Commissioners OK major street
paving and sidewalk project and
Spurrier Avenue safety improvements; purchase plot for future parkland
The Commissioners whipped through a relatively long agenda last
Monday night with unaccustomed speed, adjourning after less than
90 minutes. Two items on the agenda have considerable significance
for the future of the Town and probably will turn out to represent the
largest expenditure of Town funds for any single meeting in 2008.
Only three Commissioners were on hand, with both Commissioners
Yeatts and Hoewing away on business.
Repaving, sidewalks and Spurrier Avenue changes
HMF Paving Company, the low bidder for the significant public works project, won the Commission’s approval for a bid just short of $665,000. The work will include repaving of Butler Road, Sumter Way, Hoskinson Road (Wootton-Bodmer), Sedgwick Way, Brown Road, Spurrier Avenue and Wootton Avenue (Wesmond side). Their contract also calls for building new sidewalks for a portion of Elgin Road and in the Wesmond Townhouse community and paving of Fyffe Road (from Fisher Avenue to the new Town Hall.
Of particular importance to residents along the lower part of Spurrier Aveune—who have been pressing for construction of sidewalks because of traffic hazards faced by pedestrians on a street that carries considerable high school traffic before and after school hours—the contractor will be widening the street by two feet, building curb and gutter and laying a 5-foot sidewalk on the high school side of the street.
With all other costs involved (such as engineering), the estimated cost for the work, according to Town Manager Wade Yost, is $784,000. The three Commissioners asked a few questions on some of the details of the project, then voted unanimously to approve the bid from HMF.
Town purchases Devlin-England plot
Various Town officials (from the Town Board, the Parks Board and the Planning Commission) have had their eye on a piece of land owned by the Devlin-England families--3.77 acres located behind Selby’s Market—as a site for recreational development. (More on their reasons below.)
At Monday night’s meeting President Eddie Kuhlman disclosed that the Town has been in negotiations with the owners for some months (the subject matter for several executive sessions that were held earlier this year). When contacted, he reported, the owners made an offer to sell (he did not indicate the exact amount), countered by a lower offer from the Town, triggering a counter from the owners. Ultimately the Town offered—and the owners accepted—a purchase price of $500,000. As part of the context for the decision to purchase, the Town obtained two independent appraisals on the value of the land--one coming in at $985,000, the other “$600,000 to $1,000,000.”
Mr. Kuhlman reported that the true cost to the Town is likely to be far less than $500,000--$288,000 less in fact—since a grant from the State’s Open Space program toward the purchase is “99 percent certain.”
It was clear from the ensuing discussion that all
Commissioners were very much in favor of the purchase.
The site is envisioned as a very important site that someday
might include a community center, the skate park (if
ultimately approved) and other recreational facilities. Mr.
Kuhlman however wanted it known that the motivation was
not solely to secure a good location for the skate park.
“I don’t even know whether I support a skate park,” he said.
Commissioner Kuhlman called the purchase “a bargain.”
Commissioner Brown, noting that he was “absolutely in
favor,” said that it was advantageous for the Town to take some of the commercial land off the market since the Town has an abundance, that the “price is right” and that the purchase will turn out to be “a windfall” because of the potential it has for recreational development. Commissioner Klobukowski said that the land was “a good acquisition.”
Mr. Kuhlman said that the Town will now need to develop a master plan for the most effective utilization of the parcel. He noted that the Town’s 2005 Master Plan called for building a community center at some point. In the eventual development of the plot he said the Town would explore a variety of County and State grant programs for possible funding assistance.
Though Commissioner Hoewing was not in attendance, he had indicated his strong support in an e-mail to his colleagues. He called the plot “an ideal site” for a community center and an “excellent site” for a skate park if these facilities are decided on in the future.
The vote to approve the purchase was of course unanimous.
Other actions and developments Monday night
·
Announced the appointment of Alicia Burton to a vacancy on the Board of Elections.
·Approved a $645 grant for the PHS Post Prom to pay for a disk jockey for the night’s entertainment.
·Approved plans and costs for a new informational sign on the corner of Fisher Avenue and Fyffe Road. As described in a previous issue of POL: “A large message board suspended between two stone pillars topped off by a sandblasted, double sided, illuminated identification sign (‘Poolesville Town Hall’). The back lit messages would be readily changeable since Town staff could prepare them as needed on a special four color printer (the cost of which is included in the price estimate).” Commissioner Brown did the spade work on the sign—a sketch of which had been presented to the Board at its April meeting—and assured his colleagues that the total cost would be less than the budgeted $20,000 and that revisions in the original design meant that it now conforms with the Town code on signage.
·Decided unanimously not to participate in an agreement with the County on something called “County-Community Development Block Grant Program,” primarily because the Town has no housing stock that would qualify for assistance under the program.
·Delayed action for further study a proposal by Town intern Joe Gilpin that a “scholarship” be established that would compensate him and future interns. (His, the first, internship was established as a volunteer position.)
·Heard from Mr. Yost that:
-Completion of the new Town Hall is proceeding rapidly; drywall is now being installed.
-Legal proceedings involving both the Shraf (Stoney Springs) and Elgin (Brightwell Crossing) wells are progressing slowly. Permits to operate the wells from the State are of course on hold in the meantime.
One hurdle down: Parks Board recommends “concept” of skate park to Town Commissioners
The largest crowd at any Town meeting since POL started
publishing 54 months ago applauded loudly when the Parks Board
at its meeting Wednesday night voted (four votes yea, three votes
abstaining) to recommend the concept of a skate park to the Town Commissioners. Approximately 60 skaters—aware that the issue
was on the agenda for the meeting--and perhaps 25 adults were
packed into the small meeting room with some youngsters spilling
out onto the sidewalk. The motion to approve was made by PB
member Butch Zachrel and seconded by Dr. Tim Pike.
This clears the way for the Town Commissioners to decide
whether/how to proceed. At least two Town Commissioners
have been pushing the PB during the past few months for a “yea”
or “nay” vote like the one taken on Wednesday night. The park
has been the subject of many past PB meetings since first being
raised by citizens in the fall of 2005. For several reasons—the
one mentioned most frequently in recent months was the lack of a
desirable site—the PB had held back on taking a vote. The site issue became moot on Monday night when the Town Commissioners approved the purchase of a 3.77 acre parcel near Selby’s on Monday night—a site that every PB member seems to perceive as an excellent location for a skate park, if one is to be built.
The PB members voting in favor of the recommendation were Town Commissioner Jerry Klobukowski, Kevin Carmack, Tim Pike and Butch Zachrel. Chairman George Deyo and Commissioners Doug McKenney and Kurt Behrend voted to abstain. Mr. Deyo and Mr. Behrend told POL that they abstained because of reservations about the likely cost of the park in the light of Town finances and priorities at this time.
As the discussion before this vote—reaffirmed in later interaction among the members—made clear this does not mean the park is a “done deal.” One member who supported the recommendation made clear his support down the road would depend on a number of questions that cannot be fully answered at this point—actual cost, design of the park, issues of maintenance and security, etc. Of course, the final authority rests with the Town Commissioners, not the Parks Board.
Though supporters left the meeting in high spirits, it seems reasonable to suggest that at best it will be several months before definitive answers are known to a number of questions, including those mentioned above. By the same token, a vote to proceed or hold off on building a skate park by the Commissioners may very well not occur this year. For one thing, as Town Manager Wade Yost pointed out to the PB, it is unlikely the Commissioners will vote for anything to be located on the newly-purchased land until a “master plan” for its use has been developed. Development of such a plan will obviously not happen overnight.
(POL will have a more complete report on the meeting, and related issues on the skate park matter, in our next issue.)
County Council nearing important decisions that will determine how much your property tax bills will increase
Last Monday marked the first day of the countdown toward “decision day” for the County Council—May 15, as currently scheduled. Over the next week and a half the Council will be conducting work sessions to consider more than 40 items in the FY 09 County budget that have been recommended for funding by Council committees.
The Council is scheduled to make tentative decisions on the budget on Thursday, May 15. Formal adoption of the budget is scheduled for Thursday, May 22.
As POL understands it, there is no doubt that the Council will approve an increase in property taxes to fund the FY 09 budget—the only question is how much.
