MaxForRockville a Fast Growing Blog in WP
Wow! WordPress has listed this blog as one of the fastest growing blogs for June 9, 2009 (that’s a result of the interest in the Chestnut Lodge Fire) out of the more than 2 million blogs that they host.
If you’re not familiar with WordPress, it’s a free (yes, free) blogging/Web site service. It’s easy to use and it’s free (did I mention it was free?), so there’s no excuse why an organization or person can’t have an attractive and informative presence on the Internet.
Rockville’s Taxes Too Hot? Too Cold? Just Right?
When people about taxes and city services, you often hear:
- Our taxes are too high. Why can’t the Mayor and Council lower the tax rate?
- We pay a lot in taxes. We deserve to have trash picked up twice a week. Why haven’t they fixed my sidewalk?
- Our taxes are fine, but why does the money always get spent on the west side of town?
and so on. I’ve never heard anyone say their taxes are too low.
Taxes are certainly one of those topics that will bring nearly any citizen to a frenzy so I try to avoid it whenever possible except to say that Continue reading →
Stepping Stones Shelter hosts VIPs and Volunteers
Volunteers clearing brush at Stepping Stones Shelter
Despite the rainy weather, more than one hundred volunteers came to the Stepping Stones Shelter in the Jefferson Square/Hungerford section of Rockville today as part of the National Day of Service commemorating 9-11. When I arrived at 1 pm, it was buzzing with people. They had removed carpet from the house exposing the original oak floors, were fixing radiator covers on the front porch, clearing LOTS of brush from the woods, and refinishing picnic tables in the back yard to make the historic house a more attractive and enjoyable place for its residents and staff. The project in Rockville launched a three-year partnership between Continue reading →
Who Decides the Future of Rockville?
2007 Rockville Election Trends by Age
If you want to influence the government of Rockville, you need to recognize who makes the decisions. Usually it’s the Mayor and Council, and you need to persuade just three of the five. In an election, it’s voters. Although there are 60,000 residents in Rockville, only about half are registered to vote. As much as we talk about “democracy” and “the power of the people,” ultimately, people who can’t vote, can’t decide.
So if you want to make a difference in your community, state, or nation, Rule #1 is register to vote. Two centuries ago, only white men who owned real estate had the right to vote. Since then, the rules have changed thanks to the battles fought by our predecessors. Today, the only citizens who are ineligible to vote in Maryland are imprisoned felons, the mentally disabled, and those under 18.
Now here’s the rub: Continue reading →
Petition for City Council Certified
I am delighted to announce that my candidacy for Rockville City Council is official! I submitted my papers with a petition of 100 registered Rockville voters this morning and the City Clerk’s office certified them this afternoon. This Web site will change over the weekend as I move from the “exploration” to “candidate” stage. In the meantime, thanks to everyone who has encouraged me to run, gave me sober advice, and signed my petition.
Planning Commission approves Senior Housing Complex
The controversial Victory Court, a senior housing complex, achieved a major victory at the August 12 Planning Commission meeting. The property is bounded by Maryland, Fleet, and Monroe streets on the western edge of downtown in a Mixed Use Transitional (MXT) Zone, which permits such uses as a single family home, live/work unit, child care center, hospital, church, bar, pet grooming, clothing store, restaurant, and a medical office. “Housing for senior adults” is allowed only as a special exception. With sixteen conditions, the Planning Commission agreed that this land could be used for senior housing. Although the applicant crossed an important threshold, they have other hurdles to face, including approval from agencies outside of Rockville. Last month the project was reviewed by the Historic District Commission (it is adjacent to an Historic District on Fleet Street) and now moves to the Board of Appeals.
The room was packed with supporters on both sides of the issue and when I arrived, the parking lot was full and I Continue reading →
Gathering Signatures
Many people don’t know that in order to run for office in Rockville, you need to submit a petition signed by 100 registered voters who live in Rockville. Persons running for state senator or delegate don’t have the same requirement, so at first I was a bit puzzled and wondered why we had to jump through this hoop. Now that I’m in the process, it does make sense. If you’re running for public office, you need to be serious and have sufficient support from the community to place your name in the hat. It does require time, but much more time will be needed if you’re elected. Finally, it gets you out in the community–few people know one hundred people that meet the qualifications–and meet your fellow citizens. That’s what I’ve enjoyed most about the process.
My signature collection process has been very strategic. First, I privately asked people who knew me best and could offer friendly advice about the process and suggest how I could clarify my message. I then went public with a booth at the Memorial Day festivities downtown to meet a broad range of people (most of whom weren’t from Rockville, but it gave me insights into who visits and shops). Now I’m going door-to-door to various neighborhoods to meet registered voters, starting with my own neighborhood of Twinbrook. Here’s what I learned so far: Continue reading →
A Very Long HDC Meeting
Last Thursday the Historic District Commission held its regular monthly meeting and if anyone was watching to the end, you may have noticed that the clock was nearing midnight. We usually try to finish at 10 pm but we had an ambitious agenda, including:
1. A joint meeting with the Environment Commission, which included three Planning Commissioners. The City has about two dozen commissions and boards but they rarely, if ever, talk with each other, even if they share some common goals or are tackling the same issue. This past year the HDC has requested meetings with other commissions but it’s been slow because finding mutual agreeable times is difficult and sometimes, I regret to say, the Chair of the other commission refused to respond to emails or phone calls to meet (what’s that about??). So far, we’ve met with the Planning Commission and this month with the Environment Commission. These meetings are just an hour so no decisions are made, but they provide introductions and we learn a bit more about each other to discover areas of mutual interest. It’s obvious that the Environmental Commission and the HDC both want to encourage Continue reading →
Chestnut Lodge Nearly All Gone
Today the demolition crew continued its work and removed nearly all the brick walls of the historic Chestnut Lodge. So many people are interested in this place (my blog logged nearly 600 views today and lots of comments–thanks to everyone for sharing) that I’ll share some photos from today’s demolition as well as the press conference. Mary, my wife and Executive Director at Peerless Rockville, was busy the entire day fielding calls from the press and responding to questions.
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- Chestnut Lodge from the southwest corner. Only the 1940s addition survives.
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- Chestnut Lodge demolition from northeast corner.
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- Press Conference with Mayor Hoffmann and County Executive Leggett.
The Proposed Green Building Regulations: Can We Do More?
On May 21, the City of Rockville provided an update on the revisions to the Building Code, including the new Green Building Regulations, to the Historic District Commission and Recreation and Parks Committee.
I am delighted that this action is finally taking place, indeed, I sense it will be adopted with few objections because so many of these ideas have been already accepted by the community with our growing awareness that the nation’s resources are limited and our current ways of living are no longer sustainable. I especially appreciate that the City is following the standards of LEED from the US Green Building Council, while providing a less costly alternative through “Rockville Certified” and “Rockville Silver” ratings.
However, I urge the Mayor and Council to be more visionary and adopt higher standards than proposed, as follows:
1. Ensure that the City Code is aligned with the latest LEED rating system. I believe the proposed code is based on LEED 2 (released in 2000), however, the US Green Building Council adopted LEED 3 (aka LEED 2009) in April 2009 and all new projects must be certified under LEED 3 after June 27, 2009. Builders and property owners should not be required to meet two different standards and it will only result in opposition to green building practices in Rockville.
2. Require that all new construction, no matter the size, meet the Green Building Code. Continue reading →
