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APPROVED: Meeting No. 10-00
ATTEST:
MAYOR AND COUNCIL
ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND
Meeting No. 44-99
December 13, 1999
The Mayor and Council of Rockville, Maryland, met in General Session in the Mayor and Council Chambers, Rockville City Hall, 111 Maryland Avenue on December 13, 1999, at 7:41p.m.
PRESENT
Mayor Rose G. Krasnow
Councilmember Robert E. Dorsey Councilmember Anne M. Robbins
Councilmember Glennon Harrison Councilmember Robert J. Wright
In attendance, City Manager Mark Pentz, City Attorney Paul Glasgow, and City Clerk Claire Funkhouser.
Re: Agenda Review
City Manager Mark Pentz noted the addition of a legal citation for the Executive Session
following this evening's General Session. Mr. Pentz also mentioned that Item 8 A had been
removed from the Consent Agenda.
Re: City Manager's Report
City Manager Mark Pentz gave his report on current and upcoming events in Rockville.
Re: Presentation of Gifts of Historic Furniture to Glenview Mansion at Rockville Civic Center Park by the Montgomery County Historical Society.
Joanna Church, Collections Manager, and Mary Kay Harper, Executive Director of the
Montgomery County Historical Society, made the official presentation of the gifts to the Mayor
and Council. The items presented were donated to the Society by Dr. James Alexander Lyon.
The gifts consist of: one Japanese wood frame screen, one American Empire circular conference
table, circa 1810-1830 and twelve chairs, Cromwellian style.
The Mayor and Council thanked the Historical Society. Ms. Harper said the Society was pleased to support the restoration of Glenview and that it was pleased that the furniture was "back where it belongs."
Re: Presentation of Certificate of Appreciation to Tanya Villa-Vicencio for Her Leadership in Coordinating and Promoting the "State of Children in Rockville", an Event on December 8, 1999, Sponsored by Community Ministries of Rockville.
Mayor Krasnow commented on the excellence of the seminar, "State of Children in Rockville." The event focused on the issues of importance in the lives of the children in the City, including safety, day care and the value of diversity. The Mayor then introduced Ms. Villa-Vicencio, who is from South Africa and has served as an intern for Community Ministries of Rockville for the last few months. After a certificate of appreciation was presented to her, Ms. Villa-Vicencio thanked the Mayor and Council. She said she had learned a great deal while serving as an intern in Rockville, specifically how to develop collaborative relationships between the government and the non-profit sector that can benefit the community's citizens. She said that she would be returning to South Africa shortly and hoped she could translate her experience in Rockville to help her country during its time of reconciliation after Apartheid.
Re: Appointments
Upon motion by Councilmember Dorsey, duly seconded by Councilmember Robbins and passed with Mayor Krasnow, Councilmembers Dorsey, Harrison and Robbins voting "aye" and Mr. Wright abstaining, Councilmember Wright was appointed to the Retirement Board. Councilmember Wright will be replacing former Councilmember James T. Marrinan as the Mayor and Council Representative to this Board.
Re: Citizens' Forum
1. Jane Schwartz presented the Mayor and Council with a petition concerning the Fallsgrove development that had been circulated at her neighborhood's potluck supper.
2. Randy Alton spoke on behalf of the presidents of several of the City's Homeowners Associations expressing concern about the timeline for the Fallsgrove development.
3. Cecilia Rajter asked the Mayor and Council if there would be an opportunity for citizens to comment on the information that will be given to the Mayor and Council regarding the impact of Fallsgrove at the Worksession on December 20.
4. John Moser, new Chair of the Cultural Arts Commission, and George Northway, immediate past Chair of the Cultural Arts Commission and current chair of the Commission's Art in Public Places Sub-committee, expressed concern that there was no mention of the arts in the concept plan for Fallsgrove.
5. Jim Vitol, representing the West End Citizens Association, supported Randy Alton's request for more time for citizens to evaluate the impact of the Fallsgrove development.
6. Melvin Hall talked about the need to review the laws governing the types of vehicles allowed to park in residential areas of Rockville without a special license. He said his "over-sized" vehicle was ticketed because it has four rear tires, even though it is no larger than some other vehicles such as the Chevrolet Suburban.
7. Stan Klein, 7 Lorre Court, distributed a written statement he had made to the County Council regarding the Montrose Parkway.
Re: Response to Citizens' Forum
In response to the citizens expressing concern about the timeline and process for the Fallsgrove development, Mayor Krasnow said that the Mayor and Council were trying to balance the needs of all the stakeholders in the process. Councilmember Robbins said that, as a newly elected Councilmember, she was feeling very overwhelmed by all of the information regarding Fallsgrove, and that she doubted she would be able to render any kind of a decision soon.
In response to Mr. Moser and Mr. Northway's concerns, Director of Community Planning and Development Services, Kathleen Mitchell explained that the detailed application for Fallsgrove would have to contain the stipulated amount of funding for arts projects. Ms. Mitchell said that these concerns would be transmitted to the developer.
Mayor Krasnow reminded everyone that the Worksession on December 20 would be televised, with an opportunity for citizens to speak after the cameras are tuned off. This format has been used before for discussions about the Fallsgrove development.
Re: Consent Agenda
Upon motion by Councilmember Wright, duly seconded by Councilmember Harrison, and unanimously passed by the Mayor and Council, the following consent agenda items, B and C, were approved. Item A had been removed from the Consent Agenda by the City Manger.
(B) Introduction of Ordinance to Amend Ordinance No. 4-99 to Appropriate Funds and Levy Taxes for Fiscal Year 2000.
(C) Acceptance of Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment TXT 1999-0180, Fairfield Residential LLC, Applicant.
To delete portions of Article VII, Division 3, Section
25-326 of the Zoning Ordinance, relating to the optional method of development in the O-1 Zone.
Re: Modification of Section 14 of
the City of Rockville
Moderately Priced Housing
Regulations.
To establish the maximum income eligibility limits for individuals and families who want to purchase or rent Moderately Priced Dwelling Units (MPDUs) constructed and marketed under Chapter 13.5 of the Rockville City Code.
Community Planning and Development Services Specialist Lisa Rother explained that the purpose of this agenda item was to adjust the income limits upward so that they are similar to those used by the County. Mayor Krasnow asked about income limits for units for families with lower incomes. Ms. Rother explained that this action only applied to the Moderately Priced Dwelling Units. Ms. Rother added that the first MPDU's at the King Farm would go to settlement this week.
Upon motion by Councilmember Harrison, duly seconded by Councilmember Dorsey and unanimously passed by the Mayor and Council, the guidelines were approved.
Re: FYI/Correspondence
Councilmember Robbins mentioned that she had attended two events over the past weekend that celebrated the Arts. The first was the Holiday Open House at Glenview on Sunday afternoon, December 5, and the second was a reception, also at Glenview later that evening, for supporters of the County Executive's Ball.
Mayor Krasnow wondered whether it might be time to purchase new snowflakes that decorate the City streets during the holidays.
Re: New Business
Councimember Wright asked how the Mayor and Council intended to address the concerns of the citizens regarding the process for the Fallsgrove development that the concern had been expressed at Citizens' Forum. Mayor Krasnow reiterated that the Worksession on December 20 would be televised and that it was the Mayor and Council's intention to announce next week when instructions would be given to staff.
Mr. Harrison commented that he felt citizens are at a disadvantage if the information from the traffic consultants is not available until the evening of the worksession. Although the Mayor and Council expressed awareness of the deadlines that the trustees of the Thomas Estate, Riggs Bank, have imposed on the developers, they expressed concern that they and the citizens of the City have sufficient time to digest all of the information.
Re: Adjourn to Executive Session
Upon motion by Councilmember Harrison, duly seconded by Councilmember Wright, and unanimously passed by the Mayor and Council, the meeting adjourned at 8:25 p.m. to immediately reconvene in Executive Session, pursuant to Sections 10-508 (a) (7) and 10-508 (a) (3) of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, to consult with counsel to obtain legal advice and to consider the acquisition of real property for a public purpose and matters directly related thereto.
Present at the Executive Session were the Mayor and Council, the City Manager, the City Attorney, the City Clerk. Also present were the following individuals: Deputy City Manager Julia Novak; Director of Parks and Recreation Burt Hall; Director of Planning and Community Development Kathleen Mitchell and Assistant to the City Manager Michelle Beadle.
At the meeting, the Mayor and Council discussed proposed changes requested by the Rockville Housing Authority to the Articles of Organizational Cooperative Agreement and the acquisition of additional property for parking.
There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 10:45 p.m.