REGULAR MEETING OF THE GREENBELT CITY COUNCIL held February 13, 2006.

Mayor Davis called the meeting to order at 8:10 p.m.

ROLL CALL was answered by Councilmembers Konrad E. Herling, Leta M. Mach, Edward V. J. Putens, Rodney M. Roberts, and Mayor Judith F. Davis.

ALSO PRESENT were Michael P. McLaughlin, City Manager; John F. Shay, Jr., City Solicitor; David E. Moran, Assistant City Manager; and Kathleen Gallagher, City Clerk.

Mayor Davis asked that everyone observe a moment of silence in honor of former residents Vera Beacham Breashears and William Henry Blacker, as well as in memory of Coretta Scott King. She then led the pledge of allegiance to the flag.

CONSENT AGENDA: It was moved by Mr. Putens and seconded by Mr. Herling that the consent agenda be approved as presented. The motion passed 5-0.

Council thereby took the following actions:

MINUTES OF COUNCIL MEETINGS
- Work Session, January 18, 2006
- Work Session, January 31, 2006
- Interview, February 6, 2006
- Interview, February 8, 2006
Approved as presented.

APPLICATION FOR RECOGNITION GROUP STATUS – GREENBELT BROWNIE TROOP #2329: Council approved the application from Greenbelt Brownie Troop #2329 for City Recognition Group status.

RESIGNATIONS FROM ADVISORY GROUPS: Council accepted with regret the resignations of Robert Boyce from the Youth Advisory Committee and John Beauchamp from the Advisory Committee on Trees.

REAPPOINTMENTS TO ADVISORY GROUPS: Council appointed the following individuals to new terms on their current advisory groups. Members of the Board of Elections were appointed to four-year terms, members of other boards and committees to three-year terms.

Pauline Grant Arts Advisory Board
Pamela Hagerhorst Arts Advisory Board
Steven Skolnik Board of Appeals
Steven Gilbert Board of Elections
Pamela Gregory Board of Elections
Janet Jacobs Parker Community Relations Advisory Board
Joyce Griffith Recycling & Environment Advisory Committee

APPROVAL OF AGENDA: Mr. Putens asked to add “Appointments to Advisory Groups” as item #20 on the agenda. It was then moved by Mr. Putens and seconded by Mr. Herling that the agenda be approved as amended. The motion passed 5-0.

PRESENTATIONS: None.

PETITIONS AND REQUESTS: None.

MINUTES OF COUNCIL MEETINGS

Executive Session of February 1, 2006: Mr. Roberts moved that the minutes of the executive session of the City Council held Wednesday, February 1, 2006, be approved as presented. He further requested that the minutes of this meeting reflect that the Council met in executive session at 8:30 p.m. in the Senior Classroom of the Community Center. Council held this closed meeting in accordance with Section 10-508 (a) (9) of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Public General Laws of Maryland to consider matters related to negotiations for collective bargaining. Mr. Putens seconded the motion.

ROLL CALL:
Mr. Herling - yes
Ms. Mach - yes
Mr. Putens - yes
Mr. Roberts - yes
Mayor Davis - yes

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS

Mr. McLaughlin updated Council on the status of the City following the weekend snow. He commended the Public Works, Police, and Recreation Departments for their work, especially Sgt. Jerry Potts, Cpl. Jim Donovan, and Community Center Coordinator Christopher Cherry for preparing for the potential need to shelter residents in the Community Center if electricity remained off. He also announced a February 22 presentation in the Community Center to introduce several new programs of the Greenbelt Assistance-in-Living program.

Mayor Davis asked Mr. McLaughlin to see if City staff or the Recycling & Environment Advisory Committee (REAC) were looking at the recommendation that had been made by a number of regional groups to use fertilizer on lawns only in the fall.

Mr. Herling commented on a REAC meeting he had attended earlier that evening and said this year’s GATE film festival would be held October 27-29.

Ms. Mach announced that the chair of the Advisory Committee on Education, Raymond Peterson, had been asked to be a citizen representative in the interview process for the search for a new CEO for the county schools.

Mayor Davis attended the first CERTS graduation and Sergeant Love’s retirement event in January. She reported on attending the Maryland Mayors Association meeting on February 9-10. She also congratulated Chief James Craze on his appointment to the board of directors of the Foundation of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

LEGISLATION

Closing of the Unemployment Compensation Reserve and Temporary Disability Reserve Funds: Mayor Davis read the agenda comments for the following resolutions.

An Ordinance to Amend Chapter 2, “Administration,” of the Greenbelt City Code for the Purpose of Repealing Section 2-26, “Unemployment Compensation Reserve Fund”

Mr. Putens introduced the ordinance for first reading.

An Ordinance to Amend Chapter 2, “Administration,” of the Greenbelt City Code for the Purpose of Repealing Section 2-28, “Temporary Disability Reserve Fund”

Mr. Herling introduced the ordinance for first reading.

An Ordinance to Amend Chapter 2, “Administration,” of the Greenbelt City Code in Order to Revise Sections 2-41 and 2-42 for the Purpose of Increasing the Maximum Amount for Minor Purchases

Mayor Davis read the agenda comments. Ms. Mach introduced the ordinance for first reading.

A Resolution of Negotiated Purchase for Repair of the Hydraulic Arm on the Aerial Lift Truck by RMS of Westminster, Maryland

The Mayor read the agenda comments. Mr. Putens introduced the ordinance for first reading.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR RECOGNITION/CONTRIBUTION GROUPS – PROPOSED REVISIONS: The Mayor read the agenda comments. She asked Mr. McLaughlin what other changes had been made in the policy and application forms beyond the statement disallowing Recognition Group status to political and religious groups. He said that change was the only significant one, even though it was only making explicit a policy that had been implicit before and was not expected to impact any existing Recognition or Contribution groups. He said another change was that groups would now be required to have a representative at the board meeting where their application was considered.

In response to a question from Bill Orleans, 2-A Gardenway, about the process, Mr. McLaughlin explained that while the City had long provided modest funding for some groups, others did not need funding but appreciated having free meeting space. These two groups, respectively, were referred to as Contribution and Recognition Groups. Mr. Orleans questioned whether any group should have to pay for space at the Community Center.

It was moved by Mr. Roberts and seconded by Mr. Putens that Council approve the revisions to the City’s Recognition and Contribution Group policy and application materials. The motion passed 5-0.

AWARD OF PURCHASE – FY 2006 STREET RESURFACING AND MISCELLANEOUS CONCRETE WORK: The Mayor read the agenda comments. She asked Mr. McLaughlin what would happen if the highway user funds were not fully funded for next year. He said his recommendation was that Council approve the award of purchase now, with the understanding that as the FY 2007 budget is prepared, work can be cut back if the funds are not all forthcoming.

Mr. Putens and Ms. Mach both addressed the need for more formal notification to residents in neighborhoods who are eligible to piggy-back on the City’s street and concrete work Council agreed in directing that a flier should be sent or delivered to the houses involved in order to be sure each household was notified of when work would be taking place.

Mr. Putens made a motion that Council award the purchase of FY 2006 street resurfacing and miscellaneous concrete work to NZI Construction Corporation of Beltsville for the unit prices in Prince George’s County Contract #773-H, for a total cost of $330,000. Ms. Mach seconded the motion, which passed 5-0.

STATE LEGISLATION: In lieu of reading the agenda comments, the Mayor asked Mr. Moran to discuss the bills.

PG/MC 106 – Additional Regulatory Authority – Montgomery County Municipalities: This bill would extend the existing authority of Montgomery County municipalities to adopt stricter building regulations than the county for some items. The Prince George’s County Municipal Association (PGCMA) endorsed it with an amendment to include Prince George’s. Mr. Roberts clarified with Mr. Moran that having planning and zoning authority was apparently not a pre-requisite to having these authorities. It was moved by Mr. Roberts and seconded by Mr. Putens that Council support PG/MC 106 with the amendment proposed by PGCMA to include equity for Prince George’s County municipalities in any authorities granted to Montgomery County municipalities. The motion passed 5-0.

PG 409 – Police Officer Signing and Retention Bonuses: Mr. Moran said Delegate Ross was preparing amendments to revise the bill to include municipalities. He said it was likely to be opposed by Prince George’s County because of the state mandate for an earmarked county tax increase. He said police departments have raised some equity concerns regarding using some of the funding for retention bonuses. It was noted that Delegate Ross had been responsive to the municipalities’ request to revise the bill. Ms. Mach made a motion that Council support PG 409 as amended by Delegate Ross. Mr. Putens seconded the motion, which passed 5-0.

Senate Bill 296 – Local Government –Street Lighting Equipment: Mr. Moran said Kensington had asked other towns to support this bill to enable municipalities to purchase street lights from their utility companies and assume responsibility for their maintenance. It was noted that Senator Pinsky is a co-sponsor. It was moved by Mr. Roberts and seconded by Mr. Putens that Council support Senate Bill 296. The motion passed 5-0.

APPOINTMENTS TO ADVISORY GROUPS: It was moved by Mr. Putens and seconded by Mr. Herling that Council appoint David Haberman and Coleen Chernikoff to the Employee Relations Board and Luis Vázquez to the Arts Advisory Board. The motion passed 5-0.

MEETINGS: Council reviewed the meeting schedule. Mr. Orleans asked for an explanation of the circumstances under which the City Council could hold a closed meeting. There was some discussion of the state Open Meetings law. It was agreed that the City Clerk would give Mr. Orleans additional information after the meeting.

ADJOURNMENT: A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Ms. Mach and seconded by Mr. Putens. The motion carried 5-0. The Mayor adjourned the regular meeting of February 13, 2006, at 9:40 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Kathleen Gallagher
City Clerk

"I hereby certify that the above and foregoing is a true and correct report of the regular meeting of the City Council of Greenbelt, Maryland, held February 13, 2006.@

Judith F. Davis
Mayor

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