Mayor's Corner
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45108_TOLP_R3 9/19/06 5:09 AM Page 1 October — November 2006 Many thanks to those who attended our concert series and Trick or Treat Evening MAYOR’S movie nights on the green at Trick or Treat evening in La Plata is Town Hall. We anticipate Tuesday, October 31, from 6:00 p.m. offering similar entertainment until 8:00 p.m. As an alternative to CORNER next summer. The Town of La door to door trick or treating, the Plata is co-sponsoring a Town continues to encourage community parties as Scarecrow Festival event to a means of providing safe fun for our children. kick off the Civista Foundation However, for those who allow their children to go fundraiser on Saturday, door-to-door, we ask that you limit this to the 12 and October 28 at Town Hall. Also, under age group, and encourage you to accompany please mark your calendars for your children as chaperones and keep your children Sunday, November 5, when the in their own immediate neighborhood. Town of La Plata will be hosting the Veterans Day Parade. Although there are many things going on in family life, We encourage these safety precautions for all such as school work, jobs and extracurricular activities, children who go out trick or treating: please try to get involved in your Town by participating • Wear reflective tape or other reflective material in Town of La Plata sponsored events. on your costume so you are visible as you walk along the streets. Smoking Ordinance • Use a flashlight to help light your way. • Don’t wear a mask that would keep you from On July 18, 2006, the Town Council enacted Ordinance being able to easily see vehicles or other hazards 06-10 Regulation of Smoking and Tobacco Products, which as you walk from house to house. goes into effect October 1, 2006. In brief, the ordinance All who are driving through Town during Trick or prohibits the smoking and carrying of lighted tobacco Treat Evening on October 31st are asked to be espe- products in certain public places or within 20 feet of the cially careful of the children walking through the public entrance. The complete ordinance is available on neighborhoods. the Town’s website at www.townoflaplata.org. Town of La Plata Officials Town Hall Closed Mayor: Gene Ambrogio Town Clerk: Judith T. Frazier The Town Hall will be closed on the following Council: Treasurer: Joseph W. Norris days in observance of the holidays listed: Wayne Winkler............................Ward 1 Project Manager: Steven F. Schroeder C. Keith Back................................Ward 2 Director of Planning and Zoning: Veterans Day (observed) Friday, November 10 Paddy Mudd .................................Ward 3 Catherine N. Flerlage Thanksgiving Thursday, November 23 Vic E. Newman............................Ward 4 Director of Public Works: Interim Town Manager: Stephen A. Murphy and Friday, November 24 Michelle D. Miner Police Chief: Cassin B. Gittings Assistant Town Manager: If you have a water or sewer emergency after Patricia L. Bembe hours, call 301-934-8421 and follow the instruc- 305 Queen Anne Street, La Plata, Maryland 20646 tions given to report your emergency. The auto- Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m.—4:00 p.m. mated response system will alert the appropriate Telephone: 301-934-8421 / 301-870-3377 department to respond to you. La Plata Police Department: 301-934-1500 Email: [email protected] Website: www.townoflaplata.org 45108_TOLP_R3 9/19/06 5:09 AM Page 2 repairing/replacing 4,000 feet of Saturday nights has been drawing a sewer line and repairing 13 man- larger crowd each time it is held. If Council holes and the work should be com- you have not brought your family pleted by December 31st. Next year out to Town Hall on a Friday or Column we will continue replacing/repair- Saturday evening to enjoy the ing lines and manholes. shows, plan on giving it a try next I understand that La Tolteca, the year. FROM WARD 1 new Mexican restaurant near the One new initiative that the Town old Safeway, is fabulous. I will be Council is working on is the adop- Councilman Wayne Winkler there sometime this week. La Plata tion of a Fire Sprinkler ordinance Well, it’s getting darker earlier so still continues to grow and it is cer- for new construction homes. This I guess that means Old Man Winter tainly not the little small town I would require the installation of is just around the corner. grew up in. I don’t expect to see sprinkler systems in single family The Town of La Plata is doing any residential annexations any- homes to be built within the Town. well due to the great leadership of time soon but I expect to see con- I have read that some builders Michelle Minor. When our Town tinued commercial growth. oppose this requirement because Manager, Doug Miller, moved on to Hope you have a great fall and they do not see a compelling bene- Aberdeen, Michelle stepped up to winter. If you ever need to contact fit. The potential to save lives in a the plate and has done a fabulous me, or simply want to know what it future fire far outweighs the small job, and so has the rest of the staff. is when you see a new building, just increase to the average price of a By the time you read this I hope give me a call on 301-934-0025. new home in La Plata. If this ordi- St. Mary’s Avenue is paved and the nance can save one life it is worth sink holes have gone away. I also the cost. hope Washington Avenue road cuts FROM WARD 2 are complete. I believe the reason Councilman Keith Back they cut across Washington Avenue The La Plata Town Council has FROM WARD 3 was to get water and sewer to the been working on a number of issues Councilwoman Paddy Mudd new District Court building that is this summer that are finally coming My goal for the remainder of my to be built behind the existing to closure and a few new initiatives term is to turn the Council from a courthouse. Talbot Street should be for the fall. By the time this is pub- reactive one to a PROACTIVE elect- finished sometime this winter. One lished, or very shortly afterwards, the ed body. We have reacted to the thing I find to be strange is that Town will be announcing the name destruction of the tornado with Talbot Street has no acceleration or of our new Town Manager. We have wonderful small town spirit and a deceleration lanes. I thought all spent many hours looking for a per- lot of help from our friends. Now it new roads had to have them. son to replace our previous Town is time to direct La Plata toward the What’s going on: Our smoking Manager Doug Miller who left in the town we want it to be in 2025. La ban will take effect October 1 and spring. I want to publicly thank Plata’s population will be 20- that’s a good thing. Another good Michelle Miner, who has been doing 25,000 then with no more residen- piece of legislation is that we are an excellent job as the acting Town tial annexation from now on. The moving all elections to May of Manager while we have been going Council must look at the Vision 2009. I will have to run in May of through this recruitment process. Plan and gather together old and 2007 but it will be a 2-year term, On October 1st the La Plata ordi- new members to revive and amend then all of the 4 Wards Council nance on secondhand smoke in pub- it. If you are interested in being people will run at the same time, lic places will go into affect. Four part of this group please contact including the Mayor. Another out of five of your elected officials the Town Manager or your council- good thing is that all voters will get had the leadership courage to pass a man. to vote for all of the Council people measure that will protect the health PROACTIVE means looking for- instead of just the one running in of all of our citizens, even with the ward or ahead. I believe that every their Ward. This should give us criticism of a small but vocal minor- major project or “streetscape” better voter turnout. ity who spoke against this ordinance. should have undergrounding the Some more good news: The vast majority of the people who utility poles built into the bid pro- Maryland Department of have spoken or written to the posal. The Town should pay for Environment (MDE) fined the Town Council about this issue are pleased replacing the present ones, not the of La Plata $10,000 plus a $100.00 that this was passed and that La property owner. a day until we did sewer line Plata’s restaurants, bars and other We have La Grange Ave. (which repairs. Michelle and I went to public places will now be free of sec- was done by the state reacting to Baltimore and pleaded our case ondhand smoke. the tornado destruction) in need of with MDE and they reduced our The summer concert series has a complete landscaping redo — and fine to $1,000.00 and dropped the been a big success again this year we need diagonal or at least paral- $100.00 a day fine. The Town is and the new movie series on Council Column continued on page 3 45108_TOLP_R3 9/19/06 5:09 AM Page 3 Council Column continued from p2 paying Town taxes many more Nationally, over 80% of fire deaths years than the newer subdivisions occur in residences, 18% of the vic- lel parking to replace what was — who paid for these things when tims were less than 16 years old and taken away on the southwest end they purchased their homes.