April 23, 2018
Dear Friends,
Thank you to everyone who joined me on Wednesday, April 11, for my Fourth Annual District 3 Town Hall & Resource Fair at William Wirt Middle School! Our County, State and utility representatives provided a great deal of useful information. It was an honor to speak with residents and answer questions. You can view the Facebook Live video of my remarks on my Facebook page
here.
You may remember that I held my first Town Hall at William Wirt Middle School to highlight the critical need for a complete replacement of the building. I'm thrilled to report that after several years of advocacy by residents, as well as the strong leadership of PGCPS Board of Education Member Lupi Grady, an architect is on board and the new school is being designed!
Please join BOE Member Grady, the PGCPS CIP team, the architect team, and me, on Wednesday, May 9, at 6:30 p.m. at William Wirt for a community meeting to discuss the new school.
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Just a portion of what was collected at Briers Mill Run |
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We had beautiful weather on Saturday for Earth Day clean-up events which took place across the country and in District 3. Thank you to the many residents who worked hard to clean up our neighborhoods and streams on Saturday and to the many who work to beautify our communities by picking up litter and more throughout the year. Together we can
keep our neighborhoods beautiful!
Last year I was proud to lead the effort to pass
CB-66-2017, Clean Neighborhoods legislation. This law requires all trash to be placed in a metal or tough plastic container with handles and a tight-fitting lid. No more than one plastic bag may be placed outside of the trash container. Residents who regularly produce more trash than can fit into their toter will need to purchase additional toter(s). In addition, trash may not be put out to the curb prior to 6:00 pm the day before collection and toters must be removed from the curb on the day of collection. These common-sense regulations will help reduce litter in our neighborhoods.
I'm incredib
ly excited that Prince George's County is #1 in the State of Maryland
for Waste Diversion and Recycling for the third year in a row! On April 11, the C
ounty's Department of the Environment launched the Zero Waste Initiative.
Learn more
.
There's always more to do, however. This year I am sponsoring
CB-12-2018
to strengthen business recycling requirements in the County. I've specified that hotels/motels and gas stations are included in the requirements for all commercial businesses to provide easy and convenient recycling options for the employees, tenants, and customers.
Review of the Fiscal Year 2019 Prince George's County Budget is in full swing. Council Committees began Budget Review Work Sessions in April and will continue through mid-May. Please make your voice heard in this process--attend and testify at one of our two public budget hearings on the overall Operating and Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budgets, including the Board of Education budget, on May 1 and May 7. Details here. If you are not able to attend in person, you can watch the hearings, along with all Council sessions and Committee work sessions, online here.
Have you heard it said that coding is the new literacy? The University of Maryland, Prince George's County Social Innovation Fund, and others are hosting a FREE day of coding and innovation for Prince George's County youth ages 11-18 on Saturday, May 5. This PGCode "Community Hack Day" will take place at the UMD campus and lunch and snacks will be provided. Like me, you may be wondering what a "hack day" is -- PGCode explains that it is best described as an "invention faire" where anyone interested in technology can learn, build, and share their creations in a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere. Register here. Sign up to volunteer here. Contact [email protected] for more information.
After the Community Hack Day,
please be sure to join me on Sunday, May 6, at my Second Annual District 3 Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) Day at the College Park Aviation Museum. Admission is free for all District 3 residents! N
umerous partners including Art Works Now, College Park Arts Exchange, DuVal High School Aeronautics program, Parkdale High School Robotics Team, and many more will join me that day to offer additional hands-on activities for all ages! Click on the flyer on the right for all the details.
Residents of Glenn Dale, the surrounding neighborhoods, and others who are interested, are invited to join Council Vice Chair Turner, Council Member Harrison and me at a public meeting on Tuesday, May 8, on the results of the Glenn Dale Hospital Historic District Feasibility Study for the Adaptive Reuse of the Glenn Dale Hospital Site. Click on the image to the left to view the flyer. You may also contact Joseph Arce, Park Planner, at 301-699-2437 or [email protected] for more information.
Are you or is someone you know in need of assistance paying for critical home repairs such as mold, plumbing, windows, ramps, etc.? The County Council has provided funding to the Housing Rehabilitation Assistance Program (HRAP) to provide 0% interest, no payment home improvement loans of up to $60,000 for qualified homeowners in need. The loans are repaid when the house is sold or transferred. To apply call Housing Initiative Partnership at 301-699-3835.
Have you signed up to receive
Council Connection yet? Earlier this year, I initiated Council Connection as a weekly wrap up of what's happening at the County Council. It is sent to subscribers every Friday. You can also read past editions
online. A great deal is happening right now and I strongly encourage you to
sign up to receive Council Connection so you can stay up-to-date on all that's going on!
As always, don't hesitate to reach out to a member of my staff or me if we can assist you in any way.
Together Strengthening our Community,
P.S. If you are active on social media, you can engage with me on
Facebook and
Twitter, too.
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