WORK SESSION OF THE GREENBELT CITY COUNCIL held Monday, May 21, 2007, for the purpose of holding a stakeholder meeting with representatives of Combined Properties, Inc., on Greenway Center.

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

PRESENT WERE: Councilmembers Konrad E. Herling, Leta M. Mach, Edward V. J. Putens, Rodney M. Roberts, and Mayor Judith F. Davis.

STAFF PRESENT WERE: Michael McLaughlin, City Manager; and Kathleen Gallagher, City Clerk.

ALSO PRESENT WERE: Heather Howard, Property Manager, and Jennifer Nettles, Vice President, East Coast Asset Management, Combined Properties; Bill Orleans; Marcus Ngbea, the Gazette; and Brian St. George, Greenbelt News Review.

Following introductions and an explanation of the stakeholder process, Mayor Davis asked the representatives from Combined Properties to give an overview of the status of Greenway Center.  Ms. Nettles distributed copies of their leasing plan.  She said they have only one vacancy – the former Rack Room Shoes – and believe they have a tenant coming in.  There is a day spa going into the Curiosity Shop space.  She said they had also finished repaving the parking lot in front of Safeway.

Mayor Davis asked how business was going for the merchants.  Ms. Nettles said things were fairly stable, with some types of businesses going up and down at different times.  The Mayor asked about shoplifting, which had been a problem for some stores at one time.  Ms. Nettles said she did not think it was a problem now and that in general they had no major crime issues she was aware of.  She said they work closely with Lt. Buerger of the Police Department. Mr. Putens noted that he had heard from residents that there were problems with kids hanging out in some locations. 

Mr. Roberts asked about the curb cuts and handicapped parking spaces, which had not been restored with the repaving.  Ms. Nettles said those things would be taken care of this year.  She said they had been waiting to find out about a pad building since they did not want to have to redo the work.  It now appears it will be a while before that happens, so they will go ahead.  She said they had been working very closely with Inspector Willie Davis of the Planning and Community Development Department.  She added that two speed bumps have been added in front of Safeway.

Mayor Davis asked about the bench that was removed from the front of Safeway when it was remodeled.  She said it was important to replace it since Greenbelt Connection riders used the bench to wait for the bus after shopping.  Ms. Nettles said Safeway has total control over its own sidewalk.  She said Combined Properties could put a bench in, but it would not be right in front of the Safeway.

Mr. Herling mentioned the difficulties of getting into the Center from the Metro bus.  The Mayor said there had been discussion with previous Greenway Center management about sharing improvements at the eastbound bus stop.  The City would put a bus shelter in if Combined Properties could put in steps or a ramp to enable pedestrians to get down the incline.  Ms. Nettles said that would fit right in with their current paving project for the parking lot.  She asked whom to work with, and Mr. McLaughlin said to go through Inspector Davis or call Terri Hruby, Assistant Director for Planning.

There was considerable discussion of the history of Metro’s unwillingness to try to maneuver buses into Greenway Center.  Mr. Herling speculated on whether the Greenway Center merchants would support another small bus to come in that would serve a broader range of riders than the Connection.

The Mayor raised the topic of the condition of the medians and landscaping.  She said there used to be trees that were no longer there.  Mr. Putens agreed that the landscaping had become very sparse.  He said he saw more trash on the ground and in the corners of the shopping area than used to be the case.  Ms. Nettles responded that they have a five-year capital expense plan that will focus on landscaping next year.  She said they had just terminated a contract with the prior landscaper.  Mr. Putens said he was glad to hear that, but the approved site plan for the property required that the landscaping be maintained at all times.  The Mayor suggested that they have the medians evaluated while they are redoing the parking lot, in order to determine whether they are adequate to support landscaping.  Ms. Nettles indicated that she was not familiar with the site plan requirements, and it was suggested that she either contact Mr. McLaughlin or the Planning Office through Inspector Davis.

Ms. Mach suggested that they consider putting up a kiosk with information that would tie Greenway Center into the City by giving information about the rest of the Greenbelt, its history, and perhaps a map showing its relationship to Old Greenbelt.  Mr. McLaughlin said Jill St. John, the Greenbelt Museum Curator, could be of help in this area.

Mayor Davis said residents had also suggested having bike racks available at Greenway Center. She added that the City’s preference is to have the inverted U-shaped racks used throughout the City.

The Mayor noted that snipe signs were a problem throughout the area and said the City would appreciate their attempting to remove quickly the ones that were put on their property.

The Mayor also asked them if they considered using surveillance cameras.  Ms. Nettles said the police had never given them any suggestion that they had any problems that would justify doing so.  She said she would discuss it with Lt. Buerger.  Mr. Putens described the system that the City is planning to implement at Roosevelt Center and said they might eventually want to hook into that.

There was discussion of traffic flow issues and of accidents on Greenbelt Road at the entrance to Greenway Center.  Mr. Herling said he thought pedestrian access to the Center was lacking, though other Councilmembers thought that was inevitable if the only access was through a parking lot.

Council thanked Ms. Nettles and Ms. Howard for coming.  This part of the meeting ended at 9 p.m.

Other Business:  A number of informational announcements were made.  In addition, Mr. McLaughlin said the Credit Union and Reality 1 were concerned about the City’s support for the  New Deal Café’s application to extend its license to serve alcohol to its outside eating area.  Ms. Mach said the Credit Union had conveyed support at the merchants’ meeting.   The Mayor said she had been asked to serve on the principal selection committee for Greenbelt Elementary School.  Ms. Mach said ACE had had representation in the past and asked if that was the case this time.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:15 p.m.

                                                                        Respectfully submitted,

 

                                                                        Kathleen Gallagher
                                                                        City Clerk

 

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