Business

Mount Rainier Artist Lofts has serious structural flaws

By |

Critical structural issues are affecting a Mount Rainier mixed-use affordable housing complex for working artists. Mount Rainier city officials criticized county building inspectors for approving work they allege has since been revealed to be below-standard. As a result, Mount Rainier city officials now want to be reimbursed by county officials for engineering assessments paid for by the city and carried out to gain a better understanding of the problems facing the building. 

The building is the Artist Lofts affordable housing complex at 3311 Rhode Island Avenue in downtown Mount Rainier. It opened in 2004. It’s a four-story building that includes 44 affordably-priced live-work apartment units for artists and ground floor retail.

Business

‘Food truck hub’ pitch inspires Mount Rainier Council

By |

Mount Rainier City Council is exploring what it would take to become a “food truck hub” in Prince George’s County.  

The idea is the brainchild of Mount Rainier attorney and entrepreneur Michael Davis. His idea is such a hub could bring additional foot traffic to the city’s downtown core while also providing an opportunity for mobile restaurateurs to ply their trade. At its Dec. 18, 2018 meeting, Davis pitched Mount Rainier City Council on the idea.

Brentwood

Details of Brentwood Vol. Fire Dept. embezzlement revealed

By |

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with comments from Brentwood Volunteer Fire Department President William Broadus. Several months after the trial ended, the nature of the crimes alleged to have been committed by Steven King have been revealed. King pled guilty in September to charges of embezzlement from the Brentwood Volunteer Fire Department, where formerly served as president of the volunteer squad. The new details were disclosed in an interview with Denise Roberts, spokesperson for the Prince George’s County’s Office of the State’s Attorney. “Basically, he was living at the Fire Department, he was president of the Brentwood Volunteer Fire Department and he used company credit cards for personal expenses,” said Roberts.

Government
A thin-built African-American man stands against a blue background, looking into the camera. This is DeMornai Blackwell. He is wearing a white cable-knit turtle neck sweater and a gold pendant on a thin chain around his neck.

Mount Rainier hires financial director

By |

Mount Rainier has a new financial director in DeMornai Blackwell. He fills a vacancy left by the departure of Kevin Greenville, who tendered his resignation Sept. 6, 2018. The position has been vacant since Oct. 22, 2018.

Government
Brian Hammock, CSX's resident vice president of Maryland operations sits at a table inside Cottage City's Tow Hall, speaking, framed by two onlookers. He is wearing a blue sweater over a button-up shirt.

CSX neighbors seek remedies for train woes

By |

Local government officials from several Route 1 corridor towns met with a representative of CSX Corp. this past week to try to find remedies for complaints familiar to anyone who’s ever lived within earshot of a railroad. The complaints included concerns about speeding trains, idling locomotives next to residential neighborhoods, fears of structurally-damaging vibrations and late-night train horns from passing freight liners, risks posed by the transportation of hazardous materials by rail, and the nuisance of late-night track maintenance work. After the meeting, it remains unclear what local or state government leaders can do to remedy these issues. Broadly speaking, local governments have little to no regulatory power over interstate railroads.

Mount Rainier

Mount Rainier Manager: ‘Culture change’ has come to City Hall

By |

Mount Rainier City Manager Miranda Braatz asserts her administration has undergone a “complete culture change” since financial and sexual harassment scandals within the city police department became public knowledge in May 2018. Braatz’s comments came in an interview conducted by Route 1 Reporter after this publication obtained sexual harassment training documents used in an all-staff training session that took place in March 2018. The documents, embedded below this story, were obtained through Maryland Public Information Act requests. “We’ve done a complete culture change since that training and since our investigation. It started from the top up, starting with explicitly allowing anybody to go to HR at any time if they had any questions or wanted to say anything or wanted to talk or wanted to report anything,” said Braatz.

Mount Rainier

Uncertainty surrounds Mount Rainier library asbestos fix

By |

Mount Rainier City Council members say they need answers to several questions before they make a decision about the future of its local library. The library, part of the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System, has been closed for several weeks over suspicions the facility was contaminated by asbestos or lead. Testing subsequently conducted by two firms did not find any traces of lead in the paint, but they did find evidence of asbestos within the building’s tiles. 

That testing was paid for by the city of Mount Rainier, and any fixes to the library will be paid by the city as well. That’s because the library is one of two in Prince George’s County to operate out of a building owned by a municipality, as opposed to the library system itself. The library operates from the building as a tenant.

Homepage Featured

Doc Drop: Mount Rainier library asbestos and lead testing results

By |

The Mount Rainier public library has been closed for several weeks now due to concerns over asbestos and lead within the building. The good news is that no lead was found. But the bad news is that testing revealed the presence of asbestos. And it could cost Mount Rainier approximately $30,000 to re-open the library, according to documents obtained by Route 1 Reporter. At tonight’s Mount Rainier City Council worksession, city staff will brief elected officials on the state of the Mount Rainier library, which is operated by the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System.

Development

Mount Rainier hires new econdev chief

By |

Mount Rainier has found a new director of economic development in one Ronald Hopkins, city officials announced Wednesday afternoon. His first day will be Dec. 3, 2018. Hopkins succeeds former economic development director Samantha Olatunji, who resigned suddenly in early October 2018. The hiring was announced Nov.

Brentwood

Bunker Hill Fire Station lawsuit moves through motions

By |

A lawsuit challenging the consolidation of the volunteer fire departments operating out of the Bunker Hill Fire Station continues to move ahead. This week, lawyers for both sides will be in court for a hearing on pending pre-trail disputes and motions, set for Nov. 20, 2018, in Upper Marlboro. According to a scheduling order issued by presiding judge John Davey, the pre-trial phase of the suit is expected to end by Jan. 30, 2019.