January 21, 2010

To whom it may concern,

I respectfully and formally request that you investigate who owns the
rights-of-way at the former School of Art and Design at Montgomery
College (MCAD) at 10500 Georgia Ave, Wheaton, MD. Please see the
emails below for links to Council approved resolutions as well as
additional information about the MCAD property.

Please let me know if you need any more information from me at this time.

Thank you kindly,
Beverly Sobel
President, GreenSpaceOnGeorgia.org

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Romer, Richard
Date: Tue, Jan 19, 2010 at 4:03 PM
Subject: RE: MCAD Question
To: "Beverly G. Sobel"
Cc: "Healy, Sonya"

Beverly,

I spoke with a representative from Montgomery College last week. We
have sent over some dates to meet with officials from the College that
work for us and are awaiting reply. I will keep you in the loop
concerning any additional information.

If you would like to send a formal inquiry into the matter to County
Council Attorneys regarding abandonments, you may do so by email
(county.council@montgomerycountymd.gov) or by mail (Legislative
Information Services, 5th Floor, 100 Maryland Avenue • Rockville, MD
20850).

Thanks,

Rich

Richard Romer

Policy Analyst

Councilmember Valerie Ervin

Montgomery County Council - District 5

100 Maryland Avenue, 6th Floor, Rockville, MD 20850

(240) 777-7957 (phone)

(240) 777-7989 (fax)

For more information about our office visit:
http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/content/council/mem/Ervin/index.asp

-----Original Message-----
From: Beverly G. Sobel [mailto:weberlyg@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, January 19, 2010 1:59 PM
To: Romer, Richard
Cc: Healy, Sonya
Subject: Re: MCAD Question

Hi Rich,

I hope all is well.

March 26, 2010

Dear Ms. Sobel:
Council President Floreen directed me to respond to your message regarding the rights-of-way at the former School of Art and Design at Montgomery College. Your message was made available to all Councilmembers when we received it. I apologize for the delay in responding, but as you probably know, this has been a busy time here.

Contrary to what you may have been told, the Council legal staff cannot “investigate” in any definitive way who owns the right-of-way at the former MCAD. More particularly, we are not able to do the kind of analysis of the relevant abandonments, including if necessary a title search, that may be necessary to resolve an issue of this nature. Both the County Attorney and the attorneys for Montgomery College may have views on this issue. If their views or any other interested party’s views differ, only a court can give a binding answer. Finally, we are not authorized to offer private legal advice to County residents about this or any other legal issue.

Michael Faden

Senior Legislative Attorney
c: Rich Romer, Office of Councilmember Ervin

F:\LAW\Correspondence\2010\053652 Sobel.Doc

Council approves rezoning for Georgia Avenue townhouses
Decision angers residents who wanted land on former College of Art and Design parcel to serve neighborhood
by Kristina Gawrgy | Staff Writer
Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2007

http://www.gazette.net/stories/091207/wheanew210233_32357.shtml

Wheaton area residents are upset by the County Council’s 8-1 decision Tuesday to approve the rezoning application for a townhouse development in their neighborhood, but say they are going to continue to advocate for park space.

After hearing oral argument, the County Council voted today to approve rezoning of the MCAD property to RT 12.5 (Townhouses). Four representatives from our communities spoke in front of the Council in opposition of the rezoning. Several other community members were also present to show support. Representatives from CrossingGeorgia.org and Montgomery County Civic Federation were also present in support of our cause, in addition to an endorsement from Friends of Sligo Creek. The Council's vote was 8-1 in favor of the rezoning. District 5 Representative, Valerie Ervin, who is the home District Representative for the area surrounding the MCAD property was included in those who voted for the rezoning. The only Councilmember in opposition was At Large Councilmember Marc Elrich.

While this defeat is very disappointing, it is not our final chance to stop the townhouse development on the MCAD property. Our focus will now shift to supporting the covenants in a legal case and to a letter-writing campaign in support of Legacy Open Space.

The entire County Council session, including the G-858 hearing will be re-broadcast on Montgomery County Channel 6 on 9-14-2007 at 8:00 PM and on 9-15-2007 at 7:00 AM.

An article covering this issue is expected to be published in the Montgomery County Gazette tomorrow, Wednesday September 12th, 2007.

It is also worth noting that the ex parte communication rules on this case no longer apply. We encourage everyone to communicate your feelings on the decision and/or the process to the Councilmembers and the County Executive.

Tue, September 4, 8 - 9pm
Where: Capital View Park Rec Center, 2929 Edgewood Road, Kensington, MD (Map)

Delegate Waldstreicher wants to speak with us again, ahead of the County Council Meeting to decide the G-858 zoning case. We are trying to get County Executive Leggett to attend too!! The Washington Post and Gazette reporters are also coming. Make sure you are there too. Let's rally hard and win our park!!!!

Planned Development Faces a New Challenge
With Makeshift Park at Stake, Carroll Knolls Neighbors Seek to Block Townhouses on College Land

By Mariana Minaya
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 16, 2007; Page GZ03

The petition has been updated. (Log in to see the attachment). There are now 549 signatories on our petition for a park instead of development at the Montgomery College School of Art + Design property.

Click here to view an interactive map.

A letter from a neighbor. My response is posted below:

Hello Seth,

I am cautiously optimistic after reading the 7/25 Gazette article about the Council's decision to delay the vote on rezoning the Art School property. I'm not sure, however, how to interpret or respond to Council President Marilyn J. Praisner's comments about the restrictions on the topics that can be addressed in the next meeting on this issue. In particular, she indicated that the only topics that can be considered in the rezoning decision

http://www.gazette.net/stories/072507/wheanew05534_32361.shtml

Council shelves talk on townhouse rezoning proposal
Residents, builder given time to discuss development at former School of Art and Design on Georgia Avenue
by Kristina Gawrgy | Staff Writers

The County Council voted Tuesday to delay a decision on a rezoning case in which 27 townhouses would be built in Silver Spring where the School of Art and Design at Montgomery County currently sits. Residents from surrounding neighborhoods had voiced strong opposition to the plan.

...

Hello all,

We have good news. This morning the County Council voted to allow specific oral arguments in our case and to delay the actual decision until October 2nd. Oral arguments will be heard on September 11th, 2007. Councilmember Ervin made these two motions for oral arguments and for a time delay. We thank Councilmember Ervin for her wise decision and help! In response to Councilmember Ervin's request, the Council voted unanimously in our favor. This is a small victory for us and a step in the right direction!!!