Hello all,

Thank you to all of you who were able to attend Tuesday's night MCAD meeting with our Councilmember, Councilmember Valerie Ervin. Valerie is committed to saving MCAD as green space and is actively looking for a financial solution on our behalf. Here are two possible solutions:

1) Reconsideration of Legacy Open Space Designation. This August, Valerie plans to send a letter to the Planning Board requesting reconsideration of MCAD as part of the LOS program. MCAD follows primarily under Criterion 8, urban open space (http://www.mc-mncppc.org/parks/ppsd/legacy_open_space/summary.shtm).

"The Resource provides a significant opportunity to:

a. increase access to public open space in communities with high population densities,
b. to protect scarce open space in an urbanized community, or
c. to improve the character of an existing urban boulevard of countywide or regional significance."

Valerie would like her letter to be signed by a total of 5 Councilmembers. Please write other Councilmembers and ask for their support on LOS designation of MCAD.

2) County-sponsored Land Swap. Valerie stated that her office is presently discussing with Montgomery College a possible land swap. In this way, MCAD will be given back to the County and preserved as parkland.

The meeting was highly informative and encouraging. We learned that Valerie is deeply concerned about this property as well as the College's behavior. She stated a number of times her great disappointment that the College representatives were a no show.

Prior to her arrival, a police officer in charge of K-9 training informed us that MCAD has only been used once by his staff and dogs and will not be used again. This officer told us that the MCAD building itself is in such a sad state with broken glass inside that using it as a K-9 training facility is not worth the risk to the dogs.

Currently, if the MCAD property is accepted into the LOS program, the original proposal by Parks and Planning was to create a youth size soccer field where the MCAD building and parking lot and convert the rest of the green space into a formal neighborhood park.

However, Valerie started an organic community garden program in Montgomery County this past fall. Friends of Sligo Creek highly support a garden at MCAD and worked with the County to create a rain garden at the community garden located at Sligo Overlook Park (http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/Apps/Council/PressRelease/PR_details.a...). Valerie will be highly supportive should the community decide on an organic community garden and park at MCAD.

That said, a few residents were interested is saving the MCAD building as a community recreation center. At this time, that idea is looking less and less feasible due to the condition of the building. It has been vacant for nearly 2 years and is being heavily vandalized.

From the residents I have spoken with in Plyers Mill and in your communities, at this time, most people want to keep and expand current green space at MCAD and are open to either a soccer field or a garden. In fact, from the feedback I have received so far, there is more concern about a soccer field than a community garden. I am going to start a running tally of pros and cons of both and will poll all of you soon to get some kind of consensus. However, at this time, I do encourage you to choose between a park and a soccer field or an organic community garden at MCAD. We need to decide and move forward while we have the political momentum to better our communities.

As always, please feel free to send me your thoughts.

Thank you,
Beverly