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April

Date: April 12, 2016

Place: Village Hall, 5906 Connecticut Avenue

Time: 7:30 PM

Present: Chris Richardson, Scott Livingston, Greg Chernack, Ashley Kavanaugh, two Section 5 residents

Agenda Item: Greetings and Introductions

Chair Chris Richardson called the meeting to order and welcomed those in attendance. Chris introduced Greg Chernack as a new Council Member. Greg was appointed to fill the Council seat vacancy created when Greg White resigned in March. Greg Chernack was sworn in before the meeting.

Agenda Item: Approval of Minutes

Chris moved that the minutes from the March Meeting be approved; there was a second and the motion passed unanimously.

Agenda Item: Resident Comments

One resident commented about the Section’s excellent snow removal. Chris Richardson also asked about repainting the curbs near fire hydrants. It was agreed that the Town Manager would look into having this done.

Agenda Item: Updated Council Seat Vacancy

As noted above, Greg Chernack was sworn in as a Council Member - replacing Greg White upon his move out of Section 5 boundaries. Greg will fill out the remainder of Greg White’s two-year term that ends in May 2017.

Agenda Item: Discussion Regarding Qualified Voters in Section 5

Chris continued the discussion regarding Qualified Voters in Section 5. (Note: At the November 2015 meeting, a question was posed by a resident concerning the ability to vote in Section 5 if not a U.S. citizen.  Currently, the Section 5 charter denotes a “Qualified Voter shall mean any person who is registered to vote in Montgomery County (which requires U.S. citizenship) and who appears on the registration lists as resident of Section 5.” Neighboring Sections have differing rules.) The Council had asked and since received, more information from the Town Attorney, Ron Bolt, regarding the logistics for such a change, and the language used by other Montgomery County municipalities in terms of Qualified Voters. An amendment to the Charter would be required, and it was decided at this time to table the motion until the fall. At that time, the Council also plans to seek feedback from residents regarding this issue, and also possibly address other Charter amendments all at once. There was discussion of putting together a Legal Committee comprised of Section 5 residents to review certain issues from time to time.

Agenda Item: Building Permit Report

The Town Manager indicated that the following building permits had been submitted and approved:

Julie and Ron Jacobs of 3808 Leland – an addition to their home
Emma and Earl Hadley of 3805 Woodbine – an addition to their home
Mitchell and Monica Dolan of 7311 Brookville – replacing a small section of their existing fence

Agenda Item: Discussion of Draft FY 2016-17 Budget

The Town Manager presented a draft FY 2017 budget to the Council and residents present. After a detailed discussion of all the line items, income and expenditures, the draft was approved, and it will be sent to residents for their review in advance of the Annual Meeting May 10th.

Agenda Item: Chevy Chase Fire Board Vacancies

Section 5 has two vacancies on the Chevy Chase Fire Board. Lars Hanslin and John Higgins have volunteered to serve as Section 5 representatives. The Council approved their nomination to the Board. The Town Manager will send a letter to Fire Board President, John Bird, officially appointing them.

Agenda Item: Manager’s Report

The Town Manager gave a brief update regarding current Section 5 projects.

-All cross walks and stop bars throughout the Section have been repainted, with the exception of those streets intersecting with Connecticut Avenue which must be done in accordance with the State Highway Administration. The Town Manager had met with a maintenance representative from SHA and hopes to have those completed soon.

-The Town also just completed a walk-thru of Section streets noting different streets and sidewalks that require maintenance. This project will go out to bid and hopefully be completed this summer.

-The Town has started working with a new arborist, Dr. Tolbert Feather. He is currently looking at trees in the right of way and identifying trees that need attention. Regular tree maintenance and pruning will begin soon.

-One Tree Removal Application was submitted and approved for: Kristina and Greg Lowell of 7 Leland Court – a diseased Dogwood on their private property that posed a hazard to their home.

-The Manager met with FEMA and submitted all the necessary paperwork regarding possible partial reimbursement for some of the snow removal costs incurred from Winter Storm Jonas. For snow related emergencies, FEMA requires that a 48 hour window be identified in which your entity incurred the greatest overall cost. They can then reimburse as much as 75% of your total costs within that 48 hour period.

-The Wynne settlement repayment has been deferred, and it will now not take effect until early 2019.

-There will not be an Election for the May Annual Meeting. Since there are only two open Council seats up for election this May, and only two candidates that submitted and declared their nomination for these seats, Chris Richardson and Scott Livingston, both incumbents, will be sworn in accordingly for another two-year term at the May meeting.

-Due to scheduling issues, the June meeting will not be held at its normal date of June 14th. It will instead be held on Tuesday, June 7th. Residents will be sent a notice of the change.

Adjournment

Chris adjourned the meeting. The next meeting will be held May 10, 2016, at 7:30 PM at the Village Hall, 5906 Connecticut Avenue. The Village Hall has handicapped access. Everyone is welcome.