Route 1 Reporter (https://route1reporter.com/)
Campaign spending was down in Hyattsville’s 2019 council elections, according to finance reports finalized by the city’s Ethics Commission earlier this month. Hyattsville City Council candidates spent, on average, almost $1,300 less on their campaigns in 2019 than candidates in 2017.
Developers have provided the first look at the architectural designs for 131 new townhomes planned for Hyattsville.
City officials had begun to investigate the leak of an apparently unredacted copy of a confidential 2018 investigative report examining allegations of sexual harassment in the city police department.
A new Hyattsville Middle School, as well as a new Adelphi Middle School, have gotten the green light to be included in a plan to build six new schools across Prince George’s County.
This story has been updated. Mount Rainier’s City Manager Miranda Braatz appears to have been forced out of office. Braatz resigned Sept. 12, 2019 after earlier being placed on administrative leave by City Council. The move comes in the wake of the city’s recent disclosure of the identity of a former employee who filed sexual harassment complaints against the city, though the links between that event and Braatz’s sudden resignation are unclear.
Again without much discussion, College Park City Council took one last procedural vote clearing the way for the city to borrow $19 million to build a new City Hall (approximately $14 million of the cost) and to renovate and redesign Duvall Field (approximately $5 million).
VeoRide isn’t the only scooter game in College Park, it seems. Dockless escooter titan Bird has recently been seen in College Park hawking its “micro mobility” devices to newly-arrived students here for the fall semester.
Last week, an eagle-eyed reader spotted Bird representatives showcasing their scooters at an event in the parking lot of Vigilante Coffee on Baltimore Avenue.
Mount Rainier city officials appear to have publicly identified a former employee who filed sexual harassment complaints against the city.
College Park, anticipating the construction of a new city hall, met for the first time in Davis Hall in northern College Park.
A new filing with county planners has revealed more details about a planned Marriott Hotel near College Park’s Metro station.
Hyattsville will phase out its Nixle emergency alert system over the next several months in favor of a new emergency alert messaging company named CodeRED. Hyattsville has been using Nixle to distribute emergency alerts for more than seven years, according to message records. However, it lacked the ability to reach landlines or residents without cell phones or email access, Hyattsville City Police Department Chief of Police Amal Awad said during a recent community meeting. The new service will allow police to distribute emergency notifications and public safety alerts by text message, robocall and email. It also has teletype option for deaf subscribers.
Hyattsville City Council approved a measure to issue $13.8 million in debt for the renovation of the city’s Public Works Facility and the construction of a new police headquarters on Hamilton Street. As a result, it may be hard to borrow for other infrastructure projects in the city in the future. The vote happened at a special session of Hyattsville City Council held Aug. 28, 2019. The measure was unanimously approved, though Mayor Candace Hollingsworth and City Councilors Joseph Solomon and Carianna Suiter were absent.
$3.3 million will be allocated to the Public Works Facility.
Is a multifamily developer eyeing North Brentwood for a major redevelopment project? A recent property sale in North Brentwood’s Rhode Island Corridor suggests so. According to state property records,, a corporate entity named NP 111 LLC purchased several parcels near the 4550 block of Rhode Island Avenue in North Brentwood in a two transactions recorded July 12, 2019. NP 111 LLC is a holding company of RSE Capital Partners LLC, a real estate investment trust focused on multifamily properties in the Washington, D.C., area. NP 111 LLC bought approximately one acre of land for $4.9 million in separate transaction with two other real estate ventures registered to real estate developer Langon Drew Hample: 4550 Rhode Island LLC and Congressional Commercial LLC.
The properties are presently zoned for mixed-use-infill development. One is a presently home to a Beacon Roofing Supply warehouse, the other is an abandoned storefront that recently hosted an antique plumbing supply store.
After several hours of strategizing, Mount Rainier City Council now has a draft list of policy and planning priorities to pursue over the next year.