[RP TownTalk] Does Riverdale Park have a bright future to look forward to?

Mon Mar 4 21:45:58 UTC 2013

Beall Circle is being addressed. The Council, specifically, Council member
Ebbeler, is working on an arts grant from the County. All of this was
discussed in great detail, at great length, at last week's Town Council
meeting. Amazing, the top-level government "secrets" one can learn by
sneaking into a public meeting...

On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 4:28 PM, Melissa Avery <m.avery at rocketmail.com>wrote:

> For Jeys Auto to be a "garden spot" the entire soil area would require
>  remediation   - very costly- to remove close 100 years of oil, gas and hydraulic
> fluid and other banned chemicals.We have spoken to the county and State EPA
> regarding this process. The soil has to be removed, cleaned and put back.
>  Those highly toxic chemicals are carcinogenicity. There is a storm
> drain adjacent to the property, if the land is disturbed, extra care must
> be taken to makes sure the ground water is not contaminated.
>
> Also, Why not "fix" Beal circle, turn it into a "Garden Spot"?
> or even put a sign up or refurbish the flag poles?
>
>   ------------------------------
> *From:* Dwight Holmes <dwightrholmes at gmail.com>
> *To:* Melissa Avery <m.avery at rocketmail.com>
> *Cc:* Vernon Archer <varcher at gmail.com>; TownTalk <
> TownTalk at riverdale-park.org>
> *Sent:* Monday, March 4, 2013 9:05 AM
> *Subject:* Re: [RP TownTalk] Does Riverdale Park have a bright future to
> look forward to?
>
> A very timely thought, Melissa...  The election will be held on May 6th,
> which is 9 weeks from today.
>
> The town's policy on electioneering and this email list is as follows -
> note that 'electioneering season', if one can call it that, kicks in 60
> days prior to the election - by my count, that would mean the day after
> tomorrow, March 6th:
>
> Email List Electioneering Policy
>
> Electioneering shall be prohibited on any e-mail list supported by the
> Town of Riverdale Park. For these e-mail lists, electioneering is
> defined as an attempt to influence how people will vote on a ballot
> issue or candidate in an upcoming election. Electioneering on the
> e-mail lists shall only be regulated for sixty days before an
> election. The e-mail list administrator shall ensure that
> electioneering does not occur. The list administrator has the
> authority to delegate their responsibility for administering policy.
> List members who wish to appeal decisions under this policy shall
> appeal decisions to the list administrator. An appeal of the list
> administrator's decision can be made to the town administrator. The
> decision of the town administrator is final.
>
> The list administrator or town staff will post information pertaining
> to the election to the Town's official website and do so in
> conjunction with the public posting of the notice of candidates. This
> posting shall include the full list of candidates whose qualifications
> have been verified by the judges of election in accordance with §29-12
> of the Riverdale Park Town Code. The posting on the Town website shall
> include a candidate's name and street address. In addition, if
> provided by the candidate, contact information will be included in the
> posting. Contact information is limited to a telephone number, an
> e-mail address, and a web site address. A notice will be posted to
> Town Announce stating the availability of this information.
>
> The above resolution was passed by the Town of Riverdale Park council
> on April 2, 2007.
>
>
>
> On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 6:50 AM, Melissa Avery <m.avery at rocketmail.com>wrote:
>
> Sounds like a political speech. I though electioneering was forbidden on
> town talk....
>
>   ------------------------------
> *From:* Vernon Archer <varcher at gmail.com>
> *To:* TownTalk <TownTalk at riverdale-park.org>
> *Sent:* Sunday, March 3, 2013 9:55 PM
> *Subject:* [RP TownTalk] Does Riverdale Park have a bright future to look
> forward to?
>
> Friends and neighbors,
>
> I've been trying to catch up on some of the postings from the last 36
> hours, and I must admit I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. So before I even
> start to wade through some of the assertions about the issues that lay
> before us as a town I want to say this, I *believe that Riverdale Park
> has an incredibly bright future to look forward to*. You will of course
> make up your own mind about whether my optimism is warranted or not, but
> lets look at the facts and I'll share some opinions based on the facts.
>
> First, there are some who suggest that the town faces a financial crisis
> because the residential property tax assessments have declined; however, it
> is important to look at the whole range of tax assessments not just the
> residential numbers. When you look at the whole picture you will see that
> this years "Net Assessable Real Property Base" increased a modest .6%.
> While this is not a fabulous increase, it is certainly not the catastrophe
> that doom sayers have been arguing. Staff will post both 2012 and 2013
> state "Constant Yield Tax Rate Certification" reports on our web site so
> you can compare for yourself.
>
> As I suggested in my report of January (you can find it in the Crier
> http://www.riverdaleparkmd.info/Feb%202013%20Crier.pdf ) the positive
> news about surpluses from previous years significantly outweigh the modest
> assessment numbers for 2013. Since writing this report almost two months
> ago I am all the more confident that we are in solid financial shape based
> on the current year because I now know with certainty that the overall
> assessment is up, and not the catastrophic collapse that some were
> predicting.
>
> Thus, the town is in GREAT FINANCIAL SHAPE, and will likely continue as
> such despite the outcry by an alarmist or two.
>   And yes, most residential property owners will see a reduction in their
> tax bill for town taxes.
>
> I also want to make sure you are informed about the state of the town's
> debt.  Riverdale Park has the lowest debt ceiling, as a percentage of the
> gross value of its real estate base, in the state of Maryland.  We are not
> allowed to borrow in excess of 2% of the total value of all real estate in
> our town. How much do we currently have outstanding? Less than 1/2 of
> 1%. The facts show that the council and I have been very cautious in
> borrowing money.
>
> Should both of the current items under discussion by this group go forward
> (the youth and community expansion to Town Hall and the taking of Jay's
> property) the town will be indebted to approximately 1% of the total value
> of all real estate in town. You could also say the town will be utilizing
> about 1/2 of its total borrowing authority, which again is the most
> restrictive in the state of Maryland.
>
> One last thing I would like to share on the topic of town borrowing.  Over
> the last 3 years we have shifted to a new pay as you go program for capital
> expenditures for medium term durable goods. That is to say items like
> police cars, building repairs and information technology investments are
> now paid off in the year we acquire them, and not financed out over
> multiple years. This new practice makes the town more able to focus its
> borrowing authority on big ticket items like major building renovations and
> the purchase of strategic properties.
>
> The youth and community expansion to Town Hall is another matter where
> some clarification is needed. First and foremost, it is not a new "center"
> but an addition to Town Hall. Nor is it being put forward with the
> expectation of hiring new staff in order to utilize it. When doing the
> needs evaluation it was clear that there are multiple organizations in our
> region that desire space to run programs for young people.  We have been
> approached by organizations such as 4H, Boy Scouts and the University among
> others who will gladly do programs if we can just provide the space. As a
> growing and thriving community, I, the council, and many in the broader
> community have concluded that the Town Hall must grow too to meet the needs
> to our residents.
>
> Lastly (for this evening at least), as the elected official who has worked
> to see "Jay's" rejuvenated the longest I am also probably the most
> exasperated in trying to deal with the property owner.  Virtually my entire
> time in office, creeping up on 8 years now, I have worked with this
> property owner to bring a renewal to the corner, but to no avail.  Most of
> that time has also been spent in constant struggle to see the property be
> kept up to a minimal state of safety and cleanliness.
>
> Before going forward, there is an important item that has been overlooked
> in the discussions of the last few days. The Jey's property is THE ENTRY
> POINT TO OUR TOWN! How do you want our town to be seen to every single
> driver going up and down Route One? Clearly most of us do not want to be
> identified with a white box on decaying asphalt. The MUTC zoning design
> calls for the construction of a signature structure to mark the entry to
> Riverdale Park. RIVERDALE PARK IS SOMEPLACE! and the entry point to our
> town should say that.
>
> That being clarified, I have worked for almost 8 years to have Jey create
> an acceptable entry point to our town, but every single plan, assertion,
> and promise has lead to nothing. Now most recently he promised before the
> RBA a couple of months back that he had a lease all but done to bring in a
> Dunkin Donuts! But to do date he still has not produced any evidence of a
> lease. And if he did, would that be your idea of a welcome to Riverdale
> Park sign? Dunkin Donuts? Now you are someplace? Well, I for one want and
> expect more. A LOT MORE!
>
> The gateway to Riverdale Park needs to say YOU ARE SOMEWHERE! We the
> residents of this town deserve better and I for one will not again grant
> Jey another chance. We shall take this property, give the owner fair market
> compensation, and make this entry point to our town into a pocket park with
> noteworthy public art or find a developer who will give us a signature
> building that will say loud and clear:
>
> "You are in Riverdale Park! Someplace!"
>
> LOOK CLOSE! you are in the town where our residents property taxes are
> going to fall and yet the town finances are in order and all despite the
> Great Recession; our Town Hall is being rebuilt and expanded to nurture and
> welcome future generations to a fabulous community; our economy and street
> scape is being rebuilt to show the pride we have in ourselves; top notch
> retailers like Whole Foods want to locate here; and oh ya, crime is
> declining to the lowest levels in years.
>
> Good night and God bless,
>
> Vernon Archer, Mayor
> Town of Riverdale Park, Maryland
>
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>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
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> TownTalk-request at riverdale-park.org is for automated subscription
> processing only
> http://riverdale-park.org/mailman/listinfo/towntalk
>
> For more information about Riverdale Park, visit
> http://www.riverdaleparkmd.info
>
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> TownTalk mailing list
> To post to the list, send mail to TownTalk at riverdale-park.org
> TownTalk-request at riverdale-park.org is for automated subscription
> processing only
> http://riverdale-park.org/mailman/listinfo/towntalk
>
> For more information about Riverdale Park, visit
> http://www.riverdaleparkmd.info
>
>

-- 
Jeffrey Yorke
Yorke Property Management, Inc.
Yorke Partners
Jeffrey at YorkeRents.com
301-502-1243
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