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November

Date: November 13, 2012

Place: Village Hall, 5906 Connecticut Ave.

Time: 7:30 PM

Present: Peter Gray: Tim Hanlon; Frances L. Higgins; Chris Richardson; Greg White; 2 Section 5 residents

  1. Agenda Item: Minutes

    Greg moved that the October 10, 2012, Council meeting minutes be approved as amended; Tim seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.

  2. Agenda Item: Resident’s concerns

    A Section 5 resident congratulated the Council on its management of the town’s finances. He said that the County had not credited his real estate account with the $650 real estate refund from Section 5. When he contacted the County finance office about this matter, the County worker corrected the error in a timely manner. He complimented the County on its prompt service.

  3. Agenda Item: Discussion of Proposed Investment Ordinance

    Peter made some additions to the proposed ordinance. He added the phrase "under Sec. 3-130" to the last sentence under Sec. 3-110 Preamble. Also, he added the phrase "under Sec. 3-150" to the last sentence under 3 in Sec. 3-140 Investment Objectives. The Council agreed with these additions.

    Peter has written a letter to the residents stating that they may attend the December Council meeting and offer their comments concerning the proposed investment ordinance.

    Chris asked what is meant by the word collateralization pertaining to finances. It was decided that collateralization means insurance. There was a question about the citation: State Finance and Procurement Article 6-222(d) or Article 95, Section 22-22-N and 22-0 of the Annotated Code of Maryland.

    Action:
    The Council approved Peter's letter.

    The manager will change the word collateralization and replace it with the word insurance in each place where it appears in the proposed ordinance.

    John Higgins, who wrote the investment ordinance, will check the references in the State Annotated code and verify their validity.

  4. Agenda Item: Discussion of Supplemental Police Patrols

    In the most recent Police Services Agreement with the County to provide supplemental police patrols in Section 5 there are provisions to which the Council objects: 1) the contract states that the officers will not enforce Section 5 ordinances; 2) the Council will not be allowed to assign the officers to designated sites in the town.

    Action:
    The manager will contact David Falcinelli, the County police contact person, and tell him about the items to which the Council objects. The manager will keep the Council informed about these discussions.

  5. Agenda Item: Discussion of County Debris Management MOU

    Peter has signed the agreement with the County which allows Section 5 to piggy back on the County's contract to remove debris in the case of a large storm.

    Action:
    The manager will send a copy of this agreement to the County.

  6. Treasurer's Report

    Tim provided the Council member's a copy of the report which includes Section 5's revenues and expenditures to date. There was some discussion about the amount of money spent in the Landscape item. It was reported that this item includes the planting and replacing of liriope in the public strips. Chris said that a resident thanked him for the Council agreeing to add liriope in the public strip in front of his house. Tim said that none of the expenditure items are over budget.

  7. Building Inspector's Report

    Permit's Granted: 7309-11 Brookville Rd. ‒ back yard fence

  8. Manager's Report

    A resident contacted the manager and asked if Section 5 could have community meetings with Pepco concerning the large number of power outages which Section 5 residents experience. The manager explained to the resident that the Council has contacted Pepco many times over the years about the outages. The Public Service Commission has fined Pepco $1,000.000 for its poor service.

    Several residents have contacted the manager about the noise which generators make. The County has an ordinance which regulates the level of noise which a generator produces; however, it is necessary to have a decibel measuring device to determine if the noise level exceeds the acceptable level.

    Section 5 has planted 21 private trees as part of its Urban Reforestation Project this fall.

    The manager has sent an order of steaks from Omaha Steak Company to Pat Baptiste as a thank you gift for her speaking to the Council on the developments at the Chevy Chase Lake by the Chevy Chase Land Company.

    A large transport truck tried to turn onto Underwood St. from Brookville Rd. and went onto the curb and ran over a public tree. Mark Peyton had to come and remove the damaged portion of the tree so that the truck could go on its way. The manger has sent an invoice including the cost of removing the tree and the cost of planting a new tree. The company that owns the offending truck has agreed to reimburse Section 5 for these costs.

    Bill Bissell has submitted a report that lists each of the storm drain outlets and the condition of each outlet. The manager has sent the list to Mark and he and his crew have pulled the covers from each outlet to confirm the condition of the outlet. Some of the brick work in these out lets is in need of repairs.

    Action:
    The manager will determine the cost to repair these inlets and report back to the Council.

    There was some discussion concerning the County's efforts to revise the County ordinances regarding accessory apartments. There was discussion about what action Section 5 should take regarding this revision.

    Action:
    The Council asked the manager to contact the other Chevy Chase municipalities and determine what action each plans to take. She will report back to the Council.

    Ron Bolt, a Maryland attorney, sent Section 5 an email in which he said that the County Council is considering revising the building regulations which govern the lot size necessary to build a house in the County. There is some discussion that the new regulations will allow a house to be razed and a new house built on a non-conforming lot.

    Action:
    The Council asked the manager to contact the other Chevy Chase municipalities and determine what action each intends to take.

    The manager gave an update on Park and Planning's actions regarding the development at the Chevy Chase Lake. Park and Planning has held two work sessions and will have one more work session in December. At this last meeting the Planning Commission will finalize a report and then present it to the County Council for its approval. The County Council will have a work session and then present its recommendations to the County residents. The County Council will then vote on these recommendations.

  9. Adjournment:

    Peter adjourned the meeting.

    The next Council meeting will be held Tuesday, December 11, 2012, at the Village Hall, 5906 Connecticut Avenue, at 7:30 PM. Everyone is welcome. The Village Hall is handicapped accessible.