Dear Neighbors:
The City Council meeting on Wednesday, December 9 will be the last meeting this year. The next meeting will take place on January 13, and there will also be a half-day Council priorities “retreat” on Saturday, January 16. This week’s Council meeting has two parts. First there will be a discussion with our Maryland State delegation (Sen. Smith and Dels. Moon, Wilkins and Charkoudian) on Takoma Park’s priorities for the Annapolis legislative session which starts next month. When that discussion concludes, we’ll commence our regular Council meeting. You can see background information on both of this week’s sessions through the following links:
State Legislative Priorities: https://takomaparkmd.gov/meeting_agendas/joint-priorities-meeting-wednesday-december-9-2020/
Regular Council Meeting: https://takomaparkmd.gov/meeting_agendas/city-council-meeting-agenda-wednesday-december-9-2020/The agenda for the regular meeting includes a vote on the Library renovation/expansion, specifically a resolution directing City staff and our architect to move forward on preparing the construction documents for the project. There will also be votes on appointments to the Grants Review Committee and a resolution on the Council’s holiday schedule. For more information on these matters see below. Residents can sign up to provide public comments, including on State legislative priorities or other meeting agenda items here: LINK TO SIGN UP TO COMMENT - MUST SIGN UP BY 5 PM ON THE DAY OF THE MEETING
COVID INFORMATION
The Takoma Park COVID-19 Dashboard has been updated with new data as of December 4. Key data points provided by City staff include:
· 47 new cases reported in Takoma Park for a total of 869 cumulative cases
· Clear upward trend of 141 cases reported in November, compared to 58 in October and 43 in September
· 2 new deaths in the 20910 zip code; no new deaths in 20912
· 30-39 year-old age group continues to have the highest number of reported cases
· New graph on the dashboard showing the 7-day average number of new cases per 100K residents compared to the County also shows the upward trend.
· 161 people were tested in the Sligo Adventist Church Parking lot this past Wednesday. This outdoor site will be closing soon due to cold temperatures, but is expected to be in operation this Wednesday from 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM (weather dependent).
· 167 people were tested indoors at the Takoma Park Recreation Center on New Hampshire Avenue on Saturday. This site just opened as a cold weather alternative. Testing will be available every Saturday through the winter from 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Testing is free and no appointments are needed.
You can see details on the testing schedules at other County sites here: https://montgomerycountymd.gov/covid19/testing.html. County officials have indicated there’s a likelihood of delays in receiving test results as a result of holiday testing surges. Please wear your masks when you’re out in public!
KEY UPDATES FROM LAST WEEK’S COUNCIL MEETING
Contracts for Public Safety Task Force facilitator and City Manager search firm. The Council approved both of these contracts on 7 - 0 votes. LINK Strategic Partners will be handling the facilitation for the Reimaging Public Safety work, and the Novak Consulting Group will be coordinating the City Manager search efforts.
Housing and Community Development Department Director position. The Council voted to remove this position from the budget “hold” list, meaning it can be advertised and filled. The hold list, which has over $1 million in it, includes funding -- mainly for sidewalk and street repair plus other personnel slots -- which is being held in reserve for potential use in our COVID response. I had some doubts about removing this position from the hold list, because we haven’t developed a clear approach to deciding how and when to access funds on the list. My preference would be to have more details on local COVID needs and, based on that data, establish a process for tapping into the hold list funds. In the end, though, I decided to join my colleagues in the unanimous vote in favor of this move on the HCD position for two reasons. First, the HCD Director can play a lead role in helping ensure we’re able to create a clearer process for assessing our COVID needs and accessing hold funds, and I’ll be pushing for that to happen. Second, we’ve gotten word the City is in line to receive approximately $400,000 in reimbursements for COVID relief spending, and I’m recommending that those funds (which are more than twice the pay and benefits for the HCD Director position) be rolled into our existing COVID relief fund.
Resolution Extending Use of Public and Private Space. I was pleased to join all my Council colleagues in voting to extend this authorization, which includes the closure of one lane of Laurel Avenue. It was scheduled to expire at the end of this month, but with the pandemic still preventing much typical in-person commercial activity, we agreed to set a new deadline of September 30. While we could alter the program prior to that date, my hope is that by then the pandemic will be sufficiently under control that we’ll be able to consider whether further extensions un-connected to COVID may be warranted.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Virtual Meeting with Police on Car Break-ins -- Wednesday, December 16, 7:30 PM. In response to the concerns many in the community have expressed about the recent rash of car break-ins that have taken place in our area, there will be a virtual meeting for Ward One residents with representatives of the Police Department, Mayor Stewart and me to discuss this problem and strategies for responding. Registration details will be shared separately.
City Manager Comments. You can see Suzanne Ludlow’s official comments from last week’s Council meeting, which included COVID information and holiday closure details for City offices, here: https://documents.takomaparkmd.gov/government/city-manager/city-manager-comments/2020/City%20Manager%20Comments%20_%2012.02.2020.pdf
Friends of the Library Annual Holiday Book Sale. This year’s sale is being conducted virtually. You can shop at the online collection of over 800 new and used books. Books are priced to sell at $3 each or 10 for $25. The sale is open to Friends members now and others on December 11. To shop during the members-only period join the Friends or renew your membership. Information on how to access the book sale will be sent via email to members.
Police Department Holiday Toy Drive and Winter Coat Drive. The Police are accepting toys and gift cards for children ages 2 - 12 through December 23: https://takomaparkmd.gov/news-alert/help-tppd-bring-joy-this-holiday-season-donate-unwrapped-toys-cash-giftcards/. And in partnership with Adventist Community Services, they are also collecting clean, gently used warm coats in any size from infant to adult through December 18: https://takomaparkmd.gov/news-alert/winter-coat-drive-begins-monday-november-4/. They will also accept clean, gently used gloves/mittens and scarves.
Takoma Park Community Police Academy -- Applications Due December 23. https://takomaparkmd.gov/government/police/community-policing/community-police-academy/. The Academy begins January 5 and will be run via Zoom. It’s a 14-week program with classes on Tuesdays from 7:00 - 9:00 PM. Participants will gain insight into how law enforcement officers perform their duties on such topics as patrol, traffic enforcement, use of force, criminal investigations, canine, firearms, crisis negotiation, etc. It’s free to those who are 16 or older, live or work in Takoma Park, and don’t have serious misdemeanors or any felony offenses. Seats are limited to the first 25 students on a first come/first serve basis. Contact Public Information Officer Cathy Plevy, at 301-891-7142 or cathyp@takomaparkmd.gov.
Takoma Insider. The latest Insider has details on the above announcements, plus COVID information, Recreation Department activities, holiday trash pick-up schedules and more. https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?shva=1#search/takoma+inside/FMfcgxwKjnRntNgjlcMHkkMfqcGHVPdK
VOTING SESSION
Library Information and Resolution: https://documents.takomaparkmd.gov/government/city-council/agendas/2020/council-20201209-1.pdf
Library Presentation Including Proposed Design and Cost Estimates: https://documents.takomaparkmd.gov/government/city-council/agendas/2020/Meeting-Documents/Takoma-Park-Library-Replacement.pdf
Introduction. I wrote a lengthy description of my views on the Library plan in July for my City Council blog, which you can see by clicking on the following link and scrolling down to Library Exterior Design: http://www.councilmemberkovar.com/blog/2020/7/6/agenda-for-july-8-2020-city-council-meeting. That statement is still a good general summary of my thoughts.
In last week’s meeting, City staff and the architects made a detailed presentation (see the above link) on the Library Project. Among the key takeaways from that presentation was that, taking into account the construction costs calculated by the independent estimator, it appears the project can be completed within the existing budget. That budget comprises $7 million the City borrowed through the State bonding process several years ago and up to $2.8 million in grants ($300,000 in State grants and the remainder in surplus cable TV grant funds).
While I supporter the Library project, as noted in my July blog one of my goals has been limiting direct City costs for the project to the State bond, which we’re scheduled to pay off over 30 years with interest. So I was glad to learn that at present the budget looks sufficient to do that. Of course, we would only know for sure when construction firms actually submit bids.
The Council will be voting this week on a resolution directing City staff and the architects to prepare the construction/bid documents, a process which would take several months. Under this scenario if the resolution is approved this week there wouldn’t be another Council vote until after we receive the bids. So this week’s vote is obviously very important.
From my perspective, even though the project is within the budget constraints at this point, there are some areas of concern with respect to the design that I’d like to see addressed or on which I’d like to get clarification, including aspects of the project on which we may be able to save construction costs. So, I’ll be exploring the issues outlined below before this week’s vote, and I may offer amendments to the resolution aimed at addressing some of them on Wednesday.
Overall Cost. Page 43 of the presentation details the major components of the project and their costs. These include in addition to the Library construction work (with escalation and contingency funds built in), design costs, further green building improvements, furniture purchases, permit fees, moving and storage during construction, and the hiring of a construction manager. Taken together, those components of the project are estimated to cost out at $9.3 million or about $500,000 under the available budget.
As outlined in previous Council meetings and in my blogs, that construction plan includes not only the Library expansion, but also some reorganization of areas within the Community Center, making up about 10 percent of the estimated construction costs. To be specific, that’s the Lounge and MacLab construction, the Recreation Department renovation, and the bathroom renovations. This information is on page 6 of the presentation, and page 44 shows the entire floor plan.
I’ve stated in the past that these Community Center elements were more optional, and if it looked like we were going to be over budget, we could forego some of them. Though we’re estimated to be within our budget limits, I still think it’s a good idea to consider whether to go ahead with these components. If we can scale back any of them, we could either save money or conceivably allocate more funding to green construction.
Green Construction. I was pleased to learn in last week’s meeting that -- based in part on input from local experts -- we should be able to add some valuable additional green construction features to the project. I’ll be supporting efforts to maximize green building elements and energy efficiency, again consistent with the idea of staying within the overall budget for the project.
Tree Preservation. The earlier plans had called for the loss of only one mature tree in the space between the Library building and Philadelphia Avenue. So I was disappointed to learn last week that -- owing to challenges related to utility cable placement in that area -- the plans now call for taking down several mature trees there. I’ll be pressing for us to make sure every possible alternative to these tree losses is fully explored.
Children’s Garden. The small garden, maintained by a group of City residents, would be eliminated under the current design, largely because of the addition of a proposed new pathway and entrance to the Library on the Maple Avenue side of the structure, an idea that has been recommended by a number of residents. I think that entrance is a good idea, but I’d still like to see us preserve the garden somewhere at the Community Center site, and I’m hoping to include language to that effect in the resolution.
Clerestory. This architectural feature, designed to bring more light into the main reading room, was a late addition to the design and not something previously discussed by the Council. It may be a positive idea, but I’d like to have a clearer idea of its cost and how essential it may be.
Council check-ins. Because the Council wouldn’t be expected to vote again on the project prior to the bid process, I think it’s important that the staff and architects check in with us at regular intervals as the construction documents are prepared. I don’t doubt that will occur, but I think it would helpful to have it written into the resolution with a specific frequency.
Grants Committee Appointments: https://documents.takomaparkmd.gov/government/city-council/agendas/2020/council-20201209-3.pdf. The Council has decided to hold off on most resident committee appointments through the first half of this coming year while we consider strategies for improving diversity in committee membership. There are exceptions to that moratorium for situations where additional appointments are necessary to allow committees to function or if appointments may help promote more diversity in committee membership. So I’ll be reviewing the proposed appointments with those points in mind.
City Council Recess Resolution: The resolution has not yet been posted, but as noted above the City Council will be in recess after this week, resuming our meetings on January 13.
How to watch City Council meetings: the public may view Council meetings on City TV (RCN – 13, HD 1060; Comcast/xfinity – 13, HD 997; Verizon Fios – 28), on the City Council Video Page of the City Website; on YouTube, or on Facebook.
Register for City Alerts and Updates: https://takomaparkmd.gov/sign-up/. You can sign up for various City alerts, including Police bulletins, Council updates, and the Takoma Insider. In addition, if you’d prefer to receive this blog directly instead of through your neighborhood email list, you can sign up here: http://www.councilmemberkovar.com/.
As always, please be in touch with questions and comments about any topics covered in this blog. I hope everyone has an enjoyable and safe holiday season!
Peter Kovar, Takoma Park City Council, Ward One
240-319-6281;www.councilmemberkovar.com
(He, Him, His)
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