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Dear
Friends,
Now
that the Primary Election is behind us, we largely know who our
elected officials will be for the next four years in Prince George’s
County. I am looking forward to working with our next County Executive, Rushern Baker, whom
I have known and worked with for many years. I believe he will
be responsive and attentive to the needs of our communities and will
be a great partner in my efforts to serve District 3. I am also
looking forward to working with the next County Council – in addition
to four members who will likely be coming back, we have five new
Council Members, several of whom I know very well.
I
want to also update you on several pieces of legislation. On
September 28th, the County Council approved my bill,
CB-40-2010, which increases the fines for pawn shops in violation of
the County code, prohibits pawn shops from accepting items that are
new, and prevents them from trading in gift cards from other
stores. In addition,
we passed my resolution to establish the
Youth and Gang Violence Prevention Steering Committee (CR-62-2010),
which will create a committee of stakeholders to implement
recommendations to help young people avoid gang involvement. In
particular, I am pleased that the Transportation, Housing, and
Environment Committee (THE) which I chair, sent a stormwater
management ordinance (CB-80-2010) to the Council for
consideration. The legislation establishes Prince George’s County as one of
the leaders on stormwater management and addresses many of the
concerns of both the environmental and development communities that
were raised during the initial review of the legislation.
I also know
that there have been some recent reports about friction between the County Executive
and County Council over the new 911 Call Center.
I want you to know that contrary to some reports, the Council is
taking up the measure to fund completion of this new Call Center and contrary to some
rhetoric; it was never the case that the Council would jeopardize the
completion of this much-needed public safety facility.
Take care and
please call my office with any questions or concerns. I look
forward to continuing to represent you for the next four years.
Thank you.
Eric Olson
Council Member, District 3
(301) 952-3060
ITEMS OF INTEREST
NEW CELL PHONE LAW EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1
The State General Assembly passed new cell phone
legislation. Maryland now
joins 7 other states, Washington D.C., and the Virgin
Islands in banning hand-held cell phone use while
driving. Effective October 1, 2010, using a handheld cell phone
while driving is illegal, unless done so to contact 911,
ambulance, hospital, fire or law-enforcement agencies. For more
information please visit www.distraction.gov.
RIVERDALE
PARK DAY
Riverdale
Park Day will be held on October 2nd, 2010 from
12:00noon-5:00pm, at the Riverside
Neighborhood Park (5801 Riverside Drive in Riverdale Park). Free music and
activities for kids will be provided. Please come and join in the
fun!
30
YEARS of KINDERFEST
The
Prince George’s
County Department of Parks & Recreation is now in its 30th
year of Kinderfest, an annual celebration for children and
families. This year’s festivities will be held on October 3,
2010 at Watkins
Regional Park (301 Watkins Park Drive in Upper
Marlboro) from 12pm-5pm. Admission is free. For more
information please visit this website.
COLLEGE
PARK DAY
This
year, College Park Day will be held on Saturday, October 9, 2010 at
the College Park Community Center (5051 Pierce Ave in College Park)
from 1pm-5pm. Hosted by the City of College Park, this event will
include food, rides, informational sessions and other
festivities. Please direct all questions to the City of College Park website.
FREE
FORECLOSURE WORKSHOP
The
Maryland Department of Housing will host a free Foreclosure Workshop
on Saturday, October 13, 2010 from 9:30am-1:30pm at Howard County
Community College, The Rouse Company Foundation Student Service Hall
(10901 Little Patuxent Parkway in Columbia). To pre-register
for a free legal consultation with an attorney please call
1-800-396-1274 or visit www.mdhope.org.
COUNTYWIDE
COMMUNITY CLEANUP DAY
Help
clean up your neighborhood on Saturday, October 16, 2010 from
8am-12pm. Recruit volunteers and the County will provide safety
vests, litter grabbers, trash bags, and will pick up after the
event. After the clean-up, join other volunteers at a thank you
celebration at Bladensburg
Waterfront Park at 12:30pm. To
register, call 301-883-5600 or email vcaldwell@co.pg.md.us.
ENVISION PRINCE GEORGE’S SPEAKER SERIES
Envision Prince George’s will host a Speaker Series this
fall with the purpose of addressing key topics generated from
Envision Prince George’s Town Hall Meetings held earlier this
year. Please visit this website for more
information. The speaker series is held from 10:30am-12:00pm at
the County
Administration Building, 1st Floor
Council Hearing Room, 14741
Governor Oden Bowie Drive, Upper
Marlboro, MD 20772.
October 21st
Retail Attraction & Community Branding
November 18th
Planning for the Bottom Line
December 16h
Implementing Transit Oriented Development-Strategies
& Tools
UPDATED CITIZEN HANDBOOK
The Prince
George’s County Planning Board has updated
its Citizen Handbook. This guide is designed to educate
citizens on the planning, zoning and development process in Prince George’s
County while highlighting ways citizens can get involved in the
planning process. Click here to download a
copy.
RIVERDALE
PARK
FARMERS MARKET
The
Riverdale Park Farmers Market, located at the Riverdale MARC station
on Queensbury Road,
is open every Thursday until November. Market produce will
include crops, bedding plants, flowers, baked goods, eggs, jams, and
honey. Please visit their website for more information at http://www.rpfarmersmarket.org/.
COLLEGE
PARK AVIATION
MUSEUM
The College Park
Aviation Museum is located on the grounds of the
world’s oldest continuously operating airport in College Park; founded in
1909. Events in the month of October will include Café Groove
Coffee House, After-School Skating, Painting, a musical and many
more. The museum is located at 1985 Cpl. Frank Scott Drive in College Park.
For a list of events please call (301) 864-6029 or visit them at www.collegeparkaviationmuseum.com
for more
information.
COMMUNITY
LEGAL SERVICES FORECLOSURE PREVENTION PROJECT
Since 2008,
Community Legal Services of Prince George’s County, Inc. (CLS) has
administered the Foreclosure Prevention Project which has provided
over 500 low to moderate income homeowners with legal advice and
referrals to volunteer attorneys who negotiate repayment,
forbearances, loan modifications, short sales and cash for
keys. CLS has also provided tenants living in properties facing
foreclosure with information about their rights. For more
information please call CLS at (301) 864-8186.
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PLANNING PROJECT and
BUDGET UPDATES
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Prince George’s County Planning Board Budget Forum
The Prince George’s
County Planning Board will host a budget forum on October 4, 2010
at the Prince George’s
Sports & Learning Complex, A & B Rooms (8001 Sheriff Road in
Landover). Attendees will have the opportunity to provide
comment on this upcoming Fiscal Year’s budgetary plan. Please
click here to register to speak. For more information
please visit this website.
Public Hearing – TheBus Greenbelt Restructure Plan
The Department of Public Works & Transportation
will hold a Public Hearing on October 12, 2010 at 7:00pm to take
comments on the proposed changes to TheBus routes 11, 15, 15x, and
16. For more information please view the flier.
Purple Line
The Maryland Transit Administration is reaching out to
communities along the Purple Line route to discuss their plans in
detail for the preferred alignment. Over the next two years,
detailed engineering will be completed and this spring the State
will apply to the Federal Government to gain the Federal Transit
Administration’s approval. For more information, please visit
www.purplelinemd.com.
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