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NewsThis Year, Keep Your Eye On .By Ken MooreThe AlmanacAgriculturalReserveWill the Agricultural Reserve bepreserved in perpetuity, as intended, or will County Council pressforward in 2021 to permit industrial solar power on agriculturalland in its effort to combat climatechange?The Council has a goal of eliminating greenhouse gas emissionsby 100 percent by 2035.But despite its lofty goal, Montgomery County Council is in danger of opening the AgriculturalReserve to industrial solar use.The 1980 Council permanently setaside the 93,000 acres of land specifically for agricultural use, a landuse initiative praised across theUnited States.Council postponed a vote onthe zoning text amendment in November to create a working group.Council hoped that advocates onboth sides of the debate wouldreach some consensus during discussions.But the group, which met morethan 10 hours during the holidayseason, didn’t leave one farmerfeeling festive.“I’m not the one leaving theworkgroup with a warm fuzzy feeling. I appreciate each and everyoneof you all that has participated init. I’ve learned a lot from all of you.But my frustration level is huge.What the hell is the hurry? Whyis this County Council on such anaccelerated track to approve alternative energy in a zone that hasbeen 50 years in the making? Itis imperative to get it right,” saidRandy Stabler.The Council is scheduled to holda committee meeting on Jan. 14,and has voiced intent to vote onthe amendment by the end of January.See past Almanac Stories.Solar Shines Spotlight on Montgomery County Ag ReserveStopping the Combine: FarmersCan’t Compete for Land in Montgomery CountyClean Energy or Farmland? OrBoth? in Montgomery County:Solar Could Supplant AgriculturalReserveKey DatesThursday, Jan. 14Montgomery County Council,Public Housing and EnvironmentalCommittee, ZTA-20-01, Solar Collection Systems, Agricultural ZoneStandardsCovid-19 is surging with current levels rising to “very high risk of /covid19/data/Get Involved50th AnniversaryThe Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National HIstorical Park celebratesits 50th anniversary on Jan. 8, 2021. The Park will be celebratingthis milestone throughout the year with partners and the C&O Canalcommunity, with pandemic precautions changing many of the plansfor celebration. See ry/Luxury LanesSpeedingThrough?More than 140 people testifiedduring a series of virtual and livemeetings this summer on the StateHighway Administration’s 19,000page Draft Environmental ImpactStatement that accompanies Gov.Larry Hogan’s 11 billion-plus private-public partnership plan to addfour toll lanes from the AmericanLegion Bridge, around the Beltwayto Prince George’s County, and up270 to Frederick.About 127 voiced opposition tothe plan, recommending the “nobuild” option. Approximately 15people spoke in support of the plan.Key Dates:Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021, 7:30p.m.Joint House Environment andTransportation Committee ChairKumar Barve, Del. Marc Korman,and Del. Jared Solomon plus representatives from the MarylandNational Capital Park and PlanningCommission, CABE, Sierra Cluband others to hear the latest on theoutlook for legislation and actionon the 11 billion I-495/I-270 tolllane proposal and MDOT’s effortsto accelerate the project.Covid SurgingWith a population of 49,194, Potomac 20854 has had 1,270 covidcases, including 115 in the last 14days, and 47 deaths. MontgomeryCounty has had 48,089 cases and1,097 deaths (as of Jan. 5) sincethe beginning of the pandemic.Maryland has reported 285,319cases and 5,826 deaths. CurrentlyMaryland has a 9.15 positivity rate,as of Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, and1,709 people are currently hospitalized in Maryland due to Covid.Black people are disproportionately affected, accounting for 36.6percent of cases, despite being just20.1 percent of the county’s population.Montgomery County Departmentof Health and Human Services received the first round of vaccinedoses, which are to be earmarkedfor County health staff engaged inmanaging the pandemic response,according to county press releases.Montgomery County is followingthe priority designations outlinedby Gov. Larry Hogan and that allMaryland counties will follow:1A: Frontline health care workers; staff and residents of nursinghomes; and first responders1B: Essential workers and residents over the age of 751C: Individuals over the age of65The second priority group includes people in critical, essentialinfrastructure roles as well as thosepeople at moderately higher risk ofsevere illness. The general publicwill have the chance to be vaccinated when the initial priority groupshave been fully vaccinated. It is estimated that the general public willhave the opportunity to receive thevaccination sometime in the springof 2021.What’s keeping your attention,what’s gotten you riled, what areyou advocating for, volunteeringto do, and passionate about. EmailKen Moore, Almanac reporter, atkmoore@connectionnewspapers.com.Temporary safety improvements to the MacArthur Boulevard bikepath separate the path from the road from Brickyard Road to OldAngler’s Inn. But while the barriers have been implemented to thissection, cars now stack up between Brickyard Road and the ClaraBarton Parkway on weekends and sunny days.RetirementCommunityon River RoadSpectrum Retirement Communities seeks to transform PotomacPetals and Plants (formerly Behnke’s) into a 100 unit retirementcommunity on a 5.04-acre propertylocated at 9545 River Road.Montgomery County’s Office ofZoning and Administrative Hearings is scheduled to hear the proposal on Jan. 15, 2021.“We have been looking on theeast coast and in this area for several years and Potomac continuously rose to the top of our list,”said Mike Longfellow, with Spectrum Retirement Communities, acompany based in Denver, Colo.Neighbors voiced traffic andsafety concerns, and originally objected to the plans for a three-story,152,655 square foot building. “Thisproject could be among the verytop of conditional uses in size andbulk,” said David Brown, land useattorney who represents neighborsand West Montgomery County Citizens Association.But after negotiations with Spectrum, neighbors agreed to revisionsto turn the facility to two-storiesinstead of three, and for enhancedlandscaping and screening.“In order to support the neighbors’ extensive efforts to reach anagreement on the revised plan,[West Montgomery County Citizens Association] agreed to withdraw its opposition as well,” saidSusanne Lee, of West Montgomery.Upcoming Dates:Friday, Jan. 15, 2021, 9:30 a.m.:Public hearing before MontgomeryCounty Office of Zoning and Administrative hool ResourceOfficersHigh school principals in Montgomery County unanimously support police officers in public highschools; other people point to thedisproportionate treatment of students of color and say the SchoolResource Officer program is part ofthe school-to-prison pipeline.During the 2018-2019 schoolyear, Black students were arrested73 times and Hispanic students 55times of the 163 student arreststhat school year, compared to 32White students, and 2 Asian students, according to MCPS data.Discipline including suspensionsalso disproportionately impactBlack and Latinx students.In the 2019-2020 school year,shortened by the pandemic, Blackstudents and HIspanic students accounted for 62 (34 Black studentsand 28 Hispanic students) of the71 arrests.Black and Hispanic students aresuspended twice as often as theirwhite peers in elementary, middleand high schools. Special education students are suspended twiceas often as other students.Montgomery County’s Board ofEducation is scheduled to discussmeasures the school system cantake to address the disproportionately treatment at its Board meeting on Jan. 12, 2021.Meanwhile, Will Jawando ofMontgomery County Council introduced a bill calling for the ter-5 v Potomac Almanac v January 6-12, 2021 www.ConnectionNewspapers.comNeighbors came to agreement with Spectrum Retirement Companyto build a retirement community on River Road at the Potomac Petals and Plants site, formerly known as Behnke’s.mination of the SRO program. TheCouncil will hold a public hearingalso on Jan. 12, 2021, before it begins its own deliberations on Jawando’s proposal.Key Dates:Jan 12, 2021, 1:30 p.m.Montgomery County PublicSchools Board of Education, Business Meeting, 1:30 p.m., Discussion of Student Arrest Data and theSchool Resource Officer ProgramJan. 12, 2021, 7:30 p.m.Montgomery County Council,Public Hearing on Bill 46-20, Removal of School Resource OfficersBill 45-20Will Jawando spearheaded Bill45-20, cosponsored by all othercouncilmembers, that aims to ensure greater transparency in theMontgomery County Police Department (MCPD) and to create publicly available data related to therace, ethnicity, gender and othervoluntarily provided informationabout residents involved in policing actions. Council deliberationsbegin in January in a Public Safetycommittee meeting.Key Dates:Thursday, Jan. 21, 9:30 a.m.Montgomery County Council,Public Safety Committee meeting,www.ConnectionNewspapers.com Community Policing, Bill 45-20No-KnockWarrantsDuncan Lemp, 21, expected ano-knock search warrant to be executed against him, according to a17-page report released last weekby the Howard County State’s Attorney’s Office. Lemp was fatallyshot five times by one officer of aMontgomery County SWAT Teamin the early morning of March 12,2020, in his Potomac home on St.James Road. Three bullets wererecovered inside his body, and twoleft exit wounds in his shoulderand elbow.Police recovered ghost guns, assault weapons, at least 50 boxesof ammunition as well as magazines of ammunition for the assaultweapons. Police conducted a similar search of the home in 2016,according to the report, and Lempwas prohibited from owning firearms.Howard County exonerated theofficer and cleared police, offeringdetails of devices, including boobytraps and trip wire that Lemp manufactured inside his home.In the last 20 years, no-knockwarrants have resulted in threeshootings and one death, the killing of Lemp.Last July, Montgomery CountyCouncil passed a Use of Force Policy that prohibits a police officerfrom using deadly force exceptwhen absolutely necessary, andlimits no-knock warrants. The legislation requires the MontgomeryCounty police chief to adopt a Useof Force Policy aimed at safeguarding all community members fromexcessive use of force by police.According to the investigation ofLemp’s killing: “The pre-raid planindicated that the house was to be‘dual-breached,’ meaning that twomembers of the raid team wouldconduct a ‘break and rake’ on Duncan Lemp’s first-floor bedroomwindow while the rest of the teamentered the house by using a battering ram on the main front door.These actions were to occur simultaneously with each other. According to the team leader of this raid,he gave the order to dual-breach at4:42 a.m.“As the dual-breach was occurring, other members of the SWATteam were tasked with deploying“flashbangs” outside the residenceto disorient the senses of the occupants of the house as to whatwas happening,” according to thereport.Zoning andSocial EquityOn Dec. 1, the MontgomeryCounty Council unanimously enacted legislation which will requirea racial equity and social justice impact statement for each new zoningtext amendment. CouncilmemberNancy Navarro was the lead sponsor of this legislation, which aims toFor the first time in a decade, the Potomac River’s health grade,issued by the Potomac Conservancy, has declined to a B-. “It’s a farcry from when we graded the river an abysmal D just ten years ago,but stalled progress could signal a dangerous reversal in course forthe river’s health if threats aren’t addressed,” according to the Conservancy. See www.potomacreportcard.com for ways to learn moreand to get involved.Historic Ferry Shut DownView from a car on White’s Ferry. White’s Ferry has taken 600860 vehicles across the Potomac River each day, according to theLoudoun County Department of Transportation. But a lawsuit byLoudoun’s Rockland Farm (not Rocklands Farm Winery in Montgomery County) against White’s Ferry has resulted in the ferry ownersannouncing that it will cease operations immediately. According toits website, “Historic White’s Ferry is the last of 100 ferries that usedto operate on the Potomac River. The ferry connects Whites FerryRoad in Montgomery County, Md. with a road by the same namein Loudoun County, Va. The cars line up on what looks like a boatramp and drive down onto the ferry. Once loaded, the ferry followsa wire cable to the other side of the Potomac.”help ensure that all County zoningdecisions undergo evidence-basedassessments of their potential impacts on Black and Latino residentsand other communities. All otherCouncilmembers are cosponsors.WestMontgomeryEvery Potomac resident or advocate should join or be aware ofthe efforts of West MontgomeryCounty Citizens Association, whichwas founded in 1947 as a forum forlocal issues, and is Potomac’s voicein the halls of government. Boardmembers serve on governmentadvisory committees and testifyat public hearings before the Planning Board, County Council, andthe Board of Appeals, as well as inAnnapolis. When necessary, WMCCA retains Counsel in legal issues.Monthly public meetings Octoberthrough May feature speakers, citizen concerns, development proposals, and environmental issues relevant to our community. WMCCA’sBoard of Directors meets monthlyyear-round, and three committeesshape its agenda – Environment,Planning and Zoning, and Roads,Bikeways and Sidewalks.See www.wmcca.org and a letterfrom West Montgomery highlighting this month’s efforts.Potomac Almanac v January 6-12, 2021 v 5

NewsWest Montgomery County Citizens AssociationVIRTUAL MEETINGJoin us for a discussion on septicsystems, wells, and their stewardship. Dr. Andrew Lazur is a Statewide Water Quality Specialist withthe University of Maryland Extension focusing on private wells, drinking water quality, and septic systemeducation. He has been involved inthe aquatic science field for over 35years having worked in aquaculture,conservation ofJanuary 2021 aquatic species,pondmanageNewsletter ment, and waterquality management. His passion is to help otherslearn about water quality and increase adoption of practices that arebeneficial to environmental and public health.Are “Stream Restorations”Damaging to Our Streams?submitted by President Ken Bawer“To date, the County has completed stream restoration projects,restoring almost 30,000 linear feetof stream ” per the latest report onmeeting our MS4 Permit. The inconvenient truth is that in some casesthese projects may convert our natural stream valleys into engineeredstormwater conveyances withoutaddressing the root cause of theproblem – stormwater fire-hosinginto streams from developed areas— impervious surfaces such as roofs,roads, sidewalks, driveways, etc.They address the symptoms (streambank erosion), but not the cause inan effort to check the MS4 Permitbox.Every year, the County spendsmillions of taxpayer dollars on socalled “stream restoration” projects. First and foremost, the term“stream restoration” is a misnomersince some of these projects maynot actually restore streams. See examples of destructive “stream restoration” projects here: S74vf-bsdiTGsyt/view?usp sharingA “stream restoration”, as definedby Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) for MS4 Permits,may include stormwater management engineering practices that useheavy equipment such as bulldozersand backhoes to modify a streamchannel.Typically, this involvesplacing heavy boulders from outsidesources to armor-plate sections ofthe stream bank, changing a stream’snatural meander pattern based ontheoretical mathematical formulas,cutting down stream banks, and raising the level of stream channels withfill material brought from off-site.This sometimes means removingtons of stream bank soil along withall the plants and animals residingon and in it. To provide access forthe heavy equipment, hundreds orthousands of trees are cut down tobuild access roads, and then manymore trees are cut down during theconstruction project itself. To addinsult to injury, the County and Parksasked that their “stream restoration”projects be exempted from our forestconservation laws which further enables wholesale tree cutting duringthese projects. (Note: infrastructureprotection projects such as protecting or repairing sewer lines in streamvalleys are not “stream restorations”– they are proper and necessary.)So, why are such “stream restoration” projects done? They aretypically used to help meet the requirements of the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4)Permit (required under the federalClean Water Act and issued by MDE)which requires that the County decrease certain pollutants (nitrogen,phosphorus, and suspended sediments) entering the Chesapeake Bay.However, while sediment caused bystream bank erosion may be reducedby these projects which armor-platesections of streams, research byRobert Hilderbrand has shown that,“Despite the promise and allure ofrepairing damaged streams, there islittle evidence for ecological uplift after a stream’s geomorphic attributeshave been repaired.” -et-al Quantifying-the-Ecological-Uplift.pdfIn other words, while armor-plating streams with boulders may temporarily decrease erosion (sincefuture storms can blow out thesestructures), the biological health ofthe area is not improved. In fact,the devastating biological impact ofexcavations by bulldozers and backhoes in our stream valleys is obviousto even the most casual observer.Having said all that, the WMCCAhas representatives on the Montgomery Stormwater Partners NetworkStream Restoration Workgroup in aneffort to educate ourselves and reacha consensus position on these streamprojects. We remain willing to beconvinced that these types of “streamrestorations” are good for the environment. Until such time when it canbe demonstrated that such “streamrestorations” are beneficial to thelocal environment, we ask that theCounty and Parks obtain their MS4Permit credits from alternative, upland (out of stream valley) projectsand non-destructive practices suchas tree plantings and conservationlandscaping.What can you do? On your ownproperty, create rain gardens andreplace turf grass with conservation landscaping to decrease stormwater runoff. Don’t pipe your roofrunoff to the street. See other ideasat: s/index.html . Above all, contact our elected officials and ask that emphasisbe placed on alternative practices6 v Potomac Almanac v January 6-12, 2021Fallsreach Restoration Project. A basketball court built in the floodplain was protected by armor-plating the stream bank. Note thetotal removal of plants and the newly engineered stream channel.such as upland (out of stream valley)stormwater control, tree plantings,and conservation landscaping, forexample.RainScapes can be installed on anykind of property, but those on privateresidential, institutional, and/ orcommercial properties may be eligible for financial assistance: RainScapes Rewards Rebates s/rebates.html.The RainScapes program also offerstechnical and financial assistance toencourage property owners to implement RainScapes techniques on theirproperty. s/index.htmlBeltway Expansion Projectsubmitted by Carol Van Dam FalkThe Draft Environmental ImpactStudy (DEIS) and other independent analyses have shown that Governor Hogan’s beltway expansionproject would hurt local ratepayersand Maryland taxpayers, and wouldbe especially devastating for localresidents. In March, the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission(WSSC) estimated the cost would be 2 billion to move water and sewerpipes to make way for the project;that’s more than double the originalestimate from MDOT. The state hasconsistently refused to acknowledgewho will cover the cost. WSSC fearsit may have to raise ratepayers’ water bills. Despite Governor Hogan’sclaims that the proposal will costMaryland taxpayers nothing, theDEIS admits that upwards of 1 billion in state subsidies might be needed to complete the project (Washington Post).Local communities will pay thebiggest price for the beltway project. The DEIS acknowledges that1,500 properties will be negativelyimpacted, and up to 34 homes willhave to be bulldozed completely. Theproject will disproportionately impact local communities, particularlylow-income communities and communities of color, all of whom will beforced to cope with increased noiseand air pollution and increased riskof flooding and water pollution. Theproposal would also negatively impact dozens of community resourcesincluding schools, parks, and hospitals, not to mention the numerousenvironmental concerns.County Council Hearingon Sewer CategoryChange Requestssubmitted by Susanne LeeA public hearing will be held onJan. 12, 2021 at 1:30 pm regardingfive sewer category change requestsfor properties located in the Potomac Subregion. They are locatedat 10400 Boswell Lane, 10401 Boswell Lane, the 12000 block of Piney Meeting House Rd, 9701 WattsBranch Drive, and 13517 Glen MillRoad. The County Executive has recommended approval of the requestfor 10400 Boswell Lane and disapproval of the remaining requests. Itappears that his recommendationsare consistent with the law and policy governing sewer use contained inthe Potomac Subregion Master Plan,the County Water and Sewer Plan including the Piney Branch limited access policy, and the Maryland SmartGrowth statutes. WMCCA plans totestify at the hearing in support ofthe County Executive’s recommendations. The package describing theserequests can be found here: es/Files/agenda/col/2020/20201208/20201208 2Q.pdfZoning Text Amendment(ZTA) 20-08 Continuing CareRetirement Communitysubmitted by Susanne LeeThe Planning Board’s crazy proposal to use a redefinition of Continuing Care Retirement Community(CCRC) to allow and promote construction of duplexes and triplexesin the County’s remaining low-density zones has arrived at the CountyCouncil. A Council public hearing isscheduled for Jan. 19, 2021 at 1:30pm. WMCCA supports efforts toPhoto by Ken BawerWednesday, Jan. 13, 2021 at 7:30p.m. via ZOOMhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/86290042077?pwd OHRC e U x O b 0 J y U l d 5 N D l 4 U VA 2 S TBuUT09or call in with 301-715-8592(Meeting ID 862 9004 2077, Passcode: 004225)No advance registration required.A recording of this meeting willbe available on our website: www.WMCCA.orgSPEAKER: Dr. Andrew Lazur,Statewide Water Quality Specialistwith the University of Maryland Extensionaddress senior housing needs documented in Montgomery Planning’srecent study where affordability andaging in place were major themes.Our area had already been inundated with facilities, with more onthe way, even before the pandemicraised serious issues regarding reliance on congregate living settingsfor housing seniors. This developer-driven proposal would turn theState law-based definition of a CCRCon its head and appears to be targeted at allowing developments suchas Heritage Gardens on South GlenRoad – a townhouse development(units starting at 1.25 million) in asingle-family RE-2 (2 acre) zone.WMCCA is working with theGreater South Glen Ne

Jan 05, 2021 · A male Painted Bunting, sporting colors that must be seen to be be-lieved, has been hang-ing around in Potomac, just south of the Great Falls Tavern, causing quite a stir. Word spread via list-servs and FaceBook groups, bring-ing flocks of hopeful birders to the C&O National Historical Park. I visite