River Road Repair - Redux

Well, whaddya know? You send out emails - you get email in return!

My note to the MD State Highway Authority regarding the befouled traffic situation along River Road in Potomac Village of late yielded the following response:

"Your recent email was forwarded to the State Highway Administration's District 3 Office which is located in Greenbelt, MD. Our office is responsible for the administration of this project.

The roadway improvements that were started in September of this year are designed to alleviate the flooding problems as well as to promote safety and more efficient traffic movement in the area. I'm sure that you know that this location has experienced flooding conditions for years with the most recent event occurring about (2) weeks ago. Our plans require the installation of (2) large reinforced concrete pipes (RCP) at the existing culvert location that will allow for better stream flow when complete. The plastic pipe that you see on the job site now is only temporary pipe that will covey the stream flow known as Rock Run during the construction of the RCP.

You are correct in stating that construction activity has stopped for a period of time. This work stoppage is due to problems encountered during the initial start-up phase. In summary, we have identified some problems associated with an underground gas line as well as with the new RCP elevations. These problems required our designers to make some modifications to the design plans which have been completed and are presently being worked out with our contractor. I will be at the project's field office this Friday where we will be working out details for getting back to work.

Prior to this delay, we were on schedule to be completed in late Spring/Early Summer of 2007. It is my goal to get the project back on schedule and completed by our original completion date. I will know more in about a week.

Thank you for your email. Please feel free to contact me directly by phone or through email if you require additional information.

Sincerely,

Kevin Nowak

Assistant District Engineer-Construction"

I guess the fact that an actual warm-blooded human answered my inquiry (and not an automated response-generating computer program) should be heartening. It does make me wonder why haven't they attempted to convey this information to the traffic-impaired public previously....but I digress.

Anyway, they hope the project will be back on schedule and completed in by Summer of 2007. Guess those traffic tie-ups will just have to be endured until that time, but the note still doesn't address my question regarding whether or not this was a discretionary project, i.e., a job they could have initiated during the summer months (when River Road is far less congested) or if it was indeed an emergency repair job that mandated immediate attention. I'm not sure I'll get any response to that, but at least I know what's up and why the work suddenly stopped in October.

Special added bonus information!: Today (Thursday, Nov 30) I saw three workmen standing around the site (note: they were standing around talking - as in not doing any discernible work). Coincidence? Who knows. In any event, I'm glad to see some sort of activity at the site again, as it represent the first time in over a month that actual human-type mammals have been seen moving around that area.

Follow-up (Dec 1, 2006)

Looks as if I was a bit hasty. Those workers I saw at the River Road repair site on Thursday were fleeting. As of yesterday afternoon, the site was as deserted as a MoCo Government office on Friday at 5pm. Maybe those three guys I saw were there by mistake. Who knows? When the workers do re-appear, I'll let you know.....

Coming Soon To Your Area - The Ikettes!

Ever wonder what it would be like to personally question the incoming Montgomery County Executive on issues that are near and dear to your heart, and the hearts of your friends and neighbors - all in a cordial, relaxed atmosphere of open repartee and bonhomie?

Now you can find out! Ike Leggett has two more nights remaining on his County Executive Coronation Tour, and he wants to hear from YOU. According to his press release:

"In keeping with his promise to be a County Executive “who makes house calls,” Leggett also announced he’ll be holding three public meetings for County residents even before taking office.

'I want to hear straight from the folks who pay the bills what County government is doing right – and what we ought to change,' he said. "

The remaining meetings (ed. - a Chevy Chase meeting was held Nov 28) , all beginning at 7:30 PM, are:

Wednesday, November 29
Olney Elementary School, 3401 Queen Mary Drive in Olney

Thursday, November 30
Black Rock Center for the Arts, 12901 Town Common Drive, in Germantown

Bring all you concerns and questions, and make sure you ask about property taxes. I can't wait to hear how that hot potato is handled.....

You've Got FiOS!

The Montgomery Gazette is trumpeting a deal reached by MoCo and Verizon to introduce competition (!) into the delivery of cable television in our area. At first blush, this would appear to the Western MoCo Observer to a good thing, since we all learned in our econ courses in college that competition generally drives prices - in this case hopefully downward. It may also have the consequence of improving services, as the competing cable companies vie to deliver the best quality of programming, features and reliability. Again, this is surely a good thing.

Of course, those of us who opted for satellite delivery of television signals have watched with amusement as the citizenry of MoCo dealt with Comcast and all the sturm and drang that a near-monopolistic cable provider in our county dealt to the TV viewing public (RCN is apparently another provider of cable service in MoCo, though for the life of me I've heard of them before, nor do I know of anyone who uses RCN as a provider - but then again that may be because I live in Darnestown which is somewhat akin to living in the Middle Ages).

This FiOS thing - prima facie - appears to be awesome. It can deliver not only cable television, but it's potential as an ISP is incredible. The Verizon website says it is super high-speed internet access - sort of like Comcast High Speed on steroids. From what precious little I know about fiber optics, the technology itself is more advanced and perhaps more reliable than that of Old Skool cable. In any event, those speeds they're touting (upwards to 30 Mbps!) seem incredible to this semi-knowledgeable and jaded observer of all this new-fangled interweb stuff. Hell, I think I'd sign on even though there's little likelihood that I'd ever need internet access speeds remotely approaching those promised by FiOS. Guess I just don't want to be seen as an internet Luddite in the Land of Plenty.

In any event, The Gazette published a map of Verizon's planned roll-out of the FiOS service, designed to be completed in seven years (note to self: how long did it take to build the Great Pyramids in Egypt? Must check on that).
Aside from being so small as to be nearly unreadable, the map teaches us two things: 1) Crappy, indistinct graphics only serve to frustrate and, 2) a good deal of Western MoCo will come up on the short end of the stick with service introduction.

The article notes that "Under Verizon’s plan, Bethesda, Potomac, Germantown, Damascus and Wheaton would receive the service first — within one to three years after the agreement is approved. Other areas, including Silver Spring, Rockville and Takoma Park, would receive service within three to five years; the Gaithersburg area within five to seven years."

Pressing my face to the screen to study the map, and doing my best to divine what those fuzzy shades of gray mean, it looks like those of us in the Poolesville, Darnestown, Gaithersburg regions will have to wait - quite a while it would seem. This may be a good thing, as we wait and see if the promised level of service actually becomes reality in those areas first-served by Verizon. In the meantime, we'll get to see people like Mike Knapp, Doug Duncan's hand-picked Go Montgomery! operative in District 2, attempt to secure a favorable constituent approval rating as he duns Verizon to make good on their promise to deliver FiOS to every home and barn in the Ag Reserve.

In any event, it's obvious to this observer that Verizon's clearly going for the low hanging fruit by introducing service initially in higher density communities - which is probably sensible, given that it maximizes the reach of this new cable competition, and may speed the introduction of new services (and hopefully lower prices!).

Whatever the schedule or outcome, the Western MoCo Observer sees all this in a positive light (except that Western MoCo must take a place at the back of the FiOS line). To quote the Gazette once again, "‘The big winners today will be our constituents who will finally have a choice of cable provider,” said Councilman Philip M. (destined to wait 5-7 years for FiOS service) Andrews (D-Dist. 3) of Gaithersburg."

Pardon Me While I Barf

Ah, the Washington Post! Is there no end to their love affair with the inimitable Doug Duncan? I have to wonder.

Boss Duncan leaves office soon, owing to his failed run at the governorship and the sudden onset of "depression," (some say it was a possible link to Jack Abramoff - but who am I to offer up such conjecture?). Not content to allow MoCo's Big Boss Man to leave office quietly, the hagiographers at the WaPo offered up this glowing and stomach-turning tribute to their favorite big-government County Executive:

Mr. Duncan's Legacy
Montgomery's fifth, and best, county executive

Tuesday, November 28, 2006; A18

DOUGLAS M. Duncan, who after 12 years as Montgomery County executive leaves office next week, is easily the most accomplished of the five men who have held the job since it was created in 1970. Somber, hard-driving, thin-skinned and occasionally ruthless (ruthless - well, at least they got that part of his personality correct), he was not always universally beloved (And the truth shall set you free!). But he did earn unrivaled respect as a doer and decision maker in a county that by his oft-repeated diagnosis is afflicted with "paralysis by analysis."

Even as Montgomery County was being reshaped by immigration (are they refering to the County's legal or illegal immigrants? I reckon it's the former.), shifting demographics, swift development and rising prosperity (Wait, where's the rising prosperity from the spiraling property tax assessments? Where's the prosperity that seniors and first-time homeowners experience as they watch ever-increasing chunks of their income flow into the County's tax coffers? Funny how the WaPo editorialists missed that.), Mr. Duncan was instrumental in maintaining and improving the assets that have made it one of the nation's choicest (and most expensive) (their words, not mine!) places to live: vibrant neighborhoods, excellent social services (even for those illegal aliens who choose to live here and not pay taxes!), efficient government and first-class amenities (like the stunning number of "first class" portable classrooms found at nearly every county school!). Look around at what has made Montgomery dynamic -- terrific schools (see previous snide comment), the revival of downtown Silver Spring, the glittery new Strathmore arts center -- and you will see Mr. Duncan's fingerprints. It is an enviable record.

What is sometimes lost is how critical Mr. Duncan's flexibility and ferocious persistence (What a fighter! What a great guy! Why, it's almost as if he was doing all these things solely for the populace who elected him, and not for the deep-pocketed developers whom he also ably served with such dedication!) were to his achievements. Facing creeping urban decay in downtown Silver Spring, he pushed hard at the outset of his first term for a revival plan whose centerpiece involved a $500 million mega-mall featuring an indoor roller coaster and wave pools for 3,000 swimmers. It didn't work (Gee, I wonder why? Doesn't every city and county in America deserve an indoor roller coaster and a wave pool for 3,000 swimmers?). Displaying agile leadership (I love how they use agile to describe the zaftig Mr. Duncan!) and shrewd judgment (re. cunning manipulation and deal making), Mr. Duncan then shifted gears and vigorously pursued a blueprint whose success is evident today -- a vibrant new downtown anchored by the American Film Institute, a transplant from the Kennedy Center, and the Discovery Channel, which he helped relocate from Bethesda. What might have been an area of unstanchable blight has been remade into a thriving business center and a lively evening destination for arts and entertainment (Much to the chagrin of many local merchants and small businesses who found the newly increased rents to be too much, and who subsequently fled or folded).

Over the years Mr. Duncan, a former mayor of Rockville, showed that he had grown in office (I take it they're not referring to his waistline?) in other ways as well . After an early tendency to make political enemies somewhat gratuitously, he grew skilled at forging key alliances (i.e., back-room deals with developers), including in the local business community (ibid., previous snide aside) and among state lawmakers in Annapolis. During the sniper crisis four years ago, he provided a steady, calming presence for a traumatized citizenry. He was a critical voice in favor of building the intercounty connector (Oh Lord, don't get me started on the ICC - a divisive issue for everyone in this county, literally and figuratively), on which construction is likely to begin soon.

Mr. Duncan had hoped his success in Montgomery County would provide a springboard for his ambitions to run for governor this year (Darn those pesky bouts of "depression" and the fickle voters!). Practically everyone in Maryland, including his opponents, seemed to agree that he would make an able governor (Oh really? Does that include everyone who opposed his Go Montgomery! slate of developer-funded lackeys? It's almost as if Rich Parsons helped author this bilge.). But his campaign never really gained traction in the Democratic primary race against the younger, more charismatic mayor of Baltimore, Martin O'Malley. And Mr. Duncan was dogged by reports in The Post that in return for past campaign donations, he had catered to the interests of the Yeshiva of Greater Washington, a religious school whose well-connected advocates once included Jack Abramoff, the disgraced and convicted former lobbyist (It must have been agonizing for those WaPo editorialists to include this juicy tidbit!). In the end, Mr. Duncan, who has a family history of depression (....and of causing equally depressive thoughts in many of his soon-to-be-former constituents. I'd probably be depressed too if I'd seen my name linked with that of Jack Abramoff on the pages of the Washington Post!), disclosed that he was suffering from the illness and bowed out of the race.

That most recent chapter of his public life may not be his last, for Mr. Duncan's skills as an administrator and leader are likely to remain in demand (Wherever there's a developer in need of "special access," Developer Doug is the go-to guy!). Whatever his next move, be it in the public or private sector, Mr. Duncan's formidable legacy will live on in Montgomery County (You are all free to now excuse yourselves and barf at will).

And Then There Was a Great Light......

Salvation! The Western MoCo Observer has discovered the elusive trick to editing prior posts.

No, it won't mean that I'll go back in time to change the substance of previous postings. Rather, it will allow me to correct the multitude of spelling and grammar errors that seem to plague this still-young blog (sorry, but I post in haste, as it were, and the "stream of consciousness" approach doesn't lend itself to correct spelling and grammar).

Anyway, just so you - dear reader - should know. I now will endeavor to offer up commentary that is not only insightful and timely, but grammatically correct to boot! What a deal!

Hurry Up and Wait

I commute to the office along River Road each day. Recently, the traffic - almost always heavy from September (post-Labor Day) until school's out (June) - has been a bit more intense, slowed considerably by some sort of public works project in Potomac Village.

Initially the work crew was working feverishly in October. They placed Jersey walls to divert traffic, and dug up the pavement. It appeared that they were going to place enormous sections of plastic piping under the road (?) to carry storm runoff or perhaps channel an existing stream. Whatever their intent, an unintended consequence has been the increase in traffic as drivers slow to maneuver through the Jersey wall chicane that's been erected.

Whereas work appeared intense and urgent in the early part of the fall, it's now completely stopped! The huge plastic pipe sections sit idle on the shoulder of the road, and there hasn't been a worker seen on the site in weeks! What's up with that? What at first appeared so urgent now appears to have been completely forgotten. Large sections of pavement remain torn up and unpaved. Straw is spread across those now-exposed sections of former roadway. A large shipping container sits idle nearby.

A few questions immediately come to mind: if this project was so urgent just two months ago, why has it suddenly become less urgent today? What happened to work crews? Were they pulled off to work on a more pressing project? Why did the MoCo public works folks wait until fall (traditionally a period of intense traffic on River Road during commuting hours) to initiate this project, instead of during the summer when traffic along this route is relatively light? Most importantly, when will this project resume and reach completion?

I haven't a clue, and I'm too lazy to start dunning the MoCo public works bureaucrats for answers. Anybody know what's the dealio?

Follow Up - Nov 30, 2006

Sent an email to the folks at the MoCo public works department, who responded quickly. They said that since both River and Falls Roads are numbered roads, they fall under the jurisdiction of the Maryland State Highway Administration (the things I learn!). Anyway, they graciously forwarded my note to the proper authorities and I'm sitting here awaiting their reply. More when I hear from them....

Pardon My Haste

Until I figure out how to correct spelling and grammatical errors, you - dear reader - will just have to bear with me.

I just re-read the Day Laborer posting and spotted - horrors! - errors of syntax and other egregious flubs. I gamely tried to figure out how to amend them using the Blogger software, but was unsuccessful.

Until that time I learn all the intricacies of Blogger, you'll just have to endure my hastily dashed off posts, knowing that they may very well be punctuated with all kinds of errors.

Sorry!

Day Laborer Centers

No sooner do I set up this blog and tell readers that I am concerned with WESTERN MoCo issues, than I decide to spout off about an issue I keep hearing about in the Gazette and on other local blogs. That issue is whether or not we should have taxpayer-funded sites for day laborers (re. illegal aliens) in suburban neighborhoods.

Illegal immigration is, well, illegal no? What's to discuss? If you're here in this country legally, great! Welcome to the land of opportunity.

If you're here illegally, i.e., without any documentation - sorry! You get no sympathy from me. The only thing you'll get from me is a schedule of flights back to wherever you snuck in from.

So the city of Gaithersburg is called "xenophobic" by the lordly Washington Post because they uppity populace (re. xenophobes) doesn't think a parking lot full of illegals should be sanctioned - even provided for - by tax payers! Imagine that! Gaithersblog has a very good write up on the idiotic WaPo strawman argument used by the editorialists to smear anyone with the audacity to assume that non-taxpaying illegals deserve the same treatment as everyone else. Go figure!

At what point do the concerns of the taxpayers trump the desires of the minority who think that we owe everyone anything they want? My property taxes have climbed steadily, nearly doubling in the past 7 years. Funny, but I haven't noticed a doubling in the services provided by Doug Duncan and his band of merry Councilmembers. Still, I get up each day, go to work along with my spouse, and do the best I can for my family. I stay out of trouble, pay my bills, and help with a few different civic organizations, but I do so with the understanding that that's what living in an organized society requires of me. It doesn't mean that I can go out do whatever I want , and expect the other law-abiding citizenry to cover for me.

Want a day laborer center? How about requiring them to register, and show a valid SSN number to utilize the center's services? My guess is that you'd see a dust trail down 355 as they headed to the next gathering site.

Let the Western MoCo Observer Hilarity Begin!

Yes friends, I've been reading a number of well-meaning and well-written blogs covering all the goings on in the Eastern part of Montgomery County, Maryland - - most of which concern themselves with doings in or around Silver Spring and points east.

I'm going west (young man). Let's take a look at things of particular interest to those of us living on the west side of that Great Divider, highway 270.

I'm a resident of Western Montgomery County - Darnestown, to be exact - and I think there's much that could be told about the people, places and events that shape our lives in North Bethesda, Potomac, North Potomac, Darnestown, Boyds, Poolesville, Dickerson and probably some of Germantown and Gaithersburg (truth be told, though, those last two should be blogged about by someone more connected to those areas - I know that gaithersblog already covers a great deal of what's going on in that area - so I'll be content to scrutinize political, social and community happenings a little closer to my home near the mighty Potomac.

Anyway, as soon as I see something worth rattling your cage about, I'll note it here on these pages. Til then, here's to a peaceful holiday season and a new blog filled with wit, insight and biting commentary!

PS: For you political junkies out there, be forewarned: my political bent is pretty much right-leaning (although I like to consider myself a Libertarian) , although I'm VERY in tune with land use and development issues. I hate how developers have corrupted the political process in our country, and have, at least until now, turned the County Council into their own private development rubber stamp mill.

Some development is inevitable; most development is based on the almighty dollar. It's the later that pisses me off, and I'll do anything I can to make sure that every tawdry developer transgression gets a mention here.

Remember, once it's developed, that green, open space is gone for good - as in forever.