Route 1 Reporter (https://route1reporter.com/category/news/mount-rainier/page/2/)
If Mount Rainier residents want to remake the Kaywood Theater into a new performing and cinematic arts hub for Prince George’s County, they’ll need to find between $15 million and $33 million to do so.
A Mount Rainier City Council member is accusing a longtime political foe of racist intimidation for trying to use state open records laws to obtain a range of documentation about city officials, including citizenship status, background checks and security clearances. Documents obtained by Route 1 Reporter provide new details about the request, and the people behind it.
A judge’s ruling clears the way for the Mount Rainier Volunteer Fire Department to return to active, independent service as the Bunker Hill Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company. Where that happens, however, could be another story. A ruling issued Feb. 21, 2019 by Prince George’s County Circuit Court Judge John Davey settles a contentious lawsuit brought by former members of the Mount Rainier Volunteer Fire Department against Prince George’s County fire and rescue officials and the Brentwood Volunteer Fire Department. “The Bunker Hill Volunteer Fire And Rescue Co.
A packed-house of Mount Rainier residents, meeting Prince George’s County’s new library system CEO for the first time, had a single demand: re-open the Mount Rainier library branch. But what seemed before the meeting to be a singular task – dealing with the presence of asbestos – was revealed to be a more comprehensive list of issues with the city-owned building, ranging from security concerns to inadequate emergency exits and support among county policymakers. When asked by Councilor Luke Chesek (Ward One) if the county is committed to re-opening the branch, Roberta Phillips, the newly-minted CEO of the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System, said library officials want to “move forward” with plans to re-establish library service in the city. But she noted political considerations, as well. “Once I meet with Council-member Deni Taveras and the other County Council members, I will have a better handle on it,” replied Phillips.
From Covington, Virginia, by way of Kalamazoo, Michigan, Mount Rainier has a new chief of police in one Anthony Morgan.
Prime Rhode Island Avenue lots in North Brentwood has been sold to a prominent D.C. commercial real estate investor. According to state property records, several lots near 4550 Rhode Island Ave. in North Brentwood, including an abandoned vintage plumbing store, traded hands last month. The purchase, when combined with a neighboring property purchased in 2013, now leaves the developer with nearly 30,000 square feet of assembled properties fronting a rapidly-redeveloping Rhode Island Avenue corridor. In a transaction recorded Dec.
I hope you all had a warm and wonderful snow-filled weekend. Here’s hoping it doesn’t put too much of a damper on your early-week plans. Word on the street is most Route 1 communities reported few issues with snow clearance. It always helps matters when the snowstorm is on a weekend. From Route 1 Reporter’s world headquarters in Berwyn, crews were seen at all hours working city and state roads alike.
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.
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.
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.