CASB July 9, 2015 Meeting Minutes
CASB Board Members Present:
Norman Constantine, Duff Durkin, Stephen Lord, Patrice Murray, Terry RogersThe meeting was called to order at the City of Bowie Town Hall. In addition to the Board members, residents signed in on a form, including local political leaders
County Representatives from the Department of Public Works- Guests in attendance from the Prince George’s County Department of Public Works included Linda Skelton, Kate Mazzara and Hifazat Ahmad, who addressed concerns that had been conveyed to them via both Duff Durkin and Ike Trouth. Several road concerns were discussed. There was a promise to review and respond on the new issues. Additionally, several items were mentioned by attendees that were not in the jurisdiction of Prince George’s County, yet the group promised to forward the concerns to their counterparts on the State Level. The representatives encouraged residents to use the county’s 311 system, either via phone or online, to report concerns. Mr. Ahmad said that there is a pavement management system that the county uses to track reported problems.
- Multiple residents expressed a concern about a sinkhole that had formed on Mitchellville Road near the entrance to CVS. Mr. Ahmad said the problem would be addressed ASAP, and a steel plate was placed over the area on Friday, July 10.
- A resident mentioned that in the original plan for the redesign of Mitchellville Road for the new CVS included a dedicated left turn lane and one is not outlined on the road now.
- A resident asked about the possibility of improving the crosswalk at the intersection of Pittsfield Lane and Mitchellville Road. The public works officials said the matter would be reviewed.
- Councilman Trouth asked if a request had been entered to improve the sidewalk at the intersection of Mount Oak Road and Peach Walker Drive. Mr. Ahmad said there was no record of one.
Issue Updates
- Update on Central Avenue– Will be patched by winter; paving by next year. Hall Road improvements are planned for Spring 2016.
- Pointer Ridge Shopping Center strategy– No new updates. Board plans to meet with representatives from the Rappaport before the next general CASB meeting. ➢ Announcements– An announcement was made regarding the Speed Awareness Day planned for Friday, July 10 th . Residents were encouraged to come out and assist the City Police Department by holding signs advocating safe driving in the community. The groups would be gathering at Pittsfield and Pointer Ridge at 6:00 AM until 8:00 AM and then again between 4:00 PM and 6:00 PM.
- UPDATE: The Speed Awareness Day was a success, with more than 20 warnings and three tickets given out, according to Bowie City Police. There were a limited amount of area residents who came out to support the event. The CASB will consider holding more Speed Awareness Days in the future as needed.
- Citizen concerns and questions – Mitchellville Road pooling at Route 301.
- Devonwood & Hall Road – State will place counters on the number of cars. And will look into extending the medium on Central Avenue.
- Questions about a dedicated left-hand turn on Mitchellville into CVS.
- Crosswalk at Mitchellville at Pittsville Lane-currently dangerous to cross.
- Sidewalk at Peach Walker Drive and Mount Oak.
- Excalibur at Mitchellville need a study on traffic signals options (should be done in the fall.) Light at Central Ave. and Jennings Mill
- Councilman Trouth said the Hall Road railroad crossing will get a gate. Route 301 will be widened from Route 50 to Excalibur, but the project is not funded. The city has asked that the widening project go down to Central Avenue. Also requesting synchronized lights on 301. The zoning for the Amber Ridge property has been changed to allow for a number of townhouses to be built.
- County Councilman Todd Turner was in attendance and addressed a number of issues, including the following: o He has made appeals to county and state transportation officials about local road conditions. He said it was a bottom-up process to get projects done. o He said parts of Route 301 would be repaved between Excalibur and the Route 50 interchange. o He said he would check on the left turn lane that was supposed to be in the CVS plan for Mitchellville Road. o He heard concerns regarding the proposed development at Amber Ridge and whether or not a traffic light would be put in place to allow cars exiting Amber Ridge to go north on Route 301. Mr. Turner said the light could be put back in the plans. o He said concerns about traffic resulting from the proposed Mill Branch Wal-Mart would be addressed as those plans move forward.
Other Mentions
- Duff shared some research on grocery stores that he had done and put forth Graul’s Market and Redner’s Warehouse Markets as possible tenants in Pointer Ridge Shopping Center.
- A resident suggested asking about Glory Days and whether or not it wants to stay in Bowie after being forced to close at Bowie Marketplace.
- Another resident suggested trying to bring a Dollar General and another Aldi’s to PRSC.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:55 p.m.
