Contributor Opinion by Susan Hoffmann: Rockville's Pressing Waterline Issue and Associated Fiscal Decisions

The following contributor opinion is by Rockville Mayor Susan Hoffmann:

Dear Friends,

As Mayor of Rockville, I am committed to Rockville being the safest City anywhere in the world. To that end, it is incumbent upon me and my Council colleagues and City staff, to provide services that will keep us protected, safe in our homes, and on our streets. The provision of safe and dependable drinking water, a reliable sewer system, and smooth-functioning waterline system throughout the City is one of the two most important services the City provides. The other is police protection.

As your Mayor, I will not be satisfied with anything less than the best. And I will not, on my watch, tolerate a situation in which there is a fire in our City and the water pressure to the necessary hydrant(s) fails and the fire cannot be extinguished quickly, or, God forbid, there are injuries or worse. That is why I support moving forward aggressively to deal with our failing system. Just as we are seeing infrastructure failures all across the country, Rockville is experiencing the same issues. And, we have discovered, that a larger number of lower-pressure hydrants and aging pipes are to be found east of Route 355. As I have said over and over, we must be particularly sensitive to residents east of the Pike. We have learned from resident surveys that there is a perception that the quality of life is not as high on that side of Rockville as compared to west of 355 and 270. Since perception is reality, and in this case, the problem is real, the issue of hydrant water flow and fire safety must not be ignored. The Mayor and Council are considering several different proposals . . . some more aggressive than others, some more cost-effective than others.

I ask for community support for the most reasonably aggressive, cost-effective solution. I urge my colleagues to join me in moving forward in this way.

We are not unsympathetic to the additional burden these increased fees will have on our population. To that end, we are exploring ways to mitigate the impact. Below is a summary of the presentation made by staff on Monday evening, March 10, to eliminate the imposition of some fees in FY09, including the Stormwater Management Fee. The $100 Property Tax Credit will be continued, as will the Homeowner's Tax Credit Program.

• The most important new program priority for FY09 will be to kick off a serious effort to renew our water system infrastructure, including the distribution line replacement, and the water plant and pump station upgrades. The risks of not getting started on a systematic upgrade program are significant. We've all read in the press that WSSC, facing challenges similar to Rockville's, has chosen to not act for at least another year.
  
  
• As we've indicated previously, the water rate increases needed to fund the infrastructure program will be significant. The water rates in the Recommended Budget for FY09, taken together with the ready to serve charge, could, if adopted, result in an "average" household water bill increasing from $35.48 to $50.91 or about $62 per year.
  
  
• We continue to recommend that the Stormwater Management Utility Program be adopted for FY09, but the SWM fee not be introduced in FY09. Instead of the fee beginning in FY09, we are recommending that we ramp up the program during FY09 and pay for it from the utility's fund balance. In FY09, we will have a lot of hires to complete and reorganization to accomplish. Deferring the fee will better allow us to continue our community outreach and education efforts. Not implementing the fee in FY09 will have the added advantage of not subjecting citizens to yet another fee in addition to the substantial water rate increases in FY09. This should help us keep our eye on the top new program priority of attending to the water infrastructure.
  
  
• Because our revenues continue to run strongly, and ahead of what we projected previously, the Recommended Budget will again include a $100 property tax credit per owner-occupied household. This credit will provide general tax relief for homeowners, and in some instances more than offset the water rate increase for homeowners. Among the features of this credit that distinguishes it from a tax rate reduction, are (1) it is progressive -- as a flat amount it is worth proportionately more to lower-income than to higher-income residents, (2) it is flexible, in that it targets residential owners and excludes commercial property owners, and (3) it is easily reviewed and adjusted annually as a "one time," rather than a recurring loss of revenue.
  
  
• The FY09 Recommended Budget will again include the Homeowner's Tax Credit Program ("circuit breaker" program). The City's supplement to the state's credit was introduced in the FY06 budget, and 366 low income households participated. In FY07 we expanded significantly the eligibility, and 630 households participated. The expanded program continued in FY08.
  
  
• Pending expected confirmation from the State, the FY09 Recommended Budget will also offer a new property tax credit for homeowners of limited income and at least 70 years old. This will be an add-on to the Homeowner's Tax Credit Program. Eligible homeowners can receive an additional credit of 25% of the combined State credit and City supplement. There will be no need to file separately, the current application is good for State credit, the City supplement, and the senior credit.
  
  
• As presented in the budget preview, no change in the property tax rate will be proposed in the FY09 Recommended Budget.

This is a challenging, yet exciting time for Rockville. I am committed to continuing our progress on your behalf. I welcome your thoughts.

Best,
Susan

Rockville Central runs occasional, edited opinion pieces by contributors. Their views are not necessarily those of Rockville Central. To submit your opinion for consideration, contact us.

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Contributor Opinion by Frank Anastasi: Let's Face Reality

The following contributor opinion is by Rockville Central team member Frank Anastasi:

Certain people say that "Rockville made a deal with Montgomery County and the State” to build the courthouse at the former Library site, and we should stick to it. No one currently in City Hall, however, can produce any proof of that "deal."And it certainly isn't in the public record, and it was not considered by the Mayor and Council in any public meeting back then. So let's all face reality. The only "deal" was between Montgomery County, at that time led by Rose Krasnow's mentor Doug Duncan, and the State. It was Ms. Krasnow's role to try to look out for Rockville's interests and work to minimize adverse impacts of that deal on Rockville, and it appears that she was trying to do that. For example, in a June 20, 2001 Gazette article, Ms. Krasnow stated, "Given the limited size of Town Center, it's unfair of the county and state to provide less than their fair share of parking." True then; even more so today.

As Mayor, certainly Ms. Krasnow wasn't giving the State a pass on complying with zoning code requirements, or letting them slide on adequate safeguards for pedestrian safety and traffic impacts, when they would later design and build a courthouse on the former Library site. Just as Mayor Susan Hoffmann and the City Council today do not want to let the State build a courthouse that far exceeds the zoning code restrictions for that site. For example, a height limit of 75 feet, compared to the maximum height of about 130 feet of the courthouse building as planned now.

And certainly Councilwoman Phyllis Marcuccio doesn't want to see the state build such a "grotesque" courthouse there - a word used by her predecessor Glennon Harrison in that June 20, 2001 news article - even though she told citizens at the March 13 Town Hall meeting that the city's Master Plan does indeed show the site's future use as courthouse. That master plan does not say, however, that the State is free to flaunt zoning code requirements. It doesn't give them a green light to ignore important siting and design criteria, and the City's and residents' requests to address legitimate concerns about safety, parking, and traffic impacts. Any developer has to do those things. Just because the State didn't have to, didn't we deserve that it negotiate in good faith with the community, instead of against it at every turn, as they have in this case since 2001?

As of this morning, more than 215 citizens have signed a petition supporting the Mayor and Council's resolution opposing construction of the courthouse as proposed, and asking the State to hold up on this ill-conceived $71 million dollar expenditure. These are not "a few influential neighbors" as some would have you believe, and they are not NIMBYs as some have labeled us. They are people from all over Rockville - from Twinbrook, Hungerford, Woodley Gardens, New Mark Commons, and yes, the West End - who have learned the facts behind the rhetoric, just as the Mayor and Council did before they passed their resolution.

We have sent the petition to the Senate and House subcommittees in Annapolis who are considering the courthouse's place in the budget, along with important information that they may not be aware of. Like the initial building plans that show a 40-foot tall building adjacent to the neighborhood, and the current plans with heights up to 130 feet. We have invited them to come to Rockville to see for themselves what "the fuss" is all about. We sent them bunch of photographs, too, just in case they can't make it out here. Many people who think they support the courthouse at the Library site change their mind when they learn more about the project, especially how the State mistreated Rockville, and what the State is actually proposing to build. We hope that some of those Senators and Delegates will too.

You hear from the other side of this issue that "now is not the time to oppose this project, why did you wait until it's too late?" To them I offer the headline of that June 20, 2001 Gazette article: "Debate goes on." Yes, it does!

And to those who say our actions could keep Rockville from getting this courthouse, again I say let's face reality. It's the legislators who hold the courthouse's destiny in their hands, not the citizens of Rockville, or its Mayor and Council. Isn't that what they have been telling us all along. Isn't that what they told Governor Martin O'Malley when he asked them to work out a compromise?

Frank Anastasi
Move the Courthouse Steering Committee

Rockville Central runs occasional, edited opinion pieces by contributors. Their views are not necessarily those of Rockville Central. To submit your opinion for consideration, contact us.

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Contributor Review by Michael Berney: Rocket Men Show Another Side of Richard Montgomery

The following contributor review is by Michael Berney:

And I think it’s gonna be a long, long time
Till touch down brings me round again to find
I’m not the man they think I am at home
No, no, no, no—I’m a Rocket Man
--Bernie Taupin (sung by Elton John)

The Richard Montgomery High School Rocket Men busted a few stereotypes last Friday night March 7, 2008. This is a group of kids who attend the number one school in the D.C. metropolitan area on the Washington Post’s Challenge Index for Rigor. Three quarters of the student body are enrolled in honors and advance placement courses. The student graduation rate is 92.7% and the attendance rate is 94.9%. These are high school students whose academic achievement is out of this world.

But there is another, more playful, side to these young men.

Introductions

Sixteen Richard Montgomery seniors competed for the title of “Mr. RM” on Friday in a two-and-a-half hour competition. Participants displayed unique talents, dressed up in formal wear and beachwear, and tried out pick-up lines on female classmates. As judges whittled the group down to ten and then five contestants, the final set had to answer a pair of questions in an interview phase.

When the curtain opened on the evening, the entire group danced in formation to “It’s Raining Men.” The audience, of parents and siblings, fellow students and RM alumni, howled and applauded. Then the evening’s hosts called up the contestants one by one. The hosts read introductions penned by the contestant themselves.

Ian Richter: “He is the mortal enemy of new age philosophy in all its forms, and he will never ‘just chill’.”

Kishan Thadikonda: “He plans to one day settle down in an arranged marriage and make beautiful Indian babies.”

Talents

Kevin Chung led off the opening event of the competition: a talent demonstration. He took center stage with a traditional Chinese yo-yo. This toy, which has a history dating to China’s Ming Dynasty (1386-1644 AD), is kept spinning on a string tied to two sticks at its ends. Kevin manipulated the yo-yo, tossing it in the air, around his back, and through his legs.

Then the curtains on the stage closed and a screen descended. Michael Rosenthal—in real life an accomplished RM athlete—appeared in a video, poking fun at himself playing football, basketball, and lacrosse. “But the one thing I’ve always wanted to do,” Michael said at the video’s end, “was dance Thriller with the RM Poms.”

At that moment the curtains opened and Michael, taking the Michael Jackson role as head zombie, led a group of costumed POMS to the rock song:

Its close to midnight and something evils lurking in the dark
Under the moonlight you see a sight that almost stops your heart

Formal and Informal Clothing

When all of the young men had displayed talents, they appeared as a group on stage wearing formal wear. Most wore tuxedos, but the group also included variations such as traditional Indian formal wear.

Beachwear followed formal wear. Here clothes ranged from swimwear to an 8-foot tall red lobster. One “misguided” contestant showed up in a head-to-toe snowboarding outfit.

Pick-Up Lines

The next portion of the Mr. RM contest required each contestant to approach a pair of girls seated mid-stage. The contestant had to display his best pick-up line.

Kevin Chung: “My love for you is like an exponential function: it’s boundless.”

Jake Rosner: “My friend just bet me that I wouldn’t get a date with the most beautiful girl in school. Can you help me win that bet?”

Zach Sandberg: “Girl, you put the ‘fine’ in ‘sunshine’.”—To which the reply was, “There is no ‘fine’ in ‘sunshine’.”

Winning Through Humor

When Ms. South Carolina competed in this year’s Miss Teen USA contest, she humored the audience with

her inability to answer a question on geography. The humor displayed by the Richard Montgomery students could not have differed more.

Friday night’s contestants poked fun at themselves. They competed in a good-natured competition where, in a sense, everyone won. These young men showed another side of a school remarkable for its academic excellence.

One father compressed the entire competition down to a 10-second collage of still photographs and also has some very funny footage of the evening. View them here.

Would you like to write a contributor review of an arts event to Rockville Central? Excellent! Just send it in and we will consider it. Rules: Event is in Rockville; fairly recent; article is your work; you are not offering it for publication elsewhere. Try to keep it under 500 words; we will edit for length. Include a photo if you have one!

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POTD: The Tide Is Turning

I can feel spring coming. Isn't this a handsome flag?

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West End Citizens Association Meeting Features Sparks

Tonight in Christ Episcopal Church's Murdock Hall, where a certain musical coffee house was held recently, the West End Citizens Association held a "general membership meeting" with the Mayor Susan Hoffmann, and City Council Members John Britton, Piotr Gajewski, Phyllis Marcuccio, and Anne Robbins -- along with most of the City's key department heads and City Manager Scott Ullery. It felt like City Hall West!

The department heads briefed about 75 attendees (by my quick count) including a number of Rockville Central friends like Mark Pierzchala and Brigitta Mullican. Drew Powell rounded out the core of recent city candidates in attendance. I also spied Christina Ginsberg and a number of others I know.

While a number of items on the agenda had the potential of causing some controversy, the briefings were quite straightforward and the questions informational in nature. Some of the issues will be familiar to Rockville Central readers, such as progress on the drafting of a new zoning ordinance for the City, rollout of the new trash program, creation of a new utility to handle stormwater management, and the needed replacement of some 33 miles worth of City water pipes are giving up the ghost.

(You would have been able to see it all here on the site, but I was not allowed to videotape this meeting. Rather, I was informed I could videotape so long as I allowed the WECA board to review the footage. That didn't seem very reasonable to me -- nor did it seem like it would happen fast enough to allow me to post tonight -- so I said "no" and consoled myself with photos. I don't feel so bad, though: evidently the City had been set to video too, and were given the same ground rules which they couldn't follow either.)

Here are just a few important concrete tidbits beyond those overall issues (it's not all, just some highlights:

Police Chief Terry Treschuk announced that the new speed cameras on W. Montgomery Avenue were set to go "live" on March 21, with a two week warning-only period. (So get yer ya-yas out now, leadfeet.)

Recreation and Parks Chief Burt Hall announced that:

• Thursday evening outdoor Town Square concerts would begin on May 1 and last through September 11.
• The Memorial Day Parade would follow a slightly different route this year -- it will turn left onto Beall Ave. from Washington, and then go right through Town Square on Maryland Avenue. The judges' booth would be in the courtyard.
• The city is developing a buskers' program for Town Center, with outdoor musicians (and other performers?).

Public Works chief Craig Simoneau announced that initial rollout of the new trash system was set to begin in October 2008. And, in response to a very reasonable question from Susan Prince, reported that the best way to get rid of your old trash bins (which will need to be replaced by City-provided bins in the new regime) is . . . well, to use them around the house, for leaf collection or perhaps to store long garden tools. Or give them to your family and friends who may not live in Rockville. If you can't get rid of them that way, the City will take them as trash. (I am being flip here, but he gave a good answer. There probably isn't a good way to get rid of the things; they don't recycle well it turns out).

In response to another question from Susan, Scott Ullery reported the good news that the City appears closer to a deal with Verizon on FiOS than previously suspected. Seems the VZ is coming around to understand that the City requires things get done a certain way on its right of ways. There is nothing concrete, but I would not be surprised if we heard something this year. (Please, I beg of you. I will do anything.)

Then it got a bit interesting.

Though it was not on the official agenda, the efforts of many WECA members to move the court house came up. Council Member John Britton gave an excellent recap, which in most respects covered the points he had written (and which Rockville Central had published, yay us) just a few hours before. Mayor Susan Hoffmann then mentioned that a key budget subcommittee was slated to meet this week and had initially allowed, then refused, to hear live testimony from the City on the reasons the court house should not be built at the old library site.

In essence, the energy of the room was definitely "move the courthouse."

Then Council Member Phyllis Marcuccio rose and made a statement that I do not agree with but that took a great deal of courage to make, there in that room. I give her a great deal of credit for that.

Phyllis said that her understanding of the previous vote the Council had taken in opposition to the court house was that it was intended to demand that the state work honestly with the City to mitigate the large impacts that it would be having on the neighborhood. She said that as early as the City's "Town Center Master Plan," adopted October 22, 2001, maps showed the new court house to be at the old library site. She said that her own review of the documents over the years implied to her that, "should you take the court house to court, . . . you don't have much of a case."

Phyllis finished by saying "I withdraw my support of testimony so far," meaning the effort to move the court house rather than seek to mitigate its impacts.

Given the state of mind of the crowd, you can imagine the reaction. But it was getting to be 9:00 pm and WECA president Patricia Woodward runs a taught ship so the gavel fell.

As I said, I don't agree with Phyllis' argument, nor am I sure I would interpret the resolution the Council voted on recently to mean they were seeking to "mitigate" and not "opposing" -- but that is all beside the point and reasonable people can differ. The statement, in that setting, took guts.

The Gazette's Warren Parrish was there -- so read the Gazette on Wednesday; I am sure he will do a better job of recapping this than me!

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Contributor Opinion by John Britton: Thoughts On The District Court House (Redux)

The following contributor opinion about the new District Court House is by Rockville City Council member John Britton. (Hyperlinks have been added.)

This past Monday evening, as reported in the Gazette, a number of residents came before the mayor and council to express their support for the proposed district courthouse on the site of the old library. Many of these residents characterized the mayor and council’s unanimous decision to oppose the current proposal as "hurried," "ill-advised," "unseemly," and "pandering to a small group of activists." I take exception to these characterizations. With respect to the action by my colleagues, suffice it to say, each based his or her decision on a review of the issues and a considered and thoughtful analysis of their impacts on the community.

With respect to my own decision-making process, these characterizations wholly miss the mark. Rather than react hurriedly to a so-called small group of activists (NOTE: I believe that close to 200 residents have signed the petition to oppose the courthouse), I based my conclusions on a thorough review and analysis over the past few months of the facts and history of the district court proposal. This included a review of the correspondence and the official documents submitted by the State, an analysis of the project description and architectural plans, a viewing of the presentation of the concept plan by the State representatives at the May 2005 mayor and council public meeting, and various public and private discussions on this matter. One may substantively disagree with the results of my review and analysis, but hurried and ill-advised they are not. Furthermore, having identified and, in my mind, verified legitimate community concerns as a result of the adverse impacts of the courthouse, I do not consider opposition to the current courthouse proposal "unseemly."

I reiterate my public statement that the proposed district courthouse as currently configured on the library site is inappropriate. This does not detract from the comments submitted by Mayor Rose Krasnow who informed us that the State, County and City officials initially agreed to the use of the library site for the courthouse. I respect and defer to Mayor Krasnow’s recollection and interpretation of the events at that time. I respectfully disagree, however, on the consequences of such agreement. First, there is no legal document that binds the City to any course of action; there could not be such a document since the property at issue was not in the City’s control. Second, there could not be any agreement at that time to a particular project because the concept plan was not submitted until 2005. At the time of the earlier concurrence for the use of the library site, there were no plans and designs for the proposed courthouse on which to rely to understand the impacts of the building and its activities on adjacent neighborhoods and the community at large. Finally, despite the fact that the library use was classified as institutional and the courthouse would be similarly classified, the current courthouse proposal significantly increases the scope of such use to an unacceptable level. In fact, the early design of the courthouse appeared to pay more respect to neighborhood impacts and the city’s zoning requirements than the current proposal.

Implicit in everyone’s agreement to utilize the library site should have been an understanding of an appropriateness of the scale and scope of the project vis-a-vis our neighborhoods. Put differently, such agreement should not have been carte blanche for the State to do whatever it desired in total disregard for the impacts on the community. Unfortunately, the project as proposed violates contemporary norms of how a high density structure should approach a low density one and implicates serious parking, traffic flow, pedestrian safety and neighborhood encroachment issues that are unique to this site. Furthermore, in response to the City’s and the community’s concerns, the State committed to work with the community to resolve these issues, a commitment that was more potemkin than sincere in nature.

Put simply, there was a dearth of analyses of the impacts of the courthouse proposal and a myopic focus on the judiciary’s internal needs and agenda – all to the detriment of our community. For these and other reasons that I have previously expressed publicly and despite State expenses already incurred, I continue to find that it is not prudent to invest $70 million in a flawed project.

Rockville Central runs occasional, edited opinion pieces by contributors as well as other guest columns. Their views are not necessarily those of Rockville Central. We encourage you to join the growing list of contributors! To submit your piece for consideration, contact us.

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Weekend to Weekend 3/13/08

Events in Rockville

Thursday, March 13

Motion Mania, Twinbrook Library, 7 PM – 7:45 PM. The Motion Mania Dancing School will show you all the moves of modern dance.

Patty Reese, Austin Grill Rockville, 8:30 PM. She’ll be playing every second Thursday. In 2007 she was awarded “Best Rock Vocalist” by the Washington Area Music Association and you will NOT be disappointed. She is awesome!

Friday, March 14

Montgomery County Abused Persons Program Fundraiser, Ten Thousand Villages Rockville, 4 PM – 8 PM. When you make a purchase at Ten Thousand Villages you are supporting the disadvantaged artisans in a lesser developed nation which made it. On this night 10% of your total purchase will also benefit this organization which works to help those struggling to make it here in our community.

Spotlight on Broadway, F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, 8 PM. $17.50/adults, $15.50/Seniors & Students. Musical Theatre Center’s performing ensembles Singular Sensations and Upbeat Unlimited will entertain with classic as well as contemporary showstoppers.

Can’t Hang, Austin Grill Rockville, 10 PM. They’ll be playing their “reggae rock punk” every second Friday.

Saturday, March 15

Spotlight on Broadway, F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, 2 PM & 8 PM. $17.50/adults, $15.50/Seniors & Students. Musical Theatre Center’s performing ensembles Singular Sensations and Upbeat Unlimited will entertain with classic as well as contemporary showstoppers.

19th Annual Battle of the Bands, Executive Office Building, 101 Monroe St., 7 PM – 11:30 PM. $5/person or $4/person with can of food. Montgomery County Public School teenagers ONLY. Middle or high school identification required and capacity is limited. Band members from many schools including Walt Whitman, Sherwood, Loiederman, Quince Orchard, Frost, Rockville, Walter Johnson, Wheaton, Seneca Valley and Northwest. Sponsored by the Montgomery County Department of Recreation and the County Executive’s Youth Advisory Committee. I wish I was a teenager again!

Bond and Bently, Austin Grill Rockville, 9:30 PM. They be coming down from Baltimore and they don’t want a girl that blames them for everything. Acoustic but they can also ROCK, so be prepared.

Sunday, March 16

Spotlight on Broadway, F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, 2 PM. $17.50/adults, $15.50/Students, and special price of $8.50/Seniors. Musical Theatre Center’s performing ensembles Singular Sensations and Upbeat Unlimited will entertain with classic as well as contemporary showstoppers.

Tuesday, March 18

Rockville’s Pike First Report to the Community, City of Rockville, The Legacy Hotel (formerly Ramada Inn), Salon 1 & 11 Meeting Rooms, 7 PM – 9 PM. “Take charge – it’s your Pike!” This is a report from the consultants after hearing our ideas about Rockville Pike. You will be able to hear the results of February’s Stakeholder Workshop, learn about land use and transportation issues, and give feedback on the developing principles for changing the Pike. If you live, work or shop in Rockville, you can and should attend.

Thursday, March 20

Coffee and Conversation, Montgomery County Public Schools, Division of Family and Community Partnerships, 451 Hungerford Drive, 7 AM to Noon. After the kids are off to school, you’ll be able to learn about the programs and services offered by the school system. If you feel like you are in the dark about anything, this is a chance to find out more because they will be answering questions as well as providing some great tips on how to help your child succeed in school. Do you know how to use Edline? The staff will show you. They can also help you navigate through the other web resources offered by the school system.

20th Spring Lecture Series, Montgomery County Friends of the Library (FOLMC), Strathmore Hall Arts Center Mansion, 11:30 AM. Book signing and luncheon 12:30 PM. Delores Phillips, author of “The Darkest Child”, will be the first lecturer of this series to benefit all of our libraries. She works as a psychiatric nurse in a facility for abused women and children in Cleveland and her novel has been compared to Alice Walker’s “The Color Purple.

Saturday, March 22

Spring Eggstravaganza, Rockville Civic Center Park, 10 AM – 11:30 AM. Puppet shows by Kaydee including “The Ugly Duckling” and “Rumpelstilskin”, crafts and an egg hunt for ages 1-9. Bring a camera because you can meet Peter Cottontail! As many as 1,000 people have shown up for this event in the past and you always see familiar faces!

OUT ON THE TOWN

Austin Grill is Celebrating their 20th Anniversary which means a deal for you! Fajitas-for-Two for $20 every Monday. Choose from 10 oz. portion of steak, chicken, carnitas, grilled vegetables or portabella mushrooms. (Shrimp or any combination containing shrimp is just $5 more.)

Email the information for any fun, educational or community events to be included in Weekend to Weekend. Also, send along any specials or discounts. Include links!

We will publish event listings occurring in & around our coverage area (map) on Thursdays. The inclusion of events and specials is at our discretion.

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The Rockville Town Square Parking Shuffle

On my way to yesterday's enjoyable lunch with the Rockville Roundtable, I thought it would be a fine opportunity to put Town Square's new paid-parking system through its paces. I had been waiting for this day -- anyone who knows me knows I love new gadgets. I see this new parking system as a giant new gadget.

Indeed, I had already become enamored with the little green-and-red lights above each spot that let me figure out just where to park (although they encourage me to drive faster than I should in the parking garages because I no longer have to examine each space to see if it's empty). Just find a green lamp and pull in! How cool is that?

So, I was excited that, today, I would add a new machine into the mix: the pay station. The fact that I was paying to park didn't bother me, as I am not someone who believes that parking should necessarily be free. And the apparent complexity of the system didn't faze me because I love a technological challenge.

But I have to admit that, even knowing the procedure going in, I was little confused at first about what I was supposed to do. So, in case you are in the same boat, here it is all broken down.

1. First, I parked, by finding a spot with a little green light glowing above it. I remembered my space number (in this case, #153) and looked for the "pay station," which was at the nearest pedestrian exit.
   
   
2. I walked up to the pay station, which had a blank screen. I pushed a button (any button will do) and the screen came to life, offering me English or Spanish. I chose English, then entered spot number 153.
   
   
3. Then the screen offered me two options. I could either pay for a maximum of four hours of parking, or choose fifteen minutes free to go to the Library. Since I was going to be having lunch, I went for option #1 (I'll try out the Library system sometime soon and let you know how it goes).
   
   
4. Then the machine asked me how long I planned to stay. I chose 2 hours. I then was able to either insert dollar bills or use a credit card to pay. I admit I was ecstatic to be able to use a card -- I hate feeding money into machines because half the time I get rejected. I must be hard on cash or something.
   
   
5. So, anyway, I paid, satisfied with myself for having done so well. And I waited, staring at the machine for something to happen. I got an "authorized" screen, but then . . . nothing. What was up? I took a step back and put my hands on my hips.
   
   
6. Then I noticed a little receipt had fluttered down behind a window 'wayyy down at the bottom of the machine. I reached in and grabbed it.

I remembered from the parking tutorial that, if I wanted to add time to my stay, I would need the code printed on this receipt. I took it and went off to lunch.

Y