Tag Archives: Phyllis Marcuccio

Peerless Rockville Brunch Starts New Year

1 Jan

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Today’s Peerless Rockville Brunch at Glenview Mansion was packed with lots of members, friends, residents, and community leaders.  Mayor Marcuccio was joined by Rockville City Councilmembers Bridget Newton, Mark Pierzchala, and Tom Moore; Montgomery County Council by Phil Andrews and Hans Riemer; Maryland State Delegate Kumar Barve and Luis Simmons; and Maryland State Senator Jennie Forehand.  Everyone was generous with their potluck dish and I regretfully made it to the dessert table long after Brigitta Mullican’s famous Christmas cookies had been devoured.  During the presentation, Peerless Rockville noted the important achievement of this last year was the designation of Glenview as an city landmark and that this year they’ll be focusing on simplifying the historic designation process in the city.

The Election is Over but Challenges Lie Ahead

13 Nov

The Rockville City Council elections are over and while the results aren’t official until certified, congratulations to Phyllis Marcuccio who will continue as Mayor, Bridget Newton and Mark Pierzchala who will continue on Council, Tom Moore who will be new on Council, and John Hall who will return to Council after a brief hiatus (and thanks to John Britton and Piotr Gajewski for their recent service on Council).  No doubt everyone has already seen the election returns and noted that the Mayor’s race was not only heated but close–they were separated by 415 votes out of a total of 6113 votes.  If 209 people (that’s 3 percent of those voting for Mayor) had voted differently, we’d have someone else as Mayor.  It’s even closer in the Council race–Moore made it onto Council by just 51 votes.  So if anyone thinks their vote doesn’t count, think again if you’re living in Rockville.

Although we know the election results for the entire city, Roald Schrack has broken it down by precinct which provides a clearer picture of what happened–and what it might mean for the governance of the city during the next two years:

  1. Voting followed two different clusters of candidates:  Hall-Gottfried-Newton-Trahan vs Moore-Onley-Pierzchala.  That suggests that the community has formed two different visions for its governance, and since the election resulted in an even split among these two “slates” on Council, we might have (more…)

Endorsements for Rockville City Council

6 Nov

I’ve read the literature, participated in two debates, visited the websites, listened to neighborhood discussions, and talked to some of the candidates and am now ready to announce my endorsements for City Council:

City Council

  1. Tom Moore:  I met Tom during the last election and even though I was among his opponents, he was incredibly fair, thoughtful, considerate, and funny.  I liked him so much that I passed out his literature as well as mine on election day.  Although he wasn’t elected to Council in 2009, he’s continued to stay involved in the community and shows that he analyzes issues and gives other perspectives a fair hearing.
  2. Mark Pierzchala:  Mark’s knowledge of city and neighborhood issues has grown tremendously during his first term on Council and he understands the complex nature of making decisions in a diverse community.  I don’t always agree with his decisions (he seems to favor businesses more than residents and the city’s heritage at times) but he always explains how he came to his decisions.  He’s the only incumbent I’m endorsing for City Council, and losing him would lose continuity on the Council.
  3. Virginia Onley:  Virginia has a long history of service to Rockville through various committees and boards, so she’s experienced the community from various perspectives.  Yet, serving on Council will be (more…)

Candidates Face Last Day of Debates

1 Nov

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Today is a double-header for the Rockville City Council candidates, putting a punctuation point to a long series of debates this season.  I attended this afternoon’s session hosted at the Senior Center and tonight is the last with the Chamber of Commerce.  By now, the candidates have honed their thoughts and can quickly state their positions, which is much more helpful to the voters.  You can also see where alliances have formed, how their personalities affect their thinking, and where there is uncertainty.  From today’s forum, it seemed the alliances are Marcuccio, Newton, Hall, and maybe Gottfried vs. Gajewski and Pierzchala (if we arranged this by nationality, we’d have. . .hmm).

This forum was primarily focused on the needs and interests of seniors, so there were questions about the candidates’ ideas to support “aging in place,” homeowner’s tax credit, affordable housing, and the impact of decreased county and state support on Rockville’s senior programming, but some ranged further, for example a surprising question on the King Farm transitway.  The $100 homeowners tax credit was discussed throughout the afternoon, with Gajewski and Hall clearly supporting its reappearance; Marcuccio and Newton only if the eligibility criteria could be tightened (e.g., only for seniors); and Francis clearly against, calling it a smokescreen for the more important issue of unfair property taxes and adoption of a piggyback income tax.  Time was wasted on the question, “Where senior services ranked as a priority” because no politician will (more…)

Rockville Candidates Forum #3

22 Oct

Rockville City Council Candidate Forum at the Senior Center.

I had a chance to attend my first city council candidates forum today, which I think is actually the third of more than a half dozen.  If you missed it, don’t worry, you have plenty of opportunities coming up (including two this upcoming week that will be broadcast).

Today’s forum was held in the senior center and hosted by the neighborhood associations for College Gardens, Woodley Gardens, and Plymouth Woods and moderated by Cheryl Kagan.  All the candidates were seated in a single row, barely fitting on stage, and about 60 people attended, mostly senior citizens.  Unlike some neighborhood forums that focus exclusively on their parochial issues, this one ranged widely around Rockville, including such topics as Rockville in ten years, budget and finances, the APFO, Rockville Pike Plan, the fence separating Montgomery College, the city logo and branding, qualifications of the next city manager, relationships with other government agencies, relations with city staff, the proposed Walmart, and an assessment of the city’s website.  Perhaps the most provocative question was, “which candidate do you oppose in this election and why?”  I won’t provide a detailed report on everyone’s statements–I’ll leave that to the Gazette or you can watch the 2+ hours of it on YouTube–but will just give general impressions and highlights.

It seems that the candidates are beginning to solidify their statements and finding ways to (more…)

Council Election Pushing Ethical Boundaries

6 Sep

The letter starts innocently enough:

Dear Supporter of RedGate Golf Course,

This year is a crucial election for the City of Rockville.

Okay, so what’s so crucial?

The future of RedGate Golf Course hangs in the balance.  As Mayor of the City of Rockville, I have been a strong and consistent advocate for keeping RedGate open as a well-run natural resource for today and for the future.

Hmm, that’s sounds good.  Who can be against a well-run natural resource? . . . although I’m not sure a golf course is a natural resource.  Whatever.

However, my challenger in this election is actively campaigning against me and against RedGate by misleading the public (more…)

Council Election Status

1 Sep

I’ve just confirmed with the City Clerk’s office that the following persons will be on the ballot in November 2011:

Mayor

  • Peter Gajewski
  • Phyllis Marcuccio

Council

  • John Hall
  • Tom Moore
  • Bridget Newton
  • Virginia Onley

The deadline for getting on the ballot is Friday, September 9, so I suspect more names will be added this next week.

If you’re not familiar with the process, it’s not required of any other elected officials serving Rockville–not the County Council, our State Delegates, or State Senator.  Each candidate has to submit a petition signed by one hundred registered Rockville voters along with their request to be placed on the ballot.  Superficially, it sounds like a nice way to separate the wheat from the chaff, but it’s very hard to do.  Most of us don’t know 100 registered Rockville voters, so you have to find them at shopping centers, the Metro stations, or walking your neighborhood.  Because most strangers don’t want to be bothered, it provides a major advantage to incumbents who have name recognition and a existing pool of supporters.  Complicating matters is that you have to sign the petition exactly as you registered to vote with the Board of Elections or it won’t count.  And after Congresswoman Giffords’ shooting in Tucson, shopping centers are shooing away political activities to avoid a repeat of that tragedy.   So now it’s more than just an exercise in identifying serious candidates, it’s become one of Donald Trump’s projects out of “The Apprentice”.  It may be legal (but I’m guessing it’s as legal as poll taxes), but this process of collecting 100 signatures isn’t required at county or state  levels of government (our neighboring City of Gaithersburg requires 100 signatures, but are they our model?).  Has it ensured a better quality candidate?  Or has it dissuaded good residents from running?  Why one hundred?

2009 Mayoral Promise Number 1: Finance and Budget Assessment

29 Jul

In her inaugural address as the new Mayor of the City of Rockville on November 22, 2009, Phyllis Marcuccio made the following statement, the first promise of her new administration:

First, I would be remiss if we did not respond to the major issue of our recent election:  the unprecedented economic stress facing our nation and our city for the next several years.  I will within the next two weeks appoint a task force on finance and budget, whose initial charge will be to review and comment on our financial policies, principles, and current processes of the City budget for consideration by the City Council.  I will call for their report by the end of March in 2010.

What Happened

Let’s see what’s happened point-by-point (reordered to simplify analysis): (more…)

Mayoral Promises Missed or Fulfilled?

15 Jul

Mayor Marcuccio giving her inauguration speech, Nov. 22, 2009

At the November 22, 2009 inauguration of the current City Council, Phyllis Marcucchio opened her speech as the newly seated Mayor with the following words:

In keeping with my campaign issues, where I called for bringing citizens into the decision-making process, there are a number of actions I will propose during my administration which I hope the Council will support and which I believe will move our hometown safely and thoughtfully into a more citizen-driven future.  Here are a few of those initiatives.

Over the next five minutes, she laid out a half dozen promises around financial management, charter reform, communications, citizen engagement, the environment, and others.  Now that she’s nearing the end of her first term as mayor and hoping to be elected to another, I’ll examine each of these over the next few months to see how’s she fared (and if possible, where the other council members and candidates stand as well and include some of my own analysis).  Of course, you’ll be invited to share your opinions but because the election season can provoke stronger and sharper words, I’ll be placing a stronger hand on the rudder to keep us on topic (you’ll want to review the rules for commenting on this blog if you’re unsure what I mean).  I am also closing comments after a period of 30-60 days so that we can move the conversation along.

Temperature of Rockville Council Election Just Went Up

11 Jul

With Scott Ullery’s recent announcement that he’ll retire as City Manager in December, the temperature of the upcoming City Council elections just went up several degrees.  Hiring a City Manager is one of the most important decisions they can make and has both long-term and short-term implications.  We’ve been fortunate to have such a skilled administrator as Scott Ullery, who has been a calm and consistent force at the City despite the continual challenges that come into his office from all corners.  I’ve always found him to be ethical and fair, and while I know some people sought his removal, it’s usually because they’re trying to do something that doesn’t align with our city’s strategic plan, violates city codes, or requires Council approval.  It’s a thankless job because you are always subject to public criticism and you get a new set of bosses every two years (and the best city managers, like the best editors, are often invisible and let others get the credit).

Selecting the next City Manager will be a crucial responsibility for the next Council–and it’s not an easy job.  In my former hometown of Upland, California, we had a terrible series (more…)

← Older Entries

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 58 other followers