On November 29, the City Council unanimously adopted the Takoma Park Public Space Management Plan. Five years in the making, the plan lays out a comprehensive framework for how to manage the public spaces around the City, including parks, plazas, streeteries, sidewalks, roadways, and all the associated amenities.

The Plan presents 37 recommendations for adjustments to City policies, practices, and programs that would serve to fill existing policy gaps, improve equitable outcomes, and create more efficient, comprehensive management of the City’s public spaces. Below is a sampling of the recommendations that City staff are eager to begin working on:

Utilize the Project Evaluation Scorecard to inform priorities for project review and approval. This tool uses a comprehensive set of criteria to evaluate new capital infrastructure projects. Each project, upon initiation, would receive a score based on the criteria. The score, accompanied by a justification narrative to explain the rationale would be used by staff to help prioritize projects, with special attention toward racial equity, environmental sustainability, and safety.

Continue to utilize the city’s Capital Improvement Program to close public space gaps and address priority safety and accessibility concerns. Aided by the Project Evaluation Scorecard, City staff are excited to expand opportunities to address gaps in access to local parks, accessible sidewalks, flood risk areas, and more!

Review existing resident infrastructure request processes through an equity lens, and consolidate them for clarity, ease of use, and equitable allocation of resources. The existing processes for residents to request new traffic calming measures (such as speed humps and intersection narrowing) and new sidewalks are confusing to understand. And they tend to favor efforts by well-organized resident groups, in support or opposition, instead of using safety data or concerns for vulnerable groups of people, like children or seniors. A revisited set of policies would offer an opportunity to advance new infrastructure where it’s needed most urgently.

Establish and fund a need-based playground and park equipment evaluation process and replacement schedule based
on existing conditions and equity. The playgrounds around Takoma Park come in a range of sizes, styles, and needs for updating. The wear and tear on equipment varies widely based on the volume of use, the styles of equipment, and even how shady or sunny it is in a location. The existing timelines for maintenance and updates also does not take into consideration equitable distribution of appropriate playground facilities. This recommendation could yield a more systematic approach to upgrading or replacing playground equipment than currently exists.

Re-evaluate parking meter and parking permit fee rates to more closely align with the rates and policies of neighboring jurisdictions. Parking is a powerful tool to manage traffic, support local businesses, and encourage drivers to park in some areas and not others. However, the pricing and practice of many of the City’s parking management strategies have not been updated in over a decade. A re-evaluation would offer the City a chance to look
at what’s working well and what needs to be updated.

Implement more green stormwater practices in public spaces. The Department of Public Works is already undertaking a Stormwater Resiliency Study to identify new opportunities to mitigate flooding in vulnerable areas around the City. Staff are eager to take those recommendations and identify additional funding and strategies to incorporate stormwater management infrastructure that nourishes the environment in addition to mitigating flood impacts.

To learn more about the newly adopted Public Space Management Plan, visit the City’s project page.

Read the full January Newsletter on the City of Takoma Park Newsletter webpage.

On Wednesday, December 6, the Takoma Park City Council welcomed Maryland’s District 20 delegation to the council chamber to discuss priorities in the 2024 Maryland General Assembly, which will convene on January 10. Senator Will Smith, Delegate Jheanelle Wilkins, and Delegate David Moon joined the discussion live, with Delegate Lorig Charkoudian joining remotely from Austin, Texas, where she was attending the National Conference of State Legislators on Energy Security.

Delegate Charkoudian focused on climate justice, pedestrian safety, mental health, and food issues during her remarks, which she gave at the top of the meeting due to her short time window. She said that this year, she is focusing on networked geothermal as a possible way to electrify entire neighborhoods efficiently. She expressed her commitment to the Vision Zero pedestrian safety goals. And she said that she will be working on legislation to reduce food waste and make sure that food insecure families are being fed.

Turning to the members of the delegation in the council chamber, Mayor Talisha Searcy emphasized that in April 2023, the council adopted five priorities to ensure that “our community advances a community of belonging; has a fiscally sustainable government; is environmentally sustainable; encourages community development for an improved and equitable quality of life; and has an engaged, responsive, and service-oriented government.” She asked the delegation to consider how it can help the City advance these priorities.

Several councilmembers followed the mayor’s remarks with comments and queries.

Ward 5 Councilmember Cara Honzak said that the council specifically “supports legislative efforts to expand both public and private health insurance to people without legal documentation.” She added that the council supports “legislative and budget initiatives that make childcare services more accessible and affordable.” Honzak also said that municipalities like Takoma Park need additional funds to address community mental health service, citing the crisis intervention team that was put in place in Takoma Park during the pandemic, using funds from the American Relief Plan (ARPA).

Ward 1 Councilmember Shana Fulcher then told the state legislators that the city wants to “explore potential sources of new revenue streams for municipalities such as the authority to collect a sales tax, receive a percentage of sales tax collected in the jurisdiction, [and] receive a portion of revenue generated by alcohol and tobacco sales.” She also said that the council is interested in seeing a change to calculations for homeowner and renter property tax credit programs.

Ward 2 Councilmember Cindy Dyballa asked the delegation to support legislation that prohibits deceptive recycling claims on packaging and products, to support the Responding to Emergency Needs from Extreme Weather (RENEW) Act, to invest in disaster relief and preparedness, and to support progress on climate solutions. Dyballa said that climate legislation should specifically support municipal construction projects and stormwater mitigation efforts.

For his turn, Ward Six Councilmember Jason Small mentioned the City’s commitment to housing and economic development and Vision Zero goals to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries. “Specifically, we’re asking the D-20 delegation to pass legislation requiring the State Highway Administration to increase its responsiveness to the pedestrian and cyclist safety needs,” said Small.

He also emphasized that the City should have the authority to enact just-cause eviction laws and that he would like to see further support in terms of budget and legislation to “significantly increase the stock of affordable housing, including housing for the missing middle and for people with disabilities.”

Mayor Searcy then added a few requests. Echoing Honzak, Searcy mentioned the pilot program that brought two mental health counselors to the city. She said that the City needs additional space to “adequately implement and sustain” the program. Space has been allocated in the $1.2 million capital project to renovate the community center, but that an additional $200,000 would help ensure that this program finds space in the renovated building.

Senator Smith responded that the mental health counseling program resonates with him because of work that he has done at the intersection of mental health and the criminal justice system.

Delegate Moon added that the $200,000 request is reasonable and in alignment with the goals and values of the delegation, but he cautioned that 2024 is “heading into tight budget times.”

“The era of those pandemic surpluses is more or less over,” said Moon. He highlighted that there is already an underfunded commitment to the Blueprint for Maryland’s future, an education plan passed in 2021 that commits a $3.8 billion increase to education every year for ten years.

Moon pointed out that transportation is taking cuts and that he is trying to “steer that towards unnecessary highway projects and preserve our Ride-on transit, Marc, and WMATA funding to the maximum extent possible along with our pedestrian safety upgrades on state highways.”

“I really do think the budget … impacts all of our policies,” said Moon. “That’s the big story for the year that we’re heading into.”

Moon emphasized that Governor Wes Moore has reinstated the program—shut down under Governor Larry Hogan—to allow non-citizens to be licensed for childcare. He also mentioned the support of the District 20 team regarding bills that can bring more affordable housing to Montgomery County. And he reiterated Smith’s work on advancing bills that address mentalhealth when it comes to the criminal justice system.

Check out the full January TKPK Newsletter.

The Community Police Academy begins on Tuesday, March 5. The Application for the Community Police Academy is now available!

The Community Police Academy is a 12-week program held on Tuesday evenings from 7 to 9:30 p.m. The classes cover topics such as patrol, traffic enforcement, use of force, criminal investigations, firearms, and crime analyses. The presentations are slide show/lecture style and are given by officers, detectives, and civilians of the Takoma Park Police Department. There are multiple opportunities for hands-on learning through equipment demonstrations, practical scenarios, field trips, and ride-alongs with patrol officers.

The Takoma Park Police Department believes that educating the community will result in gaining their understanding and support. Through implementation of the Community Police Academy, the community gains new insight into how law enforcement officers perform their duties. The success of any law enforcement agency depends largely upon the amount of cooperation and support it receives from the community it serves.

To hear what others have said about the Academy, please visit the City website.

The Community Police Academy is free to the public. Seats are limited to the first 25 students and are filled on a first-come-first served basis. The Takoma Park Police Department encourages all applicants to be able to commit to the full 12 weeks to get the most out of the program.

If you are interested in learning about the Takoma Park Police Department and local government, you are 16 years of age or older, and live or work in Takoma Park, you may apply. The applicants may not have any serious misdemeanor or any felony offenses. Any questions about the Community Police Academy can be directed to Police Public Information Manager Cathy Plevy, at 301- 891-7142 or cathyp@takomaparkmd.gov.

Check out the full TKPK January Newsletter.