Whitman’s 50th Anniversary
Potomac — Walt Whitman High School is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
"A Celebration of 50 Years of Walt Whitman High School with Music," is scheduled for Saturday, June 22, at 7 p.m. in the Whitman Auditorium.
Whitman choral or instrumental music alumni are invited to participate in the concert; rehearsals with brunches and social gatherings are planned for the Saturday event.
The concert will be open to the entire Whitman community.
Information for participants, including concert and rehearsal updates, can be found on the Walt Whitman Alumni Concert Facebook Event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/191785370961991/?ref=ts&fref=ts
Interested alumni who do not have a Facebook account can send inquiries to concert chair, Francesca Slesinger, at fpslesinger@gmail.com.
New Zoning Ordinance
The Montgomery County Planning Board rewrote the county’s Zoning Code, which guides all development and building in the county, to remove antiquated or redundant regulations and to help achieve goals in community plans, like the Potomac Master Plan.
The revised Zoning Code will cover what is permitted in each zone, and the process by which development is reviewed and approved.
See http://montgomeryplanning.org
What is unknown, Callum Murray, lead planner for Potomac, said earlier this year, is what the unintended consequences of the rewrite will be. Some effects of changes of zoning can become clear as the language is applied, and it is the unintended consequences that will be noteworthy, he said.
On June 14, the Planning, Housing and Economic
Development(PHED) Committee of the County Council will begin a review of the draft Zoning Code and Zoning Map from 9 a.m. to noon.
To view existing and proposed zoning, visit the interactive zoning map: http://tinyurl.com/l26d976. For questions about the map, contact Matt Johnson at Matt.Johnson@montgomeryplanning.org or 301-495-1325.
New Planning Director
The Montgomery County Planning Board hired Gwen Wright to be its new director.
Wright will begin directing the Planning Board on July 1 and will oversee a department responsible for making recommendations to the board on master plans, development applications, forest conservation, historic preservation and other land-use issues.
The Planning Board’s previous director Rollin Stanley departed in May 2012. Rose Krasnow served as acting planning director since Stanley left.
Wright was with the Montgomery County Planning Department from 1987 to 2008 as chief of countywide planning and then as acting director of the department. Currently, she is chief of the Development Division at the City of Alexandria’s Department of Planning and Zoning.
Wright has a degree in architecture and architectural history from Yale University.
Improving Accessibility of Parks
Residents are encouraged to attend an upcoming meeting to help develop a plan to improve the accessibility of park and recreational facilities for people with disabilities.
Montgomery County’s Commission on People with Disabilities and the County-Wide Recreation Advisory Board will hold a public meeting on Wednesday, June 12 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., in Rockville at the Executive Office Building, 101 Monroe St.
The U.S. Department of Justice issued revised Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations for state and local governments that went into effect in March 2012.
Many recreational facilities in Montgomery County will be affected by these regulations.
For more information about the public meeting or about ADA compliance issues, contact Nancy Greene in the County’s Department of General Services at nancy.greene@montgomerycountymd.gov, or 240-777-6197; or Bob Green, ADA Compliance Project Manager for M-NCPPC Montgomery Parks at bob.green@montgomeryparks.org, or 301-495-2751.
Get Involved
Montgomery County seeks applicants for its Pedestrian, Bicycle and Traffic Safety Advisory Committee, Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Advisory Council, Department of Permitting Services Advisory Committee and Solid Waste Advisory Committee.
See http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/apps/exec/vacancies/pr_list.asp
An application, consisting of a brief cover letter and resume, should be sent by mail to County Executive Isiah Leggett, 101 Monroe Street, 2nd Floor, Rockville, MD 20850, or by email to countyexecutive.boards@montgomerycountymd.gov.
Recycling Efforts Noted
The Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Solid Waste Services (DSWS) recognized outstanding achievements in recycling, waste reduction, reuse, buying recycled-content products and educational efforts by local businesses, organizations, multi-family apartment and condominium properties, residents and individuals.
The German School in Potomac was honored for its efforts to recycle at least 70 percent of their waste stream generated in 2012.
Mary Pedersen, of the McLean School of Maryland in Potomac, was honored for improving the recycling, waste reduction and buying recycled programs at her place of business.
Local businesses and commercial properties recognized included: Convergent Wealth Advisors in Potomac, Good Earth Garden Market in Potomac, Travel Place in Potomac, and Zuckerman Gravely Management – Potomac Place Shopping Center.
Honorees were announced at the annual Recycling Achievement Recognition Program held at the Silver Spring Civic Building on May 22.
Information about each award recipient is available on the DSWS website at www.montgomerycountymd.gov/recycling.
Trash Totals
The tally is in: At the 25th Annual Potomac River Watershed Cleanup in April, 14,238 volunteers at 616 sites along the Potomac River picked up more than 574,000 pounds of trash, including 27,200 plastic bags, 27,400 cigarettes, 193,800 beverage containers, and 1,314 tires.
“The largest regional event of its kind, the cleanup provides a transforming experience that engages citizens and community leaders and generates momentum for change,” according to the Alice Ferguson Foundation.
The Alice Ferguson Foundation launched the first cleanup in 1989.
The cleanups “have made a great contribution to improving our watershed — but this is not a solution, it is just a Band-aid,” according to the foundation. “A trash free Potomac watershed will be achieved when we have the institutions, infrastructure and policies that will lead to a lasting reduction of litter.”
See www.fergusonfoundation.org.