WORK SESSION OF THE GREENBELT CITY COUNCIL held Monday, July 28, 2003,for the purpose of holding a stakeholder meeting with the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center.

Mayor Davis called the meeting to order at 8:05 p.m. It was held in the Council Room of the Municipal Building.

PRESENT WERE: Mayor Davis, Mayor Pro Tem Rodney Roberts, and Council members Edward V. J. Putens and Alan Turnbull.

STAFF PRESENT WAS: Michael McLaughlin, City Manager.

ALSO PRESENT WERE: Dr. Phyllis Johnson, Director, and Robert Serrano of Beltsville Agricultural Research Center; and Sheldon Goldberg.

Mayor Davis began by noting that the meeting was a stakeholder meeting. Dr. Johnson made a presentation to Council on the operations at BARC. BARC has 2,000 workers, 1,200 of whom are federal employees, and a budget of $125 million. Dr. Johnson invited all of Council to the dedication of the new Human Nutrition Research Center on August 26.

A good deal of attention is being given to complying with competitive sourcing (outsourcing) functions in line with the President's direction. Functions being looked at include security, facilities management, and animal studies. Dr. Johnson noted that many functions are being held onto by the federal work force.

Dr. Johnson spoke about the impact of neighbors such as IKEA, which has improved Route 1; the University of Maryland, which is looking at a connector road to I-95; and Goddard, whose current proposal to realign Soil Conservation Road now avoids BARC property. BARC is not keen on the connector road since it impacts BARC's South Farm. Mr. Roberts agreed with BARC's concern, saying he feared BARC would be piecemealed with projects like this one.

Dr. Johnson noted that BARC has been recognized a number of times for its environment-friendly operations and approaches. However, while BARC received program increases in the FY 2003 budget, they totaled only around $2 million and represented a smaller percentage increase than most other agriculture facilities. This type of situation is expected to continue into FY 2004. Council noted its strong support for BARC and asked to be kept informed of how it can help to support BARC with Congress. Council also inquired whether there are any moves to take parts of BARC property. Dr. Johnson indicated there were not and that Senator Sarbanes and Congressman Hoyer both watch out for BARC.

Other Items: Mr. Turnbull asked for information on other options for employee health coverage, including coverage for domestic partners and whether employees are taking duplicate coverage.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,

Michael McLaughlin
City Manager

City of Greenbelt, Maryland
City Offices, 25 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, MD 20770
Phone: 301-474-8000 FAX: 301-441-8248