On November 12, the new City Council held its first worksession, focused mainly on administrative and legislative matters.
Legislative Priorities
On December 2, council planned to attend the third annual meeting of District 22 municipalities with the state senator and delegates. This is an opportunity to share legislative priorities and bond bill requests. Priorities like housing affordability, economic development, environmental sustainability and immigration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)-related matters are expected to be shared by all. After a lengthy discussion, some of the main bond bill request possibilities deemed most likely to be funded were: the Buddy Attick Park trail and stage, lights at Schrom Hills Park and work on the second elevator at the Community Center. The final vote on the bond bill requests was held at the November 17 meeting.
Street Lights
A related issue was the conversion of the city’s street lights to LED. All present expressed an eagerness to find ways to move this forward. City Manager Josué Salmerón said that council will have to ultimately decide what
level of ownership and maintenance of street lights it wants to adopt. He said that a primary hurdle is the lack of a cost estimate from Pepco, adding that Pepco appears to show little interest in selling the lights to the city. Grant funding is possible from the Maryland Energy Administration Street Light and Outdoor Lights Efficiency Program, but is limited due to related interests from other municipalities.
Currently, the city pays to power the street lights. Salmerón said that Pepco has overcharged the city $83,000 and that he has refrained from paying the city’s bill until this is rectified. LED lights would present a significant cost savings.
Other Matters
Salmerón and Assistant City Manager Timothy George said that renovations to the Greenbelt Cinema’s windows and toilets still await approval from the Maryland Historical Trust. Work on the auditorium will have to wait until the theater’s less busy season as it will place the site offline until completed.
Mayor Emmett Jordan and Councilmember Danielle McKinney demonstrated interest in improving lighting and accessibility at the city’s bus stops. Jordan was keen on installing digital route update signage, with Salmerón saying that a bus shelter was necessary for that.
Legislative Consultation
George submitted a survey to council to determine its views on how to obtain legislative consultation from private firms. Currently, the city is working with Carrington & Associates LLC. Consensus was for having a multi-provider approach, with a split between state and county legislation. This would aid council in tracking the thousands of bills in both arenas that affect the city’s residents.
Salmerón said that a request for proposals was sent to private firms, and that after a vetting process, the city is now in negotiations with a second firm. Forty thousand dollars have been allocated for this, but this move will likely exceed that, with the expectation of legal and advocacy fees being a financial likelihood. Salmerón said that the existing vendor has been amenable to meeting the city’s needs and honoring its pay structure. Jordan said that the two vendors would need to work together, as there will be overlaps.
Resident Bill Orleans expressed skepticism over the need for private consultation as both the Prince George’s County Municipal Association and the National League of Cities (NLC) offer resources in this area.
Standing Rules
A reevaluation of council’s standing rules was planned but it was decided to table this matter until council’s retreat. In a subsequent interview, Councilmember Kristen Weaver informed the News Review that the retreats will occur on December 10 and 15 from 6 to 9 p.m. There was a desire to have Maryland Municipal League employee Tom Reynolds present to act as an outside facilitator.
Jordan urged council to apply for membership to one of the NLC’s many committees and councils. He advised council to choose based on one’s passion.
Resident J Davis urged at least one councilmember to apply for the environmental sustainability group, as this is a central pillar of the city’s philosophy. Councilmember Frankie Santos Fritz offered to look into applying.
It was decided that a pre-
budget meeting should be scheduled in December so that Salmerón can get feedback from council on its priorities and interests. He would be able to share revenue projections and information from senior staff as well.
The meeting ended with a transition into an executive session.
