Wheaton Urban District Advisory Committee
Mid-County Regional
Center, 2424 Reedie Drive, Wheaton MD 20902
Meeting Minutes,
Monday November 17, 2014
Members Present: Devala Janardan(Chair), Derry
Goberdhansingh, Carlos Perozo, William Moore, Mirza Donegan, Leah Haygood, Dan
Thompson, Rick Kessler
Members Absent: Tom
Stanton
Staff Present: Ana Lopez van Balen, Director, Mid-County
Regional Center
Guests: Henriot St. Gerard, MCCAB. Andrew and Mary Rollo, residents. Jim
Agliata, Westfield. Tami Axelrod,
resident.
Call to Order: 6:35pm By Chair Devala Janardan, followed
by introduction of members and guests.
October meeting minutes were approved with minor changes.
Community Concerns: Andrew Rollo, resident, voiced two
concerns. The first issue related to a
crumbling retaining wall behind the Giant food store. Jim Agliata, an official from Westfield, was
present and said he would look into it. His
next question was about the Capital Bikeshare coming to Wheaton. Ana Lopez van Balen answered that when the
Town Square opens they hope to participate but what we have now is due to
grants. She mentioned that there is a
meeting on this next week.
Westfield
Presentation: Jim Agliata, a manager
at Westfield, gave WUDAC an update on projects at the shopping center. They are about a month away from signing an
agreement with an upscale(unnamed) movie chain.
He then when on to highlight the ongoing negotiations with WMATA concerning
a ramp to their garage which is impeding redevelopment of the old Ourisman
site. WUDAC members then gave feedback
on the connectivity of Westfield to the Urban District and traffic improvements
they felt were necessary.
Directors Report: Ana Lopez van Balen reported that the Small
Business Development Center from the University of Maryland has begun the
education process with the businesses located around lot 13, urging them to
attend upcoming meetings that will begin in January. So far only about 30 businesses have signed
up. She asked all affected businesses to
be part of the process now for you need to know if you qualify and not wait for
the actual funding to appear.
She then continued with mention of the work of Alex
Cartegena who is working for the county to assess the needs of the Artists in
the Wheaton Community. There are three
meetings scheduled in December:
12/3 Hollywood East 6-9pm.
12/10 Limerick Pub 12-3pm. 12/13 Regional Service Center 10am-1pm
These informational meetings are critical for grants.
Ana then reported on an upcoming DOT meeting next Monday at
6pm during the WUDAC subcommittee meeting.
The topics will include infrastructure, bike lanes, and pedestrian
enhancements. She also noted that the
Director of Permitting Services will speak tomorrow during the MCCAB meeting
about Recipes for Success, e-plans and green codes and other topics. Ana passed out Volunteer Registration forms
for WUDAC members to complete and briefly noted an upcoming meeting on Ebola at
the Silver Spring Civic Building on Nov. 25, 6-8pm
SubCommittee Reports:
Character: Mirza Donegan spoke briefly about a draft
letter to the County Executive concerning funding priorities for the Urban
District. A copy was handed to WUDAC
members for review and later discussion
Arts &
Entertainment: Devala spoke of the
need to get a list of artists for Alex Cartegena. He noted that our A&E designation was in
danger. We need to discuss what is
necessary to retain it.
Old Business: Discussion then returned to the Funding
Letter. Some concerns were that we
needed to request specific dollar amounts and also define certain wording in
the document. A motion was made and
passed to send the letter with some edits.
Devala then reminded members of the upcoming mixer with the
Wheaton & Kensington Chamber of Commerce and made note of those WUDAC members
who would be attending. He passed out an
informational sheet which will be shared with those attending the mixer. Lastly, Devala mentioned that the next
subcommittee meetings are scheduled for December 15th.
Other Business: Mirza Donegan reminded WUDAC that nominations
for the BRT Corridor Advisory Committee are due by November 19th.
Adjourn: 8:00pm