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District 1 Crime Map, December ’09

The following is the District 1 Crime map for the month of December 2009. I’ll update the list as I get more info.

Please click on the markers to find details about the individual incidents.

Properties for Rent List

Along with the list of apartments in my yesterday’s post, you can also take a look at this list if you’re out to find a rental place in our district.

http://collegeparkmd.gov/Rental_property_full_listing.asp

Please remember that this is an “official” list – meaning that the list only shows properties that are registered with the city. Thus the list most likely does not have the complete list of residential properties in the city. Also,  please note that the list shows all the rental properties in the city, not only in district 1. Thus you’ll need to spend extra time to filter out other properties not in district 1.

District 1 Apartments

I’m often asked to find apartments / condos in our district for rent. To the best of my knowledge, here are a few I know. Please click on the markers to find more about them.

Neighborhood Watch Training Course

With number of crimes going up in our area, it’s important that we know more on how to deter crimes. On January 21, the National Sheriffs’ Association will be organizing a free training course in Washington DC to do just that.

This training is designed to build the capacity of law enforcement officers assigned to work with community groups by providing specific instruction on the Neighborhood Watch Toolkit. The course will increase participants’ skill levels by teaching them the proper utilization of the tools and the most effective methods of maximizing the Toolkit’s value for their citizens and communities. The training is intended to be interactive and applicable to participants with all levels of Neighborhood Watch experience.

Details of the program can be found here:

http://www.usaonwatch.org/events/event.aspx?F_d=01%2f21%2f2010&F_y=2010&F_m=1&EventId=31&

(Source: College Park Crime Watch)

Making a Trip to Airport? Consider Metrobus Service

Do you know that you can conveniently go to the local airports using Metro buses? Metro has just added more airport bus services to BWI and Dulles airports.

If you’re headed to BWI, take Metro rail’s Green Line to Greenbelt Station. From there, the B30 bus will take you to BWI for $3.10 ($3 if you use a SmarTrip card). Metro plans to provide service every 20 minutes from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Additional trips will be available from the airport to Greenbelt Station on Sunday.

To go to the Dulles airport, take  5A from the L’Enfant Plaza and Rosslyn stations to Dulles International Airport. These buses are crowded around the holidays, the 5A especially, so consider how much luggage you want to haul aboard.  From Tuesday to Thursday, the 5A will operate every 15 to 20 minutes from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. On Saturday, the 5A will operate every 30 minutes from noon to 11 p.m. Depending on ridership demand, extra service will be available Jan. 3.

(Source: Washington Post)

Foreclosures Woes Continue in PG

And though there are signs the overall economy is recovering, 33 percent of Maryland homes that received a foreclosure notice within the last month were in Prince George’s County. More here..

http://www.thesentinel.com/pgs/foreclosures2009-12-22T09-24-45

Community Service Grant

Got a nifty idea that could serve your neighborhood? The city has the money to support that.

The purpose of the City of College Park Community Services Grant is to provide opportunities for community-based programs and projects.  The City of College Park believes that supporting community activities enhances the community as a whole.  The City will provide grants to fund programs and activities that promote enhanced community opportunities for its residents.  The maximum community services grant award per organization for fiscal year 2010 is $2,500.

Here are more:

Grant Application 

Grant Criteria

Hold Harmless Agreement

Operation ID – Keeping Your Valuables Safe

Operation ID Sticker

With crimes going up in our area, you may want to consider this..

Operation Identification is a property marking program that has been successful in reducing or eliminating burglary and theft in communities where it has been properly implemented.

The program is based on the premise that items that are difficult for a thief to sell are less likely to be stolen.

It is easy to join Operation Identification and costs you nothing but a little time.

First, list all your valuable property on the inventory form provided by the department. Second, engrave your driver’s license number on the property. Third, display the Operation Identification stickers on your doors and windows to warn the potential thief that all items have been marked for ready identification by law enforcement agencies.

Contact the block captain or Kim Lugo for Operation Identification materials. You can find Kim’s contact info here..

http://myncpca.org/links/neighborhood-watch/

New City Phone Numbers

The City has a new telephone system now and new telephone numbers to go along with it.  The old numbers forward for a certain time period, but here are the new telephone numbers.

The Main Number will be answered by an auto attendant and can get you to any office in the City.  Individual department phone numbers are also listed.

Here are the new numbers:

Main Number     240-487-3500  
Administration  240-487-3501  
Finance 240-487-3509  
Human Resources 240-487-3533  
IT      240-487-3528  
Parking 240-487-3520  
Planning        240-487-3538  
Public Services 240-487-3570  
Public Works    240-487-3590  
Youth and Family        240-487-3550

No Book Rentals during Holiday Season

It’s the holiday season again. The schools are closed, kids are at home. It’d have been a fun if we could all spend the entire holiday season with our kids; however a very few of us will afford to do that. That leaves mainly one choice to many parents – keep them busy with some fun stuff.  One of that fun stuff is to get them some good books from the local library. Kids love in making a trip to library and rent books – reading is fun to most of them.

Unfortunately, that is not going to happen this year. The County’s library system has just decided to keep its doors closed for the entire winter holiday holiday season (Dec 24, 2009 to Jan 3, 2010) due to what they call “budgetary constraints”.

Thank You Blizzard Braves!

Since we discussed the importance of serving our elderly citizens after snow storms, I had some very good responses from a few neighbors. Together, we spent the entire yesterday afternoon going door to door of the elderly residents living in the neighborhood.

The volunteers shoveled snow on the walkways and driveways of these neighbors’ residences.

Because of the heavy volume of snow, we could only cover houses on 53rd Avenue, Edgewood Road and Mineola Road. I wish we could get more volunteers so that we could serve the entire neighborhood in our district.

We hope to continue such services in the coming days of this winter season. If you’d like to volunteer or if you know any elderly residents needing such help, please let us know. The experience is very rewarding; the elderly residents really appreciate such help.

Here are a few pictures of the Blizzard Braves in action. Thank you all for your service.

County Declares State of Emergency

Dec19, FORESTVILLE, MD – Prince George’s County Executive Jack B. Johnson at noon today declared a state of emergency in the county because of the severity of the snow storm that has hit the region.

Johnson said that it was necessary to declare the state of emergency because so many people failed to heed the warning to remain home during the snow storm. He said that because of the severity of the storm, folks should stay off the roads so emergency road crews can clear the roadways of snow.

As part of the snow emergency plan, all cars must be removed from snow emergency routes, which are posted with designated signs, to avoid being ticketed and/or towed.

Nearly 11 inches of snow has fallen in the county since the beginning of the storm. An additional accumulation of 10 – 12 inches is expected before the snowfall ends, with two inches (2”) of snow falling per hour.

Motorists are asked to stay off roadways until the storm has ended to allow the Department of Public Works and Transportation’s snow plow drivers to clear roadways.

On non-snow emergency routes, residents are asked to park off roadways in driveways or other off-street parking areas. If residents find that they can only park along the roadway, they are requested to park ONLY on the EVEN NUMBERED side of the roadways.

In the event of a medical or other emergency, residents may call the county’s Snow Emergency Information Center at 301.350.0500. Click here for Prince George’s County Snow and Ice Information
http://www.princegeorgescountymd.gov/Government/AgencyIndex/DPW&T/Snow-Ice/index.asp?nivel=foldmenu(2)

Snow Squad – Let's Continue!!

It’s that time of the year – our area is getting covered by snow. Today, we are expecting to have as much as 20 inches of snow.

The heavy snowing also brings problems for our residents – especially the elderly and disabled ones. For many of these residents, it’s extremely difficult to clear snows on their driveways and walkways leading to the street. They need our help. The city only clears snows on the residential streets.

Over the past years, I’ve seen organized efforts to clear snow on residences of these needy families. I wonder if we can do the same in this winter season also?

If you need help or know someone who may need help – or if you want to volunteer, please contact me at (301)659-6295.

ICC Toll – the Highest in the Country

ICC map (courtesy - Washington Post)

The Maryland State transportation authority has aproved the final toll figure for the new Inter County Connector (ICC) .

The toll will cost $12.30 a day for a commuter travelling both ways ($6.25 one way, 30 sents per mile, peak hour) end-to-end between Laurel and Gaithersberg.

That’s a lot of money for an average resident who, say, lives in our city and works in Gaithursberg.

In fact the toll will be the highest in the entire country.

More here.. http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1209/688277.html

Deep Cuts in School Budget

When it comes to what matter most to our citizens, two items often go to the top of the list – public safety and our school system. The rough economy is going to cause our local school system slash some 500 positions in the upcoming school year. This includes 152 teaching and 120 school-parent liaison positions.

Less teachers in our school means higher student teacher ratio for our students, especially in grades 4-6 and 9-12.

More here.. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/16/AR2009121604039.html