WECA GENERAL MEETING OF MAY 15^th, 2008

The meeting was called to order at 7pm by Patricia Woodward, President of WECA. She welcomed the Police Officers and introduced Rocio Estrada the new Neighborhood Resources Coordinator from the City of Rockville.

MINUTES: * made a motion to approve the April Minutes, it was seconded and the motion was carried – there was one abstention.

TREASURER’S REPORT: The balances of the WECA accounts were reported, the T Rowe Price account held $1401.55 at May 1^st 2008. It was stated that $800-$900 would be needed for the next newsletter printing. * made a motion* to approve the above and * seconded it. The motion was unanimously carried. WECA MEETINGS RENT MONEY: Patricia proposed that an appropriate amount of money be paid to cover monthly rent to Rockville Presbyterian Church. * made a *motion that WECA arrange to pay the rent money on an annual basis. The motion was seconded and carried. General discussion followed and people considered June to be an appropriate time for payment. It will be reviewed at the June WECA meeting.

OLD BUSINESS

AN ATTORNEY FOR THE CITY: Patricia brought to the attendee’s attention that soon there would be a public hearing concerning the potential appointment of a City Attorney. Several residents thought as a Civic Association it would be a good idea to take a stand about this opportunity. General discussion followed during which the following transpired – that anything to save residents’ money would be appealing, that there was concern as currently two people who consult for the City also represent large developers ie; Federal Realty, JBG and others. It was agreed that it would be ideal for an attorney to only have one client, being the City of Rockville and not to be allied with other firms. * made a *motion that was seconded by * that WECA write a letter supporting the hiring of an in-house Attorney that will be autonomous, reporting to the Mayor & Council, to save costs and to ensure that there is no conflict of interest. The motion was carried unanimously.

DILAPIDATED PROPERTIES: * specifically raised the cases of ‘Burbanks’ and Rebecca Veir’s house. A ‘stop work’ order and ‘danger, no entry’ signs had been put up. More residents voiced an interest in the progress concerning these and similar properties in the West End. Jenny Kimball and Rocio Estrada promised to feedback information on ordinances etc. at the next meeting.

KSI, and ‘SUPER FRESH’ SUPERMARKET : Residents raised questions about the status of the latter two issues. Jenny Kimabll and Rocio Estrada will give feedback at the next WECA meeting in June.

PROPOSED CHURCH DEVELOPMENT ON GREAT FALLS ROAD: A letter regarding the property at 406-408, Great Falls Road was sent by Patricia to the City, as directed at our April meeting. There have been no further communications between the Church and the City.

TRAFFIC COMMITTEE: Patricia gave an update on the work of the traffic committee.

BEALLS GRANT II PROJECT: * raised an issue regarding the MHP project. She expressed concerns that the traffic median island, (won from negotiations with KSI), would now not be built and the traffic exiting onto Beall would pose pedestrian safety issues – as well as increase the number of cars in the neighborhoods. Officer Eric Over clarified that there would be two exits. Traffic will therefore be off of Dawson and Beall. Also, the median is still scheduled to be built.

NEW BUSINESS

FUTURE TOPICS OF INTEREST AT WECA MEETINGS: Patricia invited residents to share topics of interest they’d like to be discussed during the upcoming year’s WECA meetings. For example a) RORZOR, and other zoning changes. General discussion followed about the need for clarification regarding proposed zoning changes, especially with reference to businesses that are fined heavily, but still continue to operate illegally. Patricia reminded us that Jim Wasilak, Chief of Planning, was scheduled to present an update at the June meeting. Some other ideas were b)to invite the City Forester to inform residents about tree care, c) to explore Fire Safety, and d) possibly discuss sign ‘pollution’ as two residents agreed there was a proliferation of them in some parts of the City. A possible Candidates Forum was also briefly discussed along with suggestions for an appropriate venue. Patricia also invited residents to call or e mail their ideas to her over the summer.

PARKING METER PROBLEMS IN THE TOWN CENTER: If you have problems with unjustified tickets, notify the Police Dept., provided that a ticket was received for a legitimate reason. If you encounter a faulty box, also notify the Police Dept. immediately.

ENTRY SIGNS ON MARYLAND & W MONTGOMERY: They have been installed welcoming drivers to our neighborhoods.

‘SUPER FRESH’ SUPERMARKET: A representative of Federal Realty will discuss ‘Super fresh’ on Tuesday, at 7pm at city Hall during the Town Center Action Team (TCAT) meeting.

CRIME REPORT & CRIME PREVENTION TIPS: Lt Eric Over gave an overview of recent, petty thefts, mostly due to vehicles and houses left unlocked. He advised residents to lock car doors at all times to avoid this and for GPS systems and other valuables to be hidden or removed from their cars altogether. As far as burglaries were concerned he stated that most recent crime was of an opportunistic nature. So, secure your homes, stay alert to any suspicious behavior or strangers in your neighborhood and above all to report anything that ‘just didn’t look right’. He recalled that victims of crime often mention this after the fact. The Police Officers also mentioned that there had been incidences of tagging (graffiti) and marijuana use by teenagers in the Welsh Park area. Finally a few cases of gas theft had been reported so they advised investing in a lockable gas cap. In reply to code enforcement Lt Over stated that if a house is in violation in some way a case will be opened up concerning that residence. As far as traffic enforcement was concerned, so far the Police Dept. viewed it as very effective, with 300 tickets written and 300 warnings being given for the month of January. In April on W Montgomery Ave 2300 citations were given. If you want to report anyone, or anything, that seems unusual in your neighborhood to the police, The NON EMERGENCY TEL. NO. IS: - (240) 314 8900.

REMARKS FROM THE CITY’S NEIGHBORHOOD RESOURCE COORDINATOR: Jenny Kimball and her successor Rocio Estrada outlined some events and dates for residents. They also explained that a new ‘Welcome Kit’ is available online for residents new to Rockville - they are endeavoring to update and provide written material, useful phone numbers etc. for non computer users.

The election and RORZOR was again briefly discussed and Patricia reminded attendees of the speakers scheduled for the June WECA meeting.

Patricia adjourned the meeting at 8.50pm

Respectfully submitted by

Jan Balkam, WECA Recording Secretary