September

SECTION 5 OF THE VILLAGE OF CHEVY CHASE

COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES

Date: September 12, 2023

Place: Chevy Chase Village Hall

Time: 7:30 PM

Present: Greg Chernack, Josh Galper, Maryann Luongo, Sean Downey, Philip Giordano, Ashley Kavanaugh, and two Section 5 residents.

Note: Just prior to the meeting, the Section 5 Council met with the District 18 Delegation (Senator Jeff Waldstreicher, Delegate Aaron Kaufman, Delegate Jared Solomon, and a staff member for Delegate Emily Shetty) for an informal conversation to discuss shared interests and priorities. The meeting was also attended by several Section 5 residents.

Chair Greg Chernack called the meeting to order and welcomed those in attendance.

Chair Chernack moved that the minutes from the June meeting be approved; there was a second, and the motion passed.

-Vice Chair Josh Galper asked 2023 Election Teller, Brooke Thomas, to give the Council a summary of last spring’s election and provide suggestions for things the Section could do to improve future elections. She noted that some of our election ordinance language could be clarified. She also suggested some changes be made to absentee voting and how ballots were distributed. The Manager will work with Mrs. Thomas and municipal attorney, Ron Bolt, on ways to implement the suggestions and report back to the Council.

-Council member Sean Downey asked about the Section’s speed hump policy.

-The Council discussed the latest information regarding the Section’s possible purchase of the property at the foot of Windsor Place. Over the summer, Vice Chair Galper met and followed up with the adjacent landowner. The owner continues to state that the easement that runs across his property may not transfer if sold and indicated opposition to the land being used as a greenspace. The Council requested additional legal research into the easement. No further action was taken at this meeting.

-A resident inquired about the possible proposed morning turn restriction for Leland Street. She expressed concerns about the impact that this restriction would have for additional cut-through traffic on other Section streets. The Council agreed and stressed that the Section has been in close contact with MCDOT on the matter. The Manager will also send out a reminder to residents that the County’s comment section closes on September 17 so the time to submit feedback is now.

The Town Manager presented an overview of the Section’s current financial status, and entertained questions from the Council.

-There were six applications for tree removal over the summer and fourteen private trees removed.

-There were five building applications approved.

-The Manager asked the Council if they would like to offer the Section’s Free Tree program again this year. The Council voted unanimously to continue with the program. The Manager will let residents know.

-The Manager said that she had started working with CivicsPlus on a new Section 5 website. She met with both the Content Manager and the Design Manager. The hope is to have the new website up and running by the end of the year.

-The Section’s trash contract went out for bid in August. We only received one response bid, from our current contractor, Key Sanitation. The Manager said that the bid is in line with the amount we have budgeted for future years, and that Key Sanitation has been an excellent contractor for many years. The Council voted unanimously to engage in a new contract with Key Sanitation.

-The Manager is currently working with the State Archives to possibly amend our current Records Retention Schedule after work related to Public Records requests revealed a few changes that might simplify the schedule going forward.

-WSSC is finally finishing up work on the Brookville Water Main replacement project. The next phase of work includes the full mill and overlay paving of the streets that were affected. Repaving will be coordinated so that residents will have parking on nearby streets.

-The Manager recently participated in a Hazard Mitigation meeting with the County and formally applied to participate in the County’s HM program.

-The Manager had an initial discussion with Jason Azar at Clark Azar in September to discuss the possibility of upgrades to Leland Court. The work would include curb and gutter work, sidewalks, and street maintenance. The Section will begin the process of pulling together an RFP for the project this fall with the hope of starting the work next spring.

-As part of the work connected with the Section’s annual audit, we discovered that a certificate of deposit the Section has with BB&T;, now Truist, had been closed without our knowledge and the money had been escheated to the State of Maryland. We believe that it happened when the bank merged. We are working with the bank to recover the funds from the State of Maryland.

-On September 14, the Manager will meet with a Pepco Streetlight specialist to discuss the proposed streetlight tariff options.

-There will be a Bulk Trash Collection held on Saturday, September 23.

-The Block Party will be held on Sunday, October 1, and the rain date will be held Sunday, October 8.

-The Manager asked about the possibility of moving the November 14 meeting to November 7. The Council agreed. The Manager will make the necessary arrangements.

Chairman Chernack adjourned the meeting. The next meeting will be held October 10, 2023, at 7:30 PM. Everyone is welcome.