. She also questioned whether the Code Director has the training to identify structural problems in buildings and effectively enforce the code. Further, the Director may not have sufficient time to take on enforcement of another set of regulations. Mayor Calvo replied that the Director is already enforcing commercial clean lot standards and that the new Ordinance would give her new tools with which to enforce them. CM Lofgren clarified that in the absence of a local Ordinance, County ordinances should be applied in commercial zones. Mayor Calvo noted that regulation of election signs is another item that should be addressed in the Ordinance. Deliberation of the Ordinance will continue at the next worksession.

Safe Streets Committee: Mayor Calvo referred Councilmembers to a mission statement he drafted for a proposed Safe Streets Committee. The statement lays out a framework of operations. The Committee would have 12 members to be appointed by the Town Council, of which 5 would be representatives of Town organizations and 7 ad hoc members. Another 3 would be liaisons from the Departments of Public Works and Police and from the Volunteer Fire and Rescue Squad. The Mayor would act as Town Council liaison. The Committee would review a variety of traffic calming measures, hold public hearings, consult with interested parties, publicly deliberate and, by June 2007, propose a comprehensive plan to improve traffic safety and mitigate pass through traffic and speeding. Funding of up to $500,000 would be made available for the recommended solutions, using half of the Metroland compensation.

CM Jewitt commented that this is a very good first draft. The appropriation of funds to implement traffic calming measures would give teeth to this effort and should make it easier to recruit members. CM Dennison said that it might be difficult to find a time slot for the monthly meetings that works for all members, especially representatives of Town organizations. She also has names of several residents who would be interested to sit on the Committee. CM Gourley thought that 12 members might be too many to work effectively together, but did not realize that representatives from Town organizations were included in the number.

CM Lofgren thought that the Committee's charge is too narrow. It does not permit identifying solutions to yet unknown problems resulting from the Metroland development. Instead it focuses on a number of specific traffic management techniques. To better reflect a broader charge for the Committee, he proposed that it be renamed Traffic Study Committee and as one of its first tasks study traffic patterns and monitor the impact of Metroland. Further, he recommended taking out the reference to a specific appropriation. The Committee's recommendations should not be driven by available funds. Instead the Town Council should evaluate the feasibility and cost of the Committee's proposals and change them as needed.

Mayor Calvo agreed that these are good points. Nonetheless, he would like the Committee to produce a set of specific recommendations for the traffic problems identified. Funding could be appropriated with the understanding that changes can be made. CM Dennison said that half of the Metroland compensation may not be enough to carry out proposed projects. CM Jewitt reiterated that the Council still needs to find a way to motivate residents to join the Committee and give weight to its proposals if money is not explicitly appropriated.

Mike Attick commented that the Council should not appropriate more than $250,000 towards the implementation of a traffic safety plan. He also cautioned about potentially high maintenance costs of infrastructure improvements, which may require a larger Public Works staff.

Mayor Calvo said he will incorporate the comments into a revised statement which will be considered at the next worksession along with a draft resolution. Recruitment of members would proceed with a notice in the October Bulletin. If the Resolution establishing the Committee is adopted at the October Town Meeting, a Committee could be up and running by November.

School Facilities Planning Task Force: Mayor Calvo explained that a School Facilities Planning Task Force has been mandated by the County Council as part of the approval process for the Greenbelt Metro Development. The Task Force is charged with making recommendations regarding an anticipated increase in the school age population associated with Metroland, Springhill Lake and Greenbelt Town Center (Beltway Plaza) redevelopment. Apart from the developers, the stakeholder cities of Berwyn Heights, College Park, and Greenbelt have been invited to participate on the Task Force. A Councilmember or other person designated by the Council should serve on it. CM Dennison expressed interest in serving on the Task Force. TA Murphy was tasked with finding out more details.

Best Pawn: TA Murphy explained that a hearing for a Special Exception from Prince George's County zoning provisions for Best Pawn Shop will be held on September 14 at 9 a.m. at the County Administration Building. A special exception would allow Best Pawn Shop to open a shop on Greenbelt Road at the entrance to the Washington Post printing plant. Mayor Calvo said that the Council has taken a formal position to oppose the opening of the pawn shop and recommended sending the Town attorney to represent the Town at the meeting. If the cities of College Park and Greenbelt are also sending attorneys, the Town might explore pooling legal representation. However, several hundred dollars needsto be set aside for attorney fees. There were no objections.

No items were discussed under Administration, Code Enforcement, Parks and Recreation or Public Safety.

7. Executive Session (9:47 – 10:35 p.m.)

CM Gourley moved to go into executive session regarding 2 personnel matters. CM Dennison seconded. The motion passed 5 to 0. With matters discussed, CM Gourley moved to close the executive session. CM Dennison seconded. The motion passed 5 to 0.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:36 p.m.

Kerstin Harper, Town Clerk