A RECORD OF PROVEN LEADERSHIP & PUBLIC SERVICE

Campaign Announcement Statement

Two years ago, I stood inside the Red Brick Couthouse, in the company of a distinguished group of Rockville leaders, and I announced my candidacy for the Rockville City Council. At that time, I pledged to be a leader, a lifesaver, and a listener, and I committed to moving forward on Town Center, improving public safety and pedestrian safety, and enhancing Rockville´s responsiveness. Those were promises made, and they are promises kept. But there is more yet to do.

After 8 years of public involvement in planning Rockville´s Town Center, we have finally set ourselves on a firm path to realizing the dream of a vibrant Town Center -- a new heart of our City -- to be anchored by the largest and best library in the County, with shops, restaurants, arts & entertainment, a real Town Square, and, most importantly, people. From the Imagine Rockville process, to the Town Center Action Team, to the Town Center Master Plan, and finally to our anticipated conclusion of the General Development Agreement with the County and Federal Realty in the coming weeks, we are at long last in view of the Town Center for which we have been working for nearly a decade.

But let´s not kid ourselves, this will be a time of transition, and transition can be tough. When we set upon this course, I made a commitment of conscience to ensure that we are fair and generous to the merchants in the Magruder´s strip mall, and that we keep as many as possible in Town Center during and after construction. I remain bound to that commitment and I am so pleased to have been able to work with such wonderful Rockville merchants as Sandy Rubin and Alison Sherman from the Treasure Chest, and many others, as true partners in achieving that goal. I am likewise not unmindful of the inconvenience that many of us will suffer during this time of transition, and I am pleased that we are looking to include provisions in the budget to provide shuttle bus services and other improvements to get us through the coming two-year transition.

Since we´re talking about Town Center, I want to mention two individuals in particular who have taken a leading role in its realization, and who deserve a great deal of the credit for making it happen, Mayor Larry Giammo and Councilmember Susan Hoffmann. The three of us are new to the Council, each concluding our first term this year. Although we came to the Council from different campaigns and differing perspectives, and while we disagree over many issues, I am very appreciative of the close, respectful working relationship we have developed, and it is my great pleasure to be serving the people of Rockville in their company. They are two of the hardest-working people I know, and they have earned our continued support.

In the area of public safety, and as a volunteer firefighter and paramedic, I am pleased to have been the author of landmark legislation that made Rockville a leader in the nation -- and only the 2nd jurisdiction in Maryland -- to require that developers protect the lives and property of our residents by installing fire suppression devices in all new construction. The numbers here don´t lie: there have been zero -- count ´em, zero -- fire-related fatalities in homes equipped with functioning sprinklers.

As an advocate of public safety in public places, I am also pleased to note that we have doubled the number of locations in which lifesaving automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) have been installed in Rockville´s public buildings. AEDs allow ordinary civilians to provide lifesaving defibrillation to people in cardiac arrest in the crucial seconds before paramedics arrive. You´ve seen them in airports and office buildings; now, we´ve got ´em across communities in Rockville. Even better, three more of these lifesaving devices to are soon to be installed in City Hall, the Lincoln Park Community Center, and the Twinbrook Community Center.

Those of you who know me know also of my passion for pedestrian safety. Not a day goes by when I am not reminded of the tragic losses of pedestrians killed in Rockville in the recent past. Their sacrifices are a constant reminder that our focus must be on ensuring that pedestrians in the crosswalk are not also placed in the crosshairs of danger.

That is why I am pleased to note that the City has implemented nearly 100 new pedestrian safety improvements during the past 18 months, including the bright new pedestrian paddle signs you see out here, more than 50 new and refurbished crosswalks, speed indicators on Wootton Parkway, all-way stops, new pedestrian signals in King Farm, Rockshire, and the West End, and extended pedestrian timing at 20 intersections throughout the City, a half-dozen of which will feature exclusive pedestrian phases that hold all vehicles on red to give pedestrians a better-than fighting chance.

Most impressively, accidents involving pedestrians in Rockville decreased last year by nearly 40 percent, from 61 in 2001 to 39 last year. Folks, we are making a difference, and I am committed to keeping us on track to becoming a truly pedestrian-friendly community.

I have also kept my promises with regard to improving the openness and accessibility of our City government. One year ago, I led the City Council in requiring that all Mayor & Council Worksessions and all Planning Commission meetings be televised, so that residents could gain a greater understanding of the workings of our government, and I remain committed to ensuring that the government that serves us is open, responsive, honest, and excellent. The new Alliance of Rockville Neighborhood Associations is a promising step in that direction, bringing civic leaders, City staff, and the Mayor & Council together to address concerns both local and City-wide in an open, constructive forum. I also supported a new Campaign Policy that provides greater access to media and public events for new candidates in Rockville City elections.

Livable neighborhoods also remain a priority with me, and I carried that principle through to action in the new Citywide master plan, that places new limits on development and puts a premium on preserving the quality, character, and heritage of our neighborhoods. Several weeks ago, I also voted to adopt strict controls on development in areas adjacent to residential communities, such as the West End, East Rockville, Lincoln Park, and Woodmont, so that new and infill development is compatible with the local community.

But livable communities aren´t just about sensible limits on development; they´re also about safe, walkable streets. That´s why I am proud to have worked with the Council and the staff to improve street lighting in our communities, to provide new sidewalks in Twinbrook and the West End, and to discourage and slow-down cut-through traffic in places such as Hurley Avenue, North Horner´s Lane, Grandin Avenue, and Watts Branch Parkway.

Still, there is much left to do. We need to finish what was started nearly a decade ago, and get this Town Center underway and completed within the next two years. At the same time, Rockville needs an Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance to ensure that future development will be checked before it aggravates our already-clogged roads and over-crowded schools.

We also need additional zoning measures to protect neighborhoods from the excessive forces of development, institutional uses, and other impacts which may not always be appropriate or in harmony with a neighborhood´s character.

We need to continue our efforts to promote pedestrian and bicycle safety, and we need to reduce gridlock by stepping up the focus on multi-modal transit options, including implementing Councilmember Susan Hoffmann´s plan for local loop shuttle bus to serve the Town Center and surrounding communities.

Finally, with property assessments soaring, and State and County taxes on the rise, I think we need to look at giving Rockville´s residents a break in the property tax rate. Maybe we can, and maybe we can´t without adversely impacting the quality and breadth of the services we enjoy. But, with residents staring at up to 30 percent increases in their overall tax payments to the State, County, and City over the next few years, I think we at least ought to consider it.

Those are some of the things I hope to achieve in the coming term. I ask for your help and your support, as well as your suggestions and your criticism. As I said two years ago when I announced my candidacy for the Council, the solutions to the challenges facing Rockville today must come from all of us. There is much we have accomplished, but there is much yet to do. Working together, listening to one another, we can all help Rockville to become a better place, and I remain committed to doing just that.