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On September 26th, we will be taking up our bill we've introduced with Council President Nancy Navarro and Vice President Sidney Katz to improve oversight of taxpayer dollars by requiring a regular and rotating review of all County departments and agreements. The GO Committee starts at 2:00PM. To tune in, click here.
Among our most fundamental responsibilities in government is ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent effectively, appropriately, and efficiently. By providing our independent Inspector General’s Office the tools she and her office require to do this work, they will be better positioned to proactively address financial risk and to prevent waste, fraud and abuse. Strengthening our focus on fiscal oversight has been a top priority of mine since joining the County Council and I've been proud to work collaboratively with my committee colleagues on this core legislative responsibility.
Safe streets are vital to our community’s quality of life. We are in continued conversation with the leadership of the State Highway Administration (SHA), which owns and maintains most of our busiest roads, to adopt engineering standards that better reflect the needs for safer crosswalks and intersections. Based on the County and community's continued advocacy, SHA is now developing urban design standards for areas like ours expected to be released this fall. We look forward to this exciting development in addition to advancing our Vision Zero goals through the Planning Department’s upcoming Pedestrian Master Plan.
Addressing safety along East-West Highway near downtown Bethesda last week with community leaders
We must make structural changes to the way we approach road design so that we don’t have to continue to fight for needed improvements crosswalk by crosswalk and intersection by intersection. In the meantime, we have some progress to report on key focus areas:
- MCDOT will replace the flashing signal at the Bethesda Trolley Trail crossing of Tuckerman Lane with a pedestrian hybrid beacon, a critically-needed upgrade at the location where we tragically lost Jennifer DiMauro in a crash in July.
- SHA will install Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (pedestrian-activated flashing yellow lights) at the Wisconsin Avenue crosswalks of Middleton Lane and Avondale Street/Commerce Lane. We continue to pursue a pedestrian hybrid beacon that has a solid red light signal phase, and SHA has committed to reevaluate that approach in the context of its urban design standards once those are complete.
- With community leaders and Planning Department officials, we walked and discussed ideas for improving pedestrian safety along East-West Highway, including unsignalized crosswalks at Montgomery Avenue and Edgevale Street.
- The Planning Department is hosting a Community Meeting to get feedback for the Pedestrian Master Plan at the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center on October 16, from 7 p.m.-9 p.m.
 As the Council's Parks Lead, I recently got to see how Montgomery Parks staff are creating vibrant facilities offering the activities that are in most demand by our residents.
I also want to give you a sense of the improvements that will be happening in downtown Bethesda. One of the key recommendations of the 2017 Bethesda Downtown Plan was to increase parks and open space. The newly revitalized and expanded Battery Lane Park was reopened this summer, the Council provided the funding to purchase land across from the Bethesda Row Cinema at the corner of Woodmont and Bethesda Avenues to create the new Capital Crescent Civic Green, and now exciting plans are underway to expand green space and civic space at the Bethesda Farm Women's Market.
The proposed plan includes an array of public use spaces including a playground, an open lawn, a dog park, an amphitheater/pavilion, a splash pad, flexible space for special events, and an expanded and revitalized retail market. The Planning Board will review the Sketch Plan for this project sometime this fall.
Whether it's a dog park, playground, cricket field, or the rehabilitation of a historic building to create a community gathering place, we'll continue to fight to ensure our parks system has the resources needed to best serve you.
Today, the Council unanimously passed Bill 20-19. This legislation, which I introduced earlier this summer, waives County licensing fees for disabled individuals in accessory dwelling units (ADUs). This bill enables residents with qualified disabilities, seniors, and veterans to take advantage of ADUs and remain close to their loved ones with one fewer financial barrier.
From my experience working to launch the Maryland ABLE program at the state level, I became acutely aware of the significant challenges so many families in our community face. Advocates and families expressed a strong interest in ADUs as a way to provide dignity and independence while ensuring family members are in close enough proximity to offer comfort and support when needed. As we looked at the accessibility of the County’s ADU program, this was an opportunity to be inclusive.
For a modest cost to the County, this bill represents a significant benefit for our families and our neighborhoods by allowing a more inclusive community.
The Montgomery County Planning Department is looking for applicants for their Schools Technical Advisory Team to assist them with policy recommendations for the 2020 Subdivision Staging Policy (SSP) Update.
Every four years, the Planning Department reviews the SSP to ensure that the tools used for evaluating the impact of development on essential public facilities reflect the latest growth patterns of the County. A key intent of the selection process is to recruit members who are able to represent the various needs and perspectives of our communities. Selected candidates will serve alongside representatives from key stakeholder groups to support the staff in identifying innovative solutions for the schools element of the policy.
The link to the application is here and the deadline is this Friday, September 20th.
The coolest part of my job as your Councilmember are the days when everything comes full circle. September 5th was one of those days, when I joined my friend and colleague, Councilmember Sidney Katz, to host a Senior Forum and Resource Fair at the Potomac Community Center, the very place where I grew up playing Little League, attending recreation programs, and meeting lifelong friends.
The event was co-hosted by Potomac Community Village, part of the amazing, volunteer-led neighbors helping neighbors network that has grown locally and nationally to support seniors who are aging in place. Two-hundred people joined us to learn about county and community resources, and to hear terrific speakers who focused on physical and mental wellness, preventing falls, and identifying scams. Stay tuned for our next senior event, which we will likely be later this year.
In our continuing effort to bring the Council to the community, we have some terrific events coming up this month.
March with Us at the Poolesville Day Parade
Saturday 9/21 10:00-10:45AM
Poolesville Elementary School
19565 Fisher Ave, Poolesville, MD 20837
Discuss Important Local Issues at Our Next Community Conversation
Wednesday 9/25 7:30-9:00PM
Strathmore Mansion
10701 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852
Grab a Cup of Coffee or Tea with Us at Friday with Friedson
Friday 9/27 8:00-9:30AM
Clove & Cedar Coffeebar
4918 St. Elmo Avenue, Bethesda, Maryland 20814
Racing to the Finish with Councilmember Rice for EveryMind & Sports Hall of Fame with Dominique Dawes
Montgomery Can Code Showcase at the Apple store in Westfield Montgomery & CCACC Visit in Gaithersburg with Councilmember Jawando
Honoring Ben Allnutt, Owner of Homestead Farm, for Being Named to the Montgomery County Agriculture Hall of Fame & Discussing Economic and Fiscal Policy with Douglas Tallman on the Montgomery Community Media Montgomery Talks Podcast
Imagination Stage 40th Birthday Celebration & With Executive Director Katey Boerner at the 49th Annual Glen Echo Park Art Show
Behind the Scenes Tour of Suburban Hospital Expansion Project with Delegate Sara Love & Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for PLNT Burger in Silver Spring
Greeting Constituents at Pike Central Farm Market & JCA Grandparents' Day Walk of the Ages at Glen Echo Park
Recognizing the 100 Year Anniversary of the Montgomery County Farm Bureau & Attending a Board Meeting for Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture as an Ex-Officio Member
It's truly an honor and privilege to represent our extraordinary community on the County Council. As always, we hope you will continue to keep in touch and reach out to us with any issues.
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