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Worksession Minutes
November 16, 2009

The meeting was called to order at 7:07 p.m. Present were Mayor Calvo, Mayor Pro Tem Lofgren, CMs Ahrens, Dennison, and Wilkinson. Also present were Town Administrator Murphy, Clerk Harper, Delegate Tawanna Gaines and Gazette Reporter Jordan Attebury.

1. Mayor

Agenda: CM Dennison asked to drop the discussion of school boundaries.

Announcements: Upcoming Park & Planning events include the opening of the Winter Festival at Watkins Regional Park on November 17.  The Maryland Department of Planning launched a new blog, Smart Growth Maryland, which can be viewed at www.mdp.state.md.us. The University of Maryland will host a forum on November 17 on what types of services Prince George's County residents would like to see offered by the Maryland National Park & Planning Commission. A Four Cities Coalition Committee on Homelessness will convene next Sunday, November 22.

Calendar: The following topics were earmarked for discussion at upcoming meetings: Safe Streets Committee recommendations and a noise ordinance for Berwyn Heights.

Minutes: On a motion by CM Ahrens and second by MPT Lofgren, the November 2 worksession minutes were approved 5 to 0.

Department reports:  CM Ahrens reported that the Code and Public Works Department have coordinated their efforts to implement new guidelines on trash collection. The Code Department is busy informing residents about the changes. CM Dennison announced the Tree Lighting on December 5 and the Decorating Contest on December 20 - 23. She attended the PTA board meeting and Education Advisory Committee (EAC) meetings. The EAC meeting was preceded by a book night featuring science fair projects you can eat. MPT Lofgren reported that Public Works has been busy collecting leaves and were assisted by resident Bob Angell in preparing the snow cleaning equipment for use. Public Works will also prepare the spruce behind the Town Office for the Tree Lighting ceremony. CM Wilkinson reported that the Council received a letter of support from the PTA for adopting the Speed Camera Ordinance. He noted that one of the furnaces in the Town Office needs to be replaced. The financing of a new furnace was added to the agenda under Administration.

Mayor Calvo said that TA Murphy briefed him on the last Town meeting, and wanted to respond to issues that had come up. He said that Town and County code are at odds over where commercial vehicles should be parked. Town code requires that they are parked on the owner's property at night while County rules forbid it. He has spoken about it to the inspector responsible for this area, who agreed that Town rules should prevail in the Town and agreed that County inspectors would not enforce County rules in the Town unless requested to do so.

Mayor Calvo commented on the issue of zoning enforcement also raised at the Town meeting. He explained that some homes in Berwyn Heights have been illegally converted from single-family to multi-family homes. Only two have been officially recognized by the County zoning office as non-conforming uses. The other multi-family homes contravene the residential zoning applicable for most of Berwyn Heights. As the County has long neglected to enforce residential zoning regulations, the Town has been left to deal with the emergence of rental homes that house multiple tenants or families. Unable to enforce zoning regulations, the Town is issuing rental licenses to regulate them, which it is permitted to do. MPT Lofgren noted that he pointed out at the Town meeting that the Town is doing its own code enforcement because the County has failed to enforce theirs.

Mayor Calvo further reported that College Park and Greenbelt recently elected new councils. He had the opportunity to congratulate the new mayor of College Park, Andrew Fellows, and other newly elected councilmembers. He also met with Andrew Fellows and former College Park Mayor Stephen Brayman to talk about the school boundary issue. Both cities sent letters to the Board of Education that supported each others positions. In other news, another break-in occurred today. Residents are urged to make sure their doors are locked.

Citizen comments: CM Wilkinson received an e-mail opposing his suggestion to raise the rental licensing fee. The Town office received a complaint about construction materials not being collected as part of regular trash collection. CM Dennison received a lot of positive feedback on the Halloween Party. MPT Lofgren received a request to have Public Works remove a dead tree branch that overhangs a sidewalk at the corner of Pontiac Street and 63rd Avenue. Mayor Calvo received a complaint from a resident, who had an altercation with a neighbor, and was dissatisfied with the police's response. He received a comment from a resident, who has frequent noise problems with a neighbor, and an inquiry about declaring November prostate cancer awareness month. He received a 22 point e-mail about speed cameras, alternatives for making school zones safer, questioning the benefits of re-opening the school, the Town's sponsorship of a karate club and the latest Metroland developments. Another comment was from a resident about the sanitary conditions of a rental unit, where she used to live.

Speed Camera Ordinance: MPT Lofgren summarized the adoption of the Speed Camera Ordinance for Mayor Calvo who was absent at that meeting. He said that most comments were in favor and one against speed camera monitoring. A representative of OptoTraffic, Mickey Shepherd, gave a presentation on the results of the speed study his company did for the Town in locations for which speed cameras are proposed. The data stopped most discussion because it clearly shows that there is a serious speeding problem in front of the school.

Mayor Calvo said, that with the Ordinance adopted, the Council needs to begin working on implementation. This requires choosing a vendor, declaring school zones, and clarifying the times during which the 15 mph speed limit in a school zone applies. Most incidents of speeding occur during rush hour, which only in part overlaps with school hours, and therefore is only in part subject to a 15 mph speed limit. Currently, Berwyn Heights police enforces the 15 mph speed limit from 8:30 am to 4:00 p.m., which includes time for students to walk to and from school. Before and after that time, a 25 mph speed limit applies. Thus going 27 to 37 mph would not be a violation before 8:30 am and after 4:00 p.m. but would be a violation during school hours. The study also showed a high percentage of speeding on Edmonston Road, where the current speed limit is 25 mph. No speed study was done for Greenbelt Road, where the current speed limit is 35 mph when Greenbelt Middle School is in session. Here, a speed camera could be operated between 62nd Avenue and Kenilworth Avenue for the east-bound lanes only, provided SHA permits it.

Mayor Calvo asked if there are any objections to the three school zones discussed so far or proposals for additional school zones.

  • Greenbelt Road: Council agreed to request permission from SHA for speed camera enforcement. A 35 mph school zone already exists.

  • Edmonston Road: Council agreed to adopt a resolution declaring Edmonston Road between Seminole and Pontiac Streets a school zone. The speed limit would remain unchanged at 25 mph. Per Council Rule 17, residents in a 2 block area of the road must be notified of the proposed change between 45 and 14 days prior to enactment.

  • Pontiac Street: After some deliberation, Council agreed to extend the current school zone to the east from 63rd Avenue to Edmonston Road and to the west from 60th to 58th Avenue. Speed limits were left at 25 mph between 60th and 58th Avenue and lowered to 15 mph between 63rd Avenue and Edmonston Road.

At 8:30 p.m., the Council took a 10 minute break.

CM Wilkinson proposed to declare 63rd Avenue between Pontiac and Tecumseh Streets a school zone, but not for purposes of setting up speed cameras. Mayor Calvo cautioned against including a 63rd Avenue school zone into the same notice as the Edmonston Road school zone. It may lead people to believe that the Town plans to set up cameras all throughout Town. He has the same reservation with respect to the extension of the school zone to 58th Avenue. He suggested declaring these school zones at a later date so as to avoid their being connected with speed cameras. CMs Dennison and Ahrens agreed that the focus should be on the areas discussed so far. MPT Lofgren said that he also would want to avoid confusing the issue, or give residents the impression that the Town wants to set up as many speed cameras as possible to raise revenues. On the other hand, it may be easier to declare all school zones at once.

At 8:45 p.m., CM Ahrens left the meeting

Mayor Calvo said that including new school zones might trigger a backlash against speed cameras. He believes that the presence of signs announcing photo radar will have the largest effect on reducing speeding in Town. A small, targeted speed camera program is sufficient to have a moderating effect Town-wide. He proposed to stick with declaring only Edmonston Road North a school zone and leave any others for later. CM Wilkinson said that school zone and camera issues cannot be entirely separated. But he does not think it is too confusing. Even if there is some backlash, notification is part of an open, democratic decision making process. In a straw poll, Mayor Calvo and CM Dennison were initially in favor of a limited action. MPT Lofgren and CM Wilkinson favored including the extension of the Pontiac Street school zone as part of the same notification. Mayor Calvo then agreed to include the Pontiac Street extension. This was approved in a 4 to 0 vote. 

Refuse Collection Ordinance: Mayor Calvo asked TA Murphy to highlight the changes he made to the Refuse Collection Ordinance since the last discussion. TA Murphy said that the revisions include the comments of the Code and Public Works Directors and incorporate some provisions found in the refuse ordinances of neighboring municipalities. No changes have yet been made to the fine schedule.

TA Murphy said that a number of changes were made to Section 2 – Definitions to better differentiate between the different types of refuse and include items not previously listed. He also sought to clarify how the different types of refuse should be discarded. For example, the revised Ordinance would require all household refuse to be stored in a container with a lid until collected.  Storage in plastics bags would no longer be allowed. Electronic recyclables can now be brought to a special County facility which is equipped to handle them. The Council needs to decide how electronics should be collected and disposed. The list of hazardous and other materials that will not be accepted for collection was expanded. It includes automotive fluids, sealants, solvents and paints, herbicides, insecticides, other toxic chemicals as well as pressurized containers, such as helium and propane tanks and fire extinguishers. Under yard waste, bamboo is now designated as not acceptable because it is invasive.

TA Murphy continued that he made few changes to Section 3 – Refuse Collection Schedule. Council may want to take the schedule out of the ordinance and put it in a resolution so that it can be changed more easily when needed. Mayor Calvo agreed. MPT Lofgren added that the same should be done with the Fee Schedule in Section 5. TA Murphy said that Section 4 outlines residents' responsibilities as to how to dispose of their trash. This includes what type of container should be used for trash disposal (45 gallons) and where containers must be placed for collection and for storage (behind the residence front building line). All residents are now required to recycle, using designated recycling containers or cardboard boxes. The disposal of yard waste and loose leaves follows established rules but the Town is no longer bound to collect them. Appliances as well as tires continue to be collected by appointment and after payment of a fee. Building, construction and remodeling waste are not accepted, nor are motor vehicle parts. Section 8 – Collection License was added to limit refuse collection to individuals and firms licensed, employed or contracted by the Town. Scavenging is no longer permissible. Section 9 defines refuse violations, and establishes fining and abatement procedures. This section may also be taken out of the Ordinance so that it can be changed more easily. Section 10 – Right to Appeal was revised to be in accord with appeals process outlines in other ordinances recently amended. Sections 11 - 14 are standard in most recently-amended Town ordinances.

Mayor Calvo commented that, once a term has been defined in Section 2, the definition does not have to be repeated in other sections, such as is the case with appliances in Section 4-H. Vice versa, definitions should not be proscriptive and describe how certain types of refuse should be collected. The Ordinance should have a provision to deal with the setting out of large piles of stuff when tenants leave or are evicted. It should be spelled out that it is the landlord's responsibility to remove any left behind property of tenants. If it is set out at the curb authority should be given to the Public Works Director to assess it, remove it quickly and collect a fee, if necessary by placing a lien on the property. Mayor Calvo said that the requirement to store trash containers behind the front building line is too strict. He suggested instead to require that the containers be stored neatly and safely away from the street. Further, the recycling provision should be changed to say that recyclables may be set out in any container or bag that can itself be recycled, such as paper bags. Section 8 may be unconstitutional. The Town can probably not prohibit persons from scavenging items that have been discarded. A better way to handle scavenging may be to require that people from out of Town picking up items register with the Town. Mayor Calvo said that the section on violations and fines needs more work. Violations that have not been enforced, such as leaving containers at the curb too long, may need to be taken out. If this activity to be included as a violation it should be enforced.

CM Dennison commented that the term “putrescible” used for decomposing garbage should be replaced with a more recognizable one. Bamboo should not be excluded from collection, provided it is properly bundled. The definition of recyclables should include recyclable plastics. The Town should verify that it can require residents to recycle. CM Wilkinson commented that the definition for recycling receptacle should be refined, and the difference between bulk refuse and special collection materials clarified. TA Murphy explained special collection materials refers to bulk refuse in excess of 3 cubic yards that must be assessed by the Director and scheduled for collection. Bulk refuse refers to a limited number of large individual items, such as pieces of furniture, doors or windows. CM Wilkinson further recommended formulate rules regarding the disposal of potentially hazardous animal parts, such as deer heads and other remnants of game. Sidewalks should be added to the areas where loose leaves should not be raked for collection. Paper bags should be considered as a replacement for see-through plastic bags for the collection of yard waste. TA Murphy explained that Public Works prefers plastic bags because paper bags tend to disintegrate in heavy rains. Mayor Calvo added that the Town may want to consider banning plastic bags as College Park and Greenbelt have done.

Mayor Calvo asked TA Murphy to incorporate today's revisions into the Ordinance for another round of revisions at a following worksession. He will prepare several policy issues, on which the Council may disagree, for decision.

Nothing was discussed under 2. Public Safety and 3. Public Works.

4. Administration

ICC Compensatory Mitigation and Environmental Stewardship Projects: MPT Lofgren said that resident Pat Blankenship at the last Town meeting asked the Council to write a letter opposing the proposed SHA's deletion and downgrading of a number of projects intended to mitigate the environmental impact of the Inter-County Connector (ICC). However, he believes the detailed letter that County Councilmember Dernoga sent, a copy of which Ms. Blankenship provided, is sufficient. At this point, the Town does not have enough knowledge about the projects to take a well grounded position.

Mayor Calvo commented that, while he supports the ICC, it appears that SHA wants to build the highway as cheaply as possible and has dropped many worthwhile upgrades. The chief complaint in Dernoga's letter is that higher standards of environmental protection are applied in Montgomery County than in Prince George's County, as most of the dropped projects are in Prince George's County. However, he doubts whether the Council has enough information now, or can learn enough about the issue to send a good letter by the end of the comment period, this Thursday. CM Dennison agreed.

CM Wilkinson suggested contacting County Councilmember Eric Olson's office to learn more about the issue. TA Murphy said that the downgraded and deleted projects were mostly intended to mitigate environmental impacts on the Indian Creek. Mayor Calvo said that he would support writing a short letter simply objecting to SHA's decision not to protect Indian Creek without going into project details. CM Dennison so moved. CM Wilkinson seconded. The motion was approved 4 to 0.

Furnace replacement (added item): TA Murphy explained that one of the furnaces operating in the Town administration building needs to be replaced because it shuts off regularly, probably because of internal rusting. The estimate of the Town's current HVAC contractor for the purchase and installation of a new furnace is $3,200. This could be paid out of the Maintenance & Repair budget, which has $11,000. Mayor Calvo asked for a motion to authorize CM Wilkinson to spend up to $3,400 for a new furnace. CM Dennison seconded. The motion passed 5 to 0.

Nothing was discussed under 5. Code Compliance or 6. Parks & Recreation.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:15 p.m.

Signed: Kerstin Harper, Town Clerk


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