Category Archives: Takoma Park Newsletter

Category for original news items as well as Takoma Park Newsletter articles that are copied into takomaparkmd.gov as web content.

Takoma Park Newsletter

Energy Challenge charges forward

By Gina Mathias

More than 200 households – representing a full 4 percent of the city’s single family homes – have signed up for Takoma Park’s Neighborhood Energy Challenge, and are working towards their Green Home Certification since the Challenge launched earlier this year. That’s real progress, and it is only the beginning. Here are some of the other accomplishments the city has chalked up as it works toward winning the Georgetown University Energy Prize, a $5 million grant that could boost Takoma Park’s energy profile even higher.

  • The first data submission to the Georgetown University Energy Prize (GUEP) team was completed. It establishes the city’s baseline, which is what Takoma Park will be judged against for the next two years. Data will be shared at takomaparkmd.gov/sustainability once it is evaluated and approved by the GUEP team.
  • Two out of the six City Councilmembers have had an energy audit as of May 18: Council-members Tim Male (Ward 2) and Kate Stewart (Ward 3). Wonder who will get Green Home Certified first?
  • Neighborhood Energy Challenge teams have formed in every ward, but not all neighborhoods have signed up yet for a chance at the $2,000 prize. That prize will go to the neighborhood with the most participation and homes (including rentals!) getting Green Home Certified, with actual energy savings to show for it. Want to start or join a team? Email ginam@ takomaparkmd.gov. Teams that have formed include: Hodges Heights; Sycamore-Beech-Woodland; New Hampshire Gardens North of Jackson and New Hampshire Gardens South of Jackson; East Long Branch Sligo (between the creeks) and West Long Branch Sligo; Elm Avenue (segments); South of Forest Park; Allegheny-Westmoreland Area; and PoplarGude-Cockerille.
  • Between Pepco, Washington Gas, City of Takoma Park and Montgomery County, there are more than $3,580 in rebates available for individual homeowners. Get yours before the money is gone! Email ginam@takomaparkmd.gov for details.

The best way to start participating in this drive to save energy is to get a Comprehensive Energy Audit of your home. The city will even reimburse you the $100 cost! For a list of preferred contractors, go to http://tinyurl. com/preferredcontractors.

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Takoma Park Newsletter

The Firehouse Report

By Jim Jarboe

As of April 30, 2015, the Takoma Park Volunteer Fire Department and the personnel of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service assigned to the station have responded to 208 fire related incidents in 2015. The department addressed or assisted with 1,040 rescue or ambulance-related incidents for a total of 1,248. Totals for 2014 were 206 and 899, representing and increase of 143 incidents.

During the month of April 2015, the Takoma Park volunteers put in a total of 1,672.5 hours of standby time at the station, compared to 1,307.5 in April 2014, an increase of 1,150.5 hours.

Maryland fire deaths

The Maryland State Fire Marshal Office reported as of May 15, 26 people have died in fires in 2015, compared to 31 in 2014.

Smokers Be Alert!

  • To prevent a deadly cigarette fire, you must be alert. You won’t be alert if you are sleepy, have taken medicine or drugs that make you drowsy or have consumed alcohol.
  • Never smoke in bed. You should have a working smoke alarm in your bedroom.
  • The risk of dying in a home structure fire caused by smoking materials rises with age.
  • One out of four fatal victims of smoking material fire is not the smoker whose cigarette started the fire. If you are a smoker, consider smoking outside.

Fire Station Clean-Up

On Sunday, May 3 members of the Takoma Park VFD put on their work gloves to spruce up the front of the station at the main entrance. They weeded, planted and mulched.

A special thanks to the following, starting with the project leader FF/ EMT Kevin Tighe, Chief Tom Musgrove, EMT Leslie deLeon, EMT Jorge Alfaro, FF/EMT Adam Bearne and EMT Anthony Zarrella.

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here

Takoma Park Newsletter

Summer, Fall Friends Book Group selections announced

For its summer selection the Friends of the Takoma Park Maryland Library bi-monthly book group will discuss the novel “Cloudstreet” by the Australian author Tim Winton on July 15 at 7:30 p.m. in the Community Center Hydrangea Room.

Published in 1993, “Cloudstreet” has become one of the bestloved novels among the Australian public. The novel, which occurs from 1943 to 1963, tells the story of two families, the Lambs and the Pickles, who live in the same house in a suburb of Perth. Winton uses the contrasting approaches to life by the two families to explore how humans struggle to find meaning in life.

“‘Cloudstreet’ was my way to express the importance of all the relationships I had throughout my life in Western Australia,” Winton has said. “As some of you may have picked up from the setting, I love water; the beach, the rivers and the lakes.”

Winton is a prolific writer, having authored 13 novels and four collections of short stories. He has also written books for children as well as several works of nonfiction. Winton has been shortlisted twice for the Booker award and has won the Miles Franklin award (one of Australia’s top literary prizes) a record four times.

Beginning this fall, and continuing in winter, the Friends will hold a lecture and a series of discussions on “Daniel Deronda” by George Eliot.

First published in 1876, “Daniel Deronda” was the last novel Eliot completed and the only one set in the contemporary Victorian society of her day. According to Wikipedia its mixture of social satire and moral searching, along with a sympathetic rendering of Jewish proto-Zionist and Kaballistic ideas, has made it a controversial final statement of one of the greatest of Victorian novelists.

“Few [readers] had a problem, upon its publication, with its portrayal of yearning and repression in the English upper class,” writes the Guardian’s book blog. But as Eliot’s lover, George Henry Lewes, had predicted, “The Jewish element seems to me to satisfy nobody.” The book “took on what was a highly unusual contemporary theme: the position of Jews in British and European society and their likely prospects. The eponymous hero is an idealistic young aristocrat who comes to the rescue of a young Jewish woman and in his attempts to help her find her family is drawn steadily deeper into the Jewish community and the ferment of early Zionist politics.”

“For those today who find Zionism difficult to understand, Eliot’s depiction of its origins is evocative and powerful,” the Guardian also writes. “[The character] Mordecai both describes and embodies the wandering Jew, forever an alien in a foreign land, never at home, ‘a people who kept and enlarged their spiritual store at the very time when they were hunted with a hatred so fierce as the forest fires that chase the wild beast from its covert.’”

All are welcome to attend the Friends’ book discussions. Contact the Library for announcements of meeting dates and locations for “Daniel Deronda.” Copies of the selections by George Eliot and Tim Winton are available for borrowing.

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Takoma Park Newsletter

Summer reading success depends on choice

By Karen MacPherson

Researchers have a one-word solution for parents concerned about keeping their children reading during the summer — “choice.” A recent study done by the University of Rochester Medical Center showed that kids who were allowed to choose their own summer reading had better reading scores when they returned to school in the fall than those who were given assigned summer reading.

This finding, unveiled last month at the Pediatric Academic Societies meeting, is especially important because it is a way to counteract the “summer slide” experienced by many kids. Previous studies have shown that “summer slide” accounts for nearly three-quarters of the reading achievement gap between low-income children and those who are more financially well-off.

The power of letting kids choose their own reading isn’t a surprise to librarians. We have long touted the idea of choice as a way to keep kids interested in books and reading over the summer because we see how well it works.

In fact, choice is the foundation of our library’s Summer Quest summer reading program. Kids start our program by choosing a Summer Quest character. As part of Summer Quest, kids roll a die at a couple of points to choose their next reading challenge, and they also must choose between two different paths as they move through the story. Most important of all is the fact that kids themselves choose which books to read as they fulfill the 10 different Summer Quest reading challenges.

Our Summer Quest program, now nearing its second decade, is unique in Maryland. We are the only library in the state to create our own summer reading program, thanks to the generosity of our Friends of the Library. Each year Dave Burbank, a library assistant and our artist-in-residence, writes a Summer Quest story — with the reading challenges embedded in it — and also draws a gameboard. This year’s Summer Quest theme is “The River of Time,” and the story will take young readers on a thrilling ride through past, present and future as they complete the 10 reading challenges embedded into the tale.

“Choice is the foundation of our library’s Summer Quest summer reading program.”

Here’s how our Summer Quest program works: Kids first pick a character from the array of bookmark-sized characters drawn by Burbank — or they can choose to draw their own. Each character comes in two sizes; we keep the larger character, and kids take home the smaller one. Kids are asked to name their characters, and they can add color and details to their character if they want.

As they register for the program, kids are given a packet that includes the Summer Quest story plus a cardstock gameboard. As kids complete each of the 10 reading challenges, they can move their small Summer Quest character along their own gameboard, and we move their large Summer Quest character along a giant gameboard in the children’s room.

All ages are welcome to participate — we’ve had adult participants who’ve used the Summer Quest reading challenges to guide their reading of adult books for the summer.

There’s just one main rule in Summer Quest: books read for Summer Quest must be checked out from our library. Each of the reading challenges is designed to give kids maximum choice. One of my favorite challenges each year is: “Read a book that shows you how to make or do something, and then make or do it.” Some kids learn about origami, others build bird houses, still others master a new recipe. It’s all up to them.

Kids also choose how they want to tackle the Summer Quest program itself. Some want to be among the first to finish, so they read as fast as they can. Others take a more leisurely approach and decide they want to read only long books.

This year, our official Summer Quest Kick-off is Monday, June 8 at 7 p.m. Burbank will make a brief presentation focused on this year’s theme, and then kids can pick their characters and register for Summer Quest. If you can’t make it to the June 8 program, however, don’t worry – kids can sign up any time during the summer.

We conclude Summer Quest in early September with a party to celebrate another great summer of reading. We’ll talk about the books we loved, and those we loathed, and we’ll discuss possible themes for next year’s Summer Quest. Of course, there will be cupcakes and lemonade, and everyone will leave with a free book or two.

Please plan to join us this summer for Summer Quest!

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

 

Takoma Park Newsletter

Book Sale a Sunny Success

Despite the threat of rain, the skies remained sunny, and the Friends of the Library spring book sale was well attended, netting more than $2,200, to be used by the Friends for Library programs and services.

Many thanks to those who made the sale possible: Co-coordinators Merrill Leffler and Patti Mallin, Walter Mulbry, Mary Rein, Sylvie Shafer, Nancy and Dan Kunkel, Pat Hanrahan, Maurice Belanger, Tim Rahn, Sherelyn and Jerry Ernst, Barbara Natanson, Suzanne Morgan, Amy Beal, Sam McCollin, Pam Coffey, Rebekah Zanditon, Pat MacMahon, Sierra Grey-Coker, Abby Alcott, Emily Koechlin, Meg Smolinski, Camden Roberts, Joe Scorza, Walker Latimore and Denva Drummond of the Department of Public Works, Librarian Kati Nolfi, and especially Dave Burbank of the Library staff, who sorted and transported myriads of donated books for many months before the sale.

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here

Takoma Park Newsletter

New hair salon, reopened thrift shop update the Crossroads

There’s a new spot to get your hair done since America Hair Design opened at the beginning of May at 1011 University Blvd E, #101. This is owner Miriam Lemus’s third salon in the area – her others are at Piney Branch Road and Flower Avenue, and 7984 New Hampshire Ave. just north of the Crossroads. The new shop occupies a renovated building. Lemus’s business is a family affair: She’ll be assisted by her son Danny Santa-Cruz.

Also look for a newly re-opened favorite, when the Salvation Army Thrift Store starts up again. After being shuttered for nearly two years, this popular stop for bargain hunters and browsers is scheduled to re-open June 13 at 7505 New Hampshire Ave. The store, which sports a complete facelift, anchors the shopping center there, with neighboring businesses Ram’s Fast Tax Service, Claudette’s Braiding Gallery and Liberty State Insurance.

Also in April, A Plus Medical relocated to 7505 New Hampshire Ave., #314-B. Crown Insurance Agency relocated from 1017 University Blvd #201, to 1015 University Blvd., #201. And IHOP got new siding and copper wrap on the exterior and has nearly finished interior renovations.

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Takoma Park Newsletter

A Takoma Park foodie weighs in on saving energy in the kitchen

By Jaime Rothbard

As Takoma Park continues to compete with 50 small to mid-size cities for the Georgetown Energy Prize, bringing food into the dialogue of energy efficiency creates an opportunity to rethink and expand how residents can all participate. Food is our most essential fuel, and consequently it’s the amount of fuel, energy and resources it takes to produce (and discard) food that makes it one of the most significant ways that we impact the environment. In much the same way, the types of foods we choose to consume have direct consequences that shape the direction of the food industry, as well as our own bodies.

The nutrition that is present or absent from our food greatly determines how we are able to show up in the world and contribute resourcefully. Rethinking what it means to be energy efficient by including food in the dialogue can spur more engagement and innovative thinking.

  • According to Reuters, Americans throw away nearly half of all our food every year. That’s worth $2,275 for the average household.
  • Food production is estimated to be responsible for 33 percent of the total global warming effect, according to SustainableTable.org
  • The United States leads the world in energy waste. Different analyses have yielded anything from the range of wasting 58 percent of the energy we produce, to a jolting 86 percent energy being wasted, according to the Energy Collective and Clean Tecnica.
  • Food-related energy use accounts for 15 percent of our national energy budget, per the Center for Sustainable Systems.

By broadening our dialogue of energy efficiency to include food, we can expand our capacity to make daily impacts to reverse climate change. We have so many tools we can use! Looking at energy efficiency through the lens of food can help you see the interconnectedness between your inner world with the outer world. Engaging in this way can cultivate an inspired and optimistic worldview about what can be done to simultaneously impact your body while respecting our limited natural resources. Here are some new ways to rethink energy efficiency, food and fuel that you can begin using today.

Think like a Chopped competitor and act like you’re at Chipotle: Instead of relying on cookbooks to come up with meal ideas, plan your meals by taking an inventory of what’s in your kitchen. What perishable items are on the verge of going bad and need to be used right now? Separate them into foundations, toppings and condiments. Think along the lines of making bowls, salads, wraps and tacos. Just about anything can become a taco. Try it out and amaze yourself!

  • If you are going low-carb, remember that green leaves make awesome wraps. Blanched collard greens and fresh romaine lettuce are my favorite choices.

Rethink energy efficiency. Save energy and optimize radiant heat by using oven energy for multiple meals. If you know you want to bake one thing, think about how you can bake many things.

  • If you want to bake potatoes for one meal, consider batch prepping all of the root veggies in your pantry while you’ve got a hot oven. Now you have plenty of “Chipotle fodder” so you can easily convert these into other meals throughout the week.
  • Same goes for boiling potatoes and pasta. Make enough for at least one more meal that will feed your household.

Rethink how you cook. Instead of approaching meal preparation as one beginning-to-end activity, think about how you can prep foods for several meals simultaneously. For instance, while you are waiting for your morning coffee to brew, you can prep out some vegetables and store them in the fridge for when you get home from work. Or after frying bacon for breakfast, you can reuse (some of but not necessarily all) the fat by tossing a bag of baby spinach into the hot pan and covering it. In a few minutes you will have a much cleaner pan, plus sauteed greens for your lunch. Note: your body needs fat in order to absorb the fat-soluble vitamins in the spinach.

Rethink what it means to eat “superfoods.” You don’t have to buy expensive and exotic foods that travel halfway around the globe to reach your plate. There are simple preparation techniques you can use on easy-to-find ingredients can transform them into culinary gold. My favorite tip:

Leave fresh minced garlic to rest for 10 minutes before adding it to a hot pan. This allows it to release copious amounts of allicin. Recent studies show this potent compound is the most aggressive antioxidant found to date. If you cook garlic immediately after chopping it, you lose this benefit.

Re-think water catchment — from your faucet! Strategize your clean-up by keeping a large pot of water in your sink, preferably one you recently boiled pasta or cleaned veggies in, and re-use the water several times before dumping it. You can toss dirty utensils into it as you continue to cook your meal. After eating, let dishes and silverware soak briefly in the pot to remove debris instead of pre-rinsing them under the faucet. Now you can load your dishwasher and use the shortest cycle to sanitize your dishes after the dishwasher is completely full.

  • Sequence tasks so that you can soak dirty dishes instead of expending energy to scrub them.
  • Reduce water wasting by soaking vegetables in a natural cleaning solution of water and white vinegar instead of running the water faucet in a constant stream.
  • When pre-cleaning dishes in your water catchment pot, sequence from cleanest to dirtiest so you don’t have to keep changing out your water

Rethink what it means to eat local. If you aren’t lucky enough to have gardening space (or time) you can still cultivate massively nutritious foods in your own kitchen. By harnessing natural processes, you can soak and sprout beans and seeds on your counter in a couple days time, which boosts their nutritional potency. If you love kombucha and artisan-crafted sauerkraut, you may be astonished to learn that these items are very easy to make. Be your own alchemist!

Rethink “Food is Love”: Most of us enjoy indulging our senses from time to time. Foodie culture has taken indulgence to new and sometimes downright ridiculous heights from presenting absurdly rich concoctions to broadcasting food as a competitor sport. I believe this can obscure our relationship with food. Next time you plan to treat yourself, show love by making the treat yourself and sharing with your people.

  • Learning how to make your favorite treats will give you control over the ingredients.
  • Savoring food while sharing it amongst people you care about will lessen the odds that you overindulge, and it will keep the pleasure you experience within a greater context than sensory.
  • Hosting a dinner party is more cost effective than footing the bill at your favorite restaurant. It won’t be as expertly crafted, but you will learn more each time and it can be a wonderful expression of your affection. And that’s priceless.

Jaime Rothbard, aka the Foodie Alchemist, is a nutrition coach, licensed massage therapist, mosaic artist and home cook who loves all things food. After 10 years of travel on three different continents studying and developing simple tools and practices for self-healing, she recently settled into Takoma Park with her family. You can follow her as she works to transform her home into a permaculture homestead, get tips on how to transform your own food journey and check out her eBook, “Fast Fuel,” at www.foodiealchemist.com.

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Takoma Park Newsletter

Final budget lowers tax increase, retains staff salary adjustment

City property tax will increase slightly less than originally proposed, the city will make an additional contribution to the police pension fund and there will no money for a proposed management position in the city manager’s office, or for a $50,000 boundary survey in the recently adopted city budget.

These are among the changes City Council made before approving the $29.5 million fiscal year 2016 budget on May 11.

Over two months of public hearings and biweekly budget meetings, City Council knocked off a half a cent from the original tax hike proposed by City Manager Suzanne Ludlow. She proposed a 59 cent per $100 of assessed property value, up from 57 cents in FY2015. The increase, the first that has been implemented in 13 years, will address several fiscal challenges the city faces: stalled municipal tax duplication funds from Montgomery County; a three-year property tax assessment cycle that reflects recession-level property values (and correspondingly low tax revenue); and staff compensation that requires significant increases in order to reach market levels. Those staff salary increases will be phased in over three years.

“I’ve never worked with a budget this tight,” Ludlow told the council just before it voted on the tax rate, near midnight at a particularly long budget reconciliation meeting April 27. “I would not have proposed a tax rate increase if I did not think it was the appropriate thing.”

The vote on the tax rate decision came after long negotiations and discussions over how much the city’s reserve fund should maintain and when – and by how much — city officials can anticipate property taxes rising with the rise in property values expected with new assessments this year.

Other changes made to the city manager’s proposed budget, which was described in the April 2015 Takoma Park Newsletter, included:

  • A contribution of $100,000 to the Police Retirement Plan over the amount required to meet minimum obligations
  • $10,000 for a consultant for police/ community engagement, reflecting a proactive concern among city council members sensitive to recent turmoil over the deaths of unarmed black men in police custody elsewhere in the country
  • $30,000 for Maple Avenue crosswalk improvements, where “stamped” crosswalk markings are fading and in need of repair
  • $30,000 for the MANUP program, which works with African American youth
  • An increase of $10,000 for the Lunch and Learn program, which provides food and tutoring over the summer months to children who normally rely on subsidized school lunches
  • Elimination of a $174,000 proposed management position in the city manager’s office
  • Reduction of $25,000 in proposed funding for City TV part time and consultant staff
  • Elimination of a proposed $50,000 survey of the city’s boundaries
  • Reduce by $7,000 proposed funding for the Takoma–Langley Crossroads Development Authority – funds that were offered unsolicited and for which there were no immediate plans
  • Elimination of a 50 percent discount parking permit fee for hybrid cars

In a lively and thorough treatment of the budget process, city councilmembers wrangled over many suggested changes, and their close votes on several items meant lengthy discussions over the minutiae of city services. Among the more controversial issues were funding a $200,000 library renovation initiative – the detailed design passed on a vote of 4 to 3. A move to cut $50,000 from the police budget for expenditures to be determined by the police department was thwarted on a vote of 4 to 3. Reducing City TV’s budget by $25,000 passed on a vote of 5 to 2.

Members were more in agreement and voted 6 to 1 to retain $80,000 for renovation of the police station on the lower floor of the Community Center. Describing the offices as “a maze” and “a nightmare,” most agreed they were in need of improvement as soon as possible.

Other aspects of the budget remained as proposed. Staff salaries were a big focus this year after a staff compensation and classification study last year showed Takoma Park lagging behind market rates, with many staff members being underpaid. The new budget will give a partial increase to staff being paid more than 14 percent below market level, so that their salary is only 7 percent lower than it should be for FY17. Staff will get raised half-way to what they should be paid in FY17 during the FY16 year, with the remaining increase scheduled to take place in FY17. Total cost of bringing staff salaries up to market level is about $2 million, over three years.

“I’ve never worked with a budget this tight”

The city will also continue to make infrastructure and facility improvements on roads, sidewalks and stormwater management. Projects include the Flower Avenue Green Street Project, improvements at the New Hampshire/Ethan Allen intersection, and detailed design and engineering work for renovation of the Library. Two park projects will be underway: playground construction at Sligo Mill Overlook Park and a dog park on city-owned land near the Darwin Avenue parking lot.

Planning for future improvements in the Police Department, at the Public Works complex and of the Heffner Community Center are on a multi-year schedule, with some planning work regarding the Police Department scheduled for FY16. Renovation of the Library could begin as early as FY17.

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Takoma Park Newsletter

Showing the love for local crossing guards

On Crossing Guard Appreciation Day, June 2, the PTAs at Takoma Park and Piney Branch Elementary schools and Takoma Park Middle School have joined forces with the City of Takoma Park Safe Routes to School Program (SRTS) to make it easy for families to demonstrate their appreciation for these important members of our community. Families are urged to take a few moments on their way to school in the morning to personally thank the guards and offer tokens of appreciation. Tables will be set up near each crossing guard to receive cards, flowers or treats, and carry on an appreciation day tradition that dates back to 2009.

“Crossing guards are essential. I would not allow my child to walk without crossing guards,” reported one parent on the Safe Routes to School Survey. Many comments like this appear year after year. In fact, many residents make a point to thank the crossing guards daily for their dedication to keeping our students safe while walking to and from school. On the morning of June 2 parents and students can do just a little more.

SRTS suggests leaving a few extra minutes during the walk to school to stop at the guard post. The guards know many of the students by name and enjoy the chance to reflect on the year and wish the students a nice summer.

“Walk in the middle of the crosswalk! (clap, clap) Now you sing it Mom and Dad!”

In addition to standing at their posts, Takoma Park’s guards assist SRTS with the bike rodeos and crosswalk activities in the schools and at community events, educating students about safe practices while walking and biking to school. One guard overheard a student sharing the strategies with her parent on the way to school: She taught her mother the song she learned from the crossing guard in the classroom, “Walk in the middle of the crosswalk! (clap, clap) Now you sing it Mom and Dad!”

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Takoma Park Newsletter

Taco Bell proposes move back to the Crossroads

After vacating space to make way for the Transit Center at Takoma Langley Crossroads, Taco Bell is proposing a comeback, this time on Holton Lane, a block south of its original location.

Plans are underway for a 40-seat Taco Bell at the corner of New Hampshire Avenue and Holton Lane, in what is currently a parking lot in front of ALDI’s supermarket. According to the Crossroads Development Authority, the eatery would include some outdoor seating on the Holton Lane side of the building, free wi-fi and a drivethrough window. The drive-through would accommodate one car every two minutes during busy times, and according to Taco Bell consultants would have no effect on traffic flow on New Hampshire Avenue. The restaurant would also add islands of grass and trees to the existing ALDI’s parking lot.

A meeting to explain the proposal to the public was held at the Takoma Park Community Center in April, a mandatory requirement before the plans are formally submitted to the Montgomery County Planning Department. Once submitted, the Takoma Park City Council will have an opportunity to publicly weigh in on the proposal before it is reviewed by the Montgomery County Planning Board, likely in the fall.

The Taco Bell is owned by Texas-based franchise restaurant company MUY! Companies, which also owns Wendy’s and Pizza Hut locations. Representatives of the company presented their plans to the Crossroads Development Authority meeting of local businesses in May.

Some concern has been expressed by residential neighbors regarding traffic and litter around a new restaurant, as well as the drive-through aspect of the project in an area slated for more pedestrian-friendly development. City Council discussed the development standards affecting the Takoma Langley Crossroads area on May 26, including the City’s role and involvement in the development review process. The discussion can be accessed at www.takomaparkmd.gov/citycouncil/meetings.

MUY! hopes to break ground on the Taco Bell project later this year.

This article appeared in the June 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.