Major Repairs to City Pool May Require ARPA Readjustments
At the September 14 worksession, the Greenbelt City Council continued in its efforts to prioritize how the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds will finally be spent. An urgent new addition to the list was the needed infrastructure repairs to the city’s outdoor pool, built in 1937. A recent inspection at the mechanics area, separate […]
Springhill Lake School Has Retained Key Staff Member
Springhill Lake Elementary (SHL) has retained Special Education Coordinator Chris Wichtendahl. The News Review reported in June 2022 on the challenge the school faced to retain Wichtendahl (Springhill Lake School at Risk of Losing a Key Staff Member, June 16 issue), as did the Washington Post (washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/06/29/maryland-teachers-fight-for-educator). At the time, the Prince George’s County Public […]
New Police Crisis Intervention Team Off to Successful Start
The Greenbelt Police Department (GPD) has begun implementing its new Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) with counselor Rachel Tobin. According to Tobin, “CIT will assist with welfare checks, domestic abuse, geriatric and juvenile issues with behavioral health concerns, victim support, critical incidents, emergency petitions and repeat callers to 911 who are identified with behavioral health concerns.” […]
Council Prepares for New Small Cell Infrastructure
The growing demand for increasing the coverage, data capacity and durability of wireless infrastructure is of high interest to the city, considering that cellphones are now many residents’ main, if not sole, avenue for communication. This fact was brought to the fore by the recent storm that debilitated city wireless accessibility for days in some […]
Labor Day Festival for 2022 Revives a Joy Thought Lost
The News Review last week gave this city the big stories of the Festival – Outstanding Citizen Maggie Cahalan and the overall spirit of the weekend. This week, and possibly in coming weeks, some of the niche elements that make the Festival an encompassing celebration will be showcased. Readers will find more photos, more awards, […]
On Losing Queen Elizabeth II: Home Thoughts from Abroad
Oddly, given that more than two-thirds of my life has been lived away from England, in the last few days people have felt compelled to offer their condolences to me on the loss of the queen. And unexpectedly, given my long voluntary exile, it means a lot to me. Perhaps this is because she is […]
Labor Day Books Generate Enthusiasm and Revenue
For the first time since 2019, the Greenbelt Elementary School (GES) Parent Teacher Association (PTA) held a full-scale book sale at the Labor Day Festival. Dozens of parents volunteered for weeks leading up to the four-day sale, collecting and sorting books donated by the community. Crowds filled the book sale tent all weekend long, with […]
Maggie Cahalan Wins Award For Environmental Stewardship
Cheered on by half a dozen young green-shirted Earth Squad volunteers waving CHEARS signs, Maggie Cahalan was recognized as Greenbelt’s 49th Outstanding Citizen. As a co-founder of CHEARS (Chesapeake Education, Arts and Research Society, chears.org), Cahalan promotes environmental stewardship projects protecting the health of all life in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. One prominent project of […]
Bingo: Problems, Solutions?
There’s more than one way to play bingo, according to participants in Greenbelt’s two Labor Day weekend bingo events. The “old way,” said Mary McGrew, 80, a retired procurement officer, requires colorful ink “daubers” to mark squares on paper bingo cards. The Ladies of Charity of St. Hugh of Grenoble Catholic Church, which hosted bingo […]
City Council Debates ARPA Premium Pay for Employees
On August 29, Greenbelt City Council met for two separate sessions. The first was a special meeting to act on Premium Pay for city employees. One and a half hours and three motions later, the decision was that eligible city employees can expect to receive their American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Premium Pay checks by […]