what's up the pike: i hit somebody's car today

A reader asked me, "what's new with the Fillmore (pictured above)?" I didn't know. I'd kind of forgotten it was there. But now I know.

- The Fillmore hits a major snag as the Planning Board rejects zoning amendments County Executive Ike Leggett proposed for the proposed music hall on Colesville Road. Lee Development Group, which wants to build a mixed-use development behind the new venue, would be allowed to count it as a public space required under the current zoning code. In addition, they'd be allowed up to fifteen years to build the project, whereas most approved development plans have a five-year deadline for construction.

Most of the controversy over the Fillmore has come from its operator, Live Nation - an international concert promoter who has rebranded several existing music halls around the country as "Fillmores." In February, local writer Carol Bengle Gilbert attempted to draw attention to the County's deal with Lee Development, suggesting that the use of a privately-run (but publicly owned) venue as a public amenity was unethical. In two weeks, the County Council will consider the same legal changes.

- Richard Layman of Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space discusses last week's pair of posts, "sick of emo kids on ellsworth" and "how to grow an old town in no time," about Downtown Silver Spring. Definitely check it out.

so much more AFTER THE JUMP . . .

Rendering of how the Purple Line could look if built along Wayne Avenue east of Downtown Silver Spring.

- Local builder Winchester Homes is demanding the right to buy back 118 acres in Burtonsville seized by the state for construction of an InterCounty Connector route that was eventually eliminated. The property, at Route 198 and Peach Orchard Road, was being cleared and graded for the construction of 130 homes before being bought for the proposed highway's Northern Alignment, which would have paralleled Route 198. When the southern Master Plan Alignment was selected instead, the land was retained to fulfill EPA requirements that the ICC's environmental damage is mitigated.

The Montgomery County Circuit Court ruled that Winchester has the right to re-purchase the property, though the state is appealing that decision. Another Winchester project, Fairland View at Fairland Road and Route 29, was halved in size in order to accomodate a future interchange with the ICC's current routing.

- A week after one Purple Line opposition group was outed as a front for a country club, another organization has appeared, this time in East Silver Spring. This week's Gazette features the people behind the "No Train On Wayne" signs that have appeared along Wayne Avenue. Along with a route between Silver Spring and Thayer avenues, Wayne is one of a few alignments still on the table for the proposed transitway - which will eventually connect Bethesda and New Carrollton - east of Downtown Silver Spring Regardless of which side of the issue you're on, it's hard to deny: that's a catchy slogan.

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what's up the pike: wine and whine

Columbia Country Club has been outed as the anonymous owner of a website for an anti-Purple Line group. The proposed transitway would run through the club's Chevy Chase golf course.

- Barely out of the gate, new anti-Purple Line group Alliance for Smart Transportation has been revealed as a front for Columbia Country Club, with a write-up in yesterday's Post. The Chevy Chase-based club, who's been fighting the proposed transitway that would slice their fairways in half for nearly two decades, sought to bankroll a "grass-roots campaign" opposing the Purple Line.

Purple Line supporters Action Committee for Transit, who discovered the connection between Columbia and the group, plans to hold a press conference outside of the club early this morning. The event will include a guided tour of the transitway's proposed route through the club and a wine tasting.

- Last week's Planning Board hearing to give Falkland Chase historical status went nowhere, says Silver Spring Scene. We won't find out the future of the New Deal-era apartment complex at 16th Street and East-West Highway until September, though the Planning Board is leaning towards a mix of preservation and redevelopment. Falkland owner Home Properties agreed to reconsider their earlier concept for redeveloping the complex's North Parcel, at 16th Street and East-West Highway, aiming for something closer to suggestions made by Planning staff.

Meanwhile, newly minted board member Joe Alfandre excoriates the project's architects for ignoring the precedents for Falkland Chase. "I don’t know where you guys are going with this, but I don’t appreciate the disrespect that you show the Garden City movement," said Alfandre, referring to the 19th-century planning movement that catalyzed modern-day suburban planning. Alfandre's best known as developer of the Kentlands in Gaithersburg. Currently, he's working on the Courts of Woodside, a small townhouse project a few blocks north of Planning Place on Georgia Avenue. Read more!

b'ville charrette: stuart rochester responds

Part THREE in a series about last week's Burtonsville Community Legacy Plan Charrette. Check out parts ONE and TWO, where we discussed the charrette and plans to revitalize Route 198.


Wednesday's Gazette says there "seemed to be a consensus" for keeping Burtonsville more or less the same among residents at last week's charrette, but I don't think it was so cut-and-dry. I was disappointed that writer Amber Parcher couldn't find anyone - and there were quite a few - that endorsed more dramatic changes to Burtonsville's struggling village center.

That being said, I wanted to offer a different take on the revitalization of Burtonsville and the greater debate over how East County should grow. Local activist Stuart Rochester, who helped guide the 1997 Fairland Master Plan, was concerned about how he was portrayed in Part Two of our series on the charrette. He asked me to post the following responses, which I have not edited.

Dan: I have had a lot of respect for you until your recent characterization of my remarks at the Burtonsville charrette, which were inaccurate to the point of caricature. First of all, I was speaking at the charrette on behalf of my table; you may have offered your own opinions, but we were instructed to convey the consensus of our table, not our own individual views.

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Secondly, neither I nor anyone at my table used the word "undesirables," nor did was this even implied except in terms of an undesirable housing mix or jobs-housing ratio from the standpoint of PRECISELY a healthy, DIVERSIFIED community. (Nancy Navarro's reference in her blog comment to alleged use of code-words when she was not even present to hear the exchange was irresponsible, and I will let my disappointment with someone who aspires to be our councilmember taking a cheap shot in absentia go at that.)

Third, your characterization of me being "worried" as I approached you in the parking lot when in fact all I wanted to do was clear the air was the worst kind of racial profiling that you yourself rightfully find so offensive.

Finally, I stand by my position that communities and schools that work are ones that are balanced socio-economically and demographically; if you feel otherwise or want to argue, we could have a fair debate but if you feel otherwise or want to argue semantics, we could have a reasonable debate, but don't demonize or caricature views you do not agree with. I would appreciate your posting this as a response item on your blog, which I was not able to access to post. Thank you, and I hope we can continue a mutually respectful conversation on this important subject in the future.

Later, Stuart Rochester e-mailed me again with another response which elaborates on what we first talked about after the charrette ended Thursday night.

I appreciate your response to my concerns. To continue to have influence and credibility, you have an obligation to report accurately. I am not denying there is racism in our society, among some residents of Burtonsville as well.

But the argument I was making goes beyond race and even beyond references to "affordable housing." The thrust of my conversation was that too many RENTAL units, as has occurred on the east side of US 29, adversely affects the community and its schools, and not because people who live in apartments are somehow inherently bad or undesirable but because proportionately they are not as vested in the community and because they create a turnover/mobility problem that affects PTAs, the continuity and quality of instruction in the classroom, teacher load and morale, etc. And they are not as likely to improve and maintain the properties they inhabit, for understandable reasons (I mentioned Tom Friedman's point, that "no one ever washes a rental car").

Moreover, this is not to say we should not have rental housing in the area but that we should not have disproportionate concentrations, which result in exactly the kind of segregation that rightfully upsets you. So the situation, and my views, are much more complicated than you portrayed them.

What really disappointed me, angered me, was your gratuitous comments about getting into a "white Lexus" and approaching you "after dark" and "looking worried". That kind of racial profiling I find every bit as offensive as you would, and has no place in civilized discussion; I still do not even understand what you meant by that crap. So let's both try to do better to explain what are earnest, legitimate concerns on both sides.

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what's up the pike: giving and taking

The reconstruction of the Silver Spring Metro may not get as much funding as it needs according to a new proposal from County Executive Ike Leggett.

Two years have passed since the fateful flood that gave rise to Just Up The Pike, and I'm proud that I've been able to keep it up, unlike so many of my other grand projects that flame out shortly after getting started. The past two years have been a wild ride, meeting people, traveling the county, making friends and losing a few as well. Here's to another year of writing about the place that I love most - and, to kick it off, here's a look at what's happening around East County:

- It's become clear this week: so shall Ike Leggett giveth, so shall he taketh away. Right after throwing more money at the promoters who'll run the Fillmore music hall in Downtown Silver Spring, County Executive Leggett proposes cutting funds from the Paul Sarbanes Transit Center, a $50 million reconstruction of the existing Silver Spring Metro station. The transit center would expand the capacity of what is currently the state's second-largest transportation hub, bringing local and regional bus service together along with the Purple Line.

Like the Fillmore, the Sarbanes Transit Center is the centerpiece of a large mixed-use development with offices, hotels and possibly residential units. Planning Board Chairman Royce Hanson says the cost-cutting threatens "important design elements" of the project, including the location of a police station and transit store.

- As one East County private school embarks on an ambitious expansion, another struggles to pay its monthly rent. The Chelsea School, a facility for learning-disabled students just outside of Downtown, just embarked on a fundraising campaign to build a Daniel Libeskind-designed addition to their campus. Meanwhile, the Newport School, currently located on Tech Road in Calverton, can't even keep their doors open for next year if their landlord doesn't cut rents.

Both schools have a long history in the area, and in recent years, both have also had to change locations frequently. The Newport School lost three-fourths of their enrollment when they moved to their current space in an office park, administrators said, crippling their ability to raise funds.

Dear reader: thanks for reading! We hope you'll keep coming back again and again. You are why Just Up The Pike has kept going strong. Read more!

hungry? dirty clothes?

This map provided by WSSC shows areas on water use restriction after this morning's water main breaks. If you live in the pink area, you might want to start boiling your water. Maybe.

UPDATE: You can wash clothes and dishes, but you might want to keep a pot of water on the stove.

If you don't have food at home, you're out of luck: Montgomery County has ordered restaurants in areas affected by this morning's water main breaks in Derwood and Wheaton to close up shop "until further advised," as announced by County Executive Ike Leggett barely an hour ago:

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett, joined by County Health Officer Dr. Ulder J. Tillman, today ordered food service facilities, including restaurants, fast food outlets, food markets and mobile food trucks, to remain closed until further advised . . .

“Nothing is more important than protecting the health of our families,” said Leggett. “Until WSSC can assure us that restaurants have an adequate supply of potable water to perform all of their food preparation and serving activities, we must issue this directive. I hope this will only be necessary for a very few days. We are working closely with WSSC in order to minimize the impact of this directive.”

The county's already placed water use restrictions on a vast swath of the east side, including Wheaton, Glenmont, Olney, Ashton and Sandy Spring, Cloverly, Colesville, Fairland, West Laurel, and parts of White Oak, Calverton and Burtonsville. (Check out maps at the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission's website to see if you're affected.) For the next three days, local residents are advised to boil water used for drinking, cooking or cleaning food, while doing laundry or running the dishwasher is forbidden.

Finally: if you live in Congressional District 4, don't forget to vote in the special election tomorrow. You can find your polling place here.

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JUTP interviewed on rockville central radio

Continuing with this week's theme of "How Could You Possibly Consider This To Be East County," I appeared on Rockville Central Radio, an online talk show hosted by Brad Rourke and Cindy CG of Rockville Central, the premier Rockville blog and a resource I encourage you to check out.

We talked about how Just Up The Pike got started, Don Praisner's first week in the County Council, and the Dutch Country Farmers' Market in Burtonsville. Check out the interview right here - if you're impatient, fast forward about fourteen minutes.

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what's up the pike: friday the what?

MTA's proposed transit center at University and New Hampshire in Takoma Park would collect several local bus routes and the Purple Line into one consolidated facility.

We're a little all over the place at JUTP this week. Here's a look at what going on as we head into the weekend:

- The MTA promises that a proposed transit center at University and New Hampshire can boost development in the Takoma-Langley Crossroads, but ridership numbers aren't enough to convince the Taco Bell currently at that corner to give up its location.

- Today, I'll be interviewed on Rockville Central Radio, an online radio show hosted by Brad Rourke from Rockville Central, representing the other Pike in Montgomery County. The show's at noon; you can listen to it here.

- Voters in the 4th Congressional District, which includes a healthy chunk of East County, get a head start on November with a special election next Tuesday to replace Congressman Al Wynn (at left), who resigned after losing the Democratic primary to Donna Edwards in February. Edwards will be running against Republican Peter James of Germantown, who's profiled in the Post today.

I've never met Peter James, though he did take me to task (in a comment I can't currently find) for not talking to him after a candidates' forum last April. James and Edwards will be running again in November - by then, hopefully, we'll be able to talk to both candidates in depth.

- Speaking of people I'd like to talk to: Just Up The Pike is developing a little planner-crush on Rollin Stanley (pictured at right in 2004), the recently-appointed Planning Director for Montgomery County. An Ontario native, he cut his teeth revitalizing Toronto and St. Louis before Montgomery County tapped him to come down here. Earlier this week, he told the Greater Bethesda Chamber of Commerce this week that big houses will be "the next slums" and that future development will have to be smaller, and I'll bet everyone in that room had to pick their jaws off the ground.

Park and Planning did a little last-minute switcheroo on us when we tried to interview Stanley for our East County-unrelated story about 4 Bethesda Metro Center, but I'm looking forward to meeting him for reals. (Nothing's planned yet, of course.) Call it a new "Head-to-Head Tour," if you will, except there's only one stop.

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different views clash in developer spat over proposed bethesda tower

UPDATE: The Planning Board has unanimously rejected Meridian's proposal for 4 Bethesda Metro Center. Board member Jean Cryor says the building "overshot the mark. I am not opposed to seeing more development right there . . . But this building a couple of feet away from another building isn't it."

We know, Bethesda is NOT East County. But there's a photo of Downtown Bethesda in my room, one taken inside 3 Bethesda Metro Center, from which you can see the Silver Spring skyline. It's a view that may or may not exist in a couple of years. When I was asked to write this piece, all I had to do was look at my wall and I said "yes."

A rendering of the Meridian Group's 4 Bethesda Metro Center, a controversial proposed office building in Downtown Bethesda. Clark Enterprises, who owns 1 Bethesda Metro Center (at right), claims the building violates zoning restrictions.

Two summers ago, I interned at an architectural firm in Bethesda. Our office filled the entire floor of a building downtown; from one side, I could see out to Tysons Corner, and from the other, to Downtown Silver Spring. Staring out the window proved to be an excellent way to fight boredom. This week, the Planning Board will look at a proposed office building in Bethesda that could change the way Montgomery County’s downtowns are developing – and the way many office workers waste their time.

“Right as we're speaking, I’m looking down East-West Highway from the eighth floor of BMC 3,” says Bob Harris, lawyer for Holland and Knight. He’s representing the Meridian Group, whose proposed 4 Bethesda Metro Center would sit more or less in front of his office, atop a food court that most agree has seen better days. Will the new building block his view? It’s already blocked, says Harris, “by Frank Saul’s building, towards the north of Silver Spring.”

Frank Saul, or B.F. Saul II, is the chairman and founder of Chevy Chase Bank. His twin Chevy Chase Bank Towers sit directly across Wisconsin Avenue from the Metro Center, a complex Meridian purchased in 1999. “You can reportedly see the Tysons Corner skyline from his office,” a penthouse, says Harris, “and this would partially block the view.”

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Looking east from 3 Bethesda Metro Center towards Downtown Silver Spring in 2005. Most or some of this view would disappear behind 4 Bethesda Metro Center, if built.

But the view isn’t the only reason why Chevy Chase Bank, along with local developers Chevy Chase Land Company and Clark Enterprises, are opposing 4 Bethesda Metro Center in what the Washington Post calls a "struggle among real estate titans." As Adam Pagnucco explains on Maryland Politics Watch, it comes down to the process. The six-acre block known as Bethesda Metro Center, with its four 1980’s-era concrete towers, has reached the maximum density for its site.

Harris says a 1989 zoning law allows developers to include “any land attributable” to a property, including surrounding streets. Old Georgetown and Wisconsin are “public use easements,” he argues, given to the State and County to use but legally owned by Meridian, providing the additional land to give them a density bonus.

The method’s legality has been controversial. “We don't think it has any merits,” says communications director I.J. Hudson, representing Clark Enterprises, owners of 1 Bethesda Metro Center. “There were trails here before there were property rights,” he adds, pointing out that Wisconsin Avenue was once a Native American trail.

Hudson, who was a Channel 4 anchor for over two decades, works for Garson Claxton, located a few blocks away. He’s no fan of the Metro Center’s aesthetics – white concrete and tinted glass – but he and his client remain faithful to the project’s original vision.

“These people working on the urban study back in 1980 . . . they were talking about ‘smart growth’ before that word was used,” Hudson says in that smooth, encouraging TV voice. “The buildings aren’t the most attractive, you know, tastes change in architecture. But they followed the rules. This thing is built out.”

The Bethesda Metro Center plaza, seen from ten stories up. Saul's Chevy Chase Bank towers are to the left, and the BMC food court is at the bottom.

Montgomery County planner Josh Sloan disagrees. As project director for 4 Bethesda Metro Center, he’s confident that Meridian’s proposal is legit. “We're not setting a precedent with calculating the density this way,” Sloan says, pointing out that other developers have done the same. “If we thought that [the opponents’] claim was valid, we wouldn't have recommended approval.”

For over a year, Sloan and his staff worked with the developers, wrangling as best a product he could from their vision and what the zoning would allow. “We all had concerns about several things about the project, in the building, and typical review process we get input from all the divisions,” Sloan says.

Last fall, a series of memos were circulated by one staff member who argued that the proposal would burden local infrastructure without providing enough amenities. In response, Sloan made sure that Meridian would keep its promise to activate the windswept plaza below. As for the views? “The building is quite narrow, so it's not going to completely block it,” he offers.

“We really worked on the footprint of the building and accessibility through the building to increase pedestrian access and liven more areas of retail,” says Sloan. “The entire first floor is retail. It's more accessible than the building.”

Recent developments like Bethesda Row and Bethesda Lane (pictured) have drawn customers away from the nearly thirty-year-old Metro Center.

For Harris, whose office looks down on the plaza, the Meridian proposal could dramatically change his perspective. “I must confess that I don't always have my nose to the grindstone,” he says sheepishly. “I sometimes gaze out the window. I see the plaza seven times a week, almost always six times a week, and it has never performed the way people thought it should.”

The problems are numerous. “It's inaccessible,” he says. “It's hot in the summer because of the reflection off the white pre-cast buildings that surround it, and it's cold in the winter. It will get moderate use on a day when the temperature is between sixty-five and seventy-five degrees, and between the hours of twelve and one-thirty when the office workers are eating lunch. On the weekends it's particularly dead.”

“We believe that by putting an office building whose front door is on the plaza so it will draw people there to begin with,” says Harris. The Meridian Group is also in talks with restaurants like the Corner Bakery, whose presence in the building they hope will “encourage other restaurants to set up business there.”

To keep visitors from slipping away to Bethesda Row, Meridian promises “significant improvements to the plaza itself,” Harris says, including “landscaping and greenery” and “new water features that will draw people in.” The bus terminal below will be revitalized with artwork and new lighting.

Looking southwest from 3 Bethesda Metro Center, towards Bethesda Row.

They will also install a stage and screen for outdoor movies, an idea that came up in the developer’s meetings with the surrounding neighborhoods. Harris doesn’t say that won them over, but he hasn’t heard any complaints from the neighbors, either. “We have met with various civic associations,” he says. “To my knowledge, the ones that we met with have not opposed it.”

“Everyone agrees that the plaza space could be improved, probably quite a bit, but the answer is not to attach those improvements to a sixteen-story building,” says Hudson. “It goes against the master plan, it goes against the sector plan. It measures density in a way that no one else gets to do it.”

When it was drafted in 1994, the Bethesda CBD Sector Plan didn’t anticipate a fifth high-rise in the Metro Center, though it does recommend “[improving] visibility of the food court by modifying building entrances, façade treatments, and lighting in a manner compatible with the surrounding buildings.”

Hudson would like to see “a smaller building, something less obnoxious than a huge building,” he says. “Open space is a premium in Bethesda these days . . . and there’s the matter of process.”

Whether or not Meridian’s method for measuring density is legal, their example could be repeated all across Montgomery County, fears Hudson. “What happens here, they kind of call it a ‘ground zero’ for what the county has to say about these sector plans,” Hudson says. “How important are they? If they can do it here, they can do it in your neighborhood.”

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guest blog: district 4 unites

WHAT'S UP THE PIKE: Hearing for determining historical status of Falkland Chase postponed until July.

Just Up The Pike wasn't able to attend last Thursday's inaugural meeting for District4MC.org, a user-generated website for District 4 residents. We asked local activist and Aspen Hill resident Thomas Hardman, who created the website along with Burtonsville's Eileena York, to write a recap of the event, held at the Long and Foster branch office in Burtonsville Crossing.

On a clear June night, most of the members of the Burtonsville Business Association acted as hosts to visitors from other parts of the county. Aside from this writer, we had a delegation from the Northwood-Four Corners civic association. Ms. Barth, the president, gave out considerable information regarding the status of their mild feud with the County and Parks and Planning, which intend to convert their community park into a soccer field.

We also had an unaffiliated "drop in" from Colesville, who mentioned something about a strawberry festival this weekend, but didn't give more details. He helped start an interesting discussion on traffic issues, pedestrian safety, and hiker-biker trail plans.

As regards to the County and Planning's plans for the park, there has been longstanding contentions that the intended action will amount to spending tax money that nobody has for a project the locals don't want. The delegation was adamant that they've already invested considerable personal time, along the most ecologically sensible lines, to clear invasive species out of the area, and to promote a shared neighborhood space suitable for almost all uses other than field athletic sports.

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Thomas Hardman (this writer) had some questions about their experiences with respect to crime, inviting a contrast-and-compare examination of the respective approaches to cleaning up the parks pursuant to "crime prevention through environmental design." Ms. Barth pointed out that most of the overgrowth that obstructs a view of the parks - potentially creating a hiding place for crime - is in fact invasive vegetation. Indeed, this has been our experience at North Gate Park in Aspen Hill, at least at the edges of the park, where invasive vines created a mat that acted as a curtain. Simply removing the invasives over the last 5 years or so has resulted in much greater visibility in our park, and increased police activity in that area has made the park available again to the intended users, rather than a den of thieves.

We also heard more from myself and from Eileena York (of the BBA and Citizens Involved) on the intentions of our project. Eileena handled the organizational aspects as to times, dates, general purpose. I tried to elaborate on the philosophy.

All across District 4, and probably much of the rest of the county, you might have a set of neighborhoods, separated only by a stream or a major road. On either side of the divide, the houses are much the same, the issues are the same, the problems are the same, just as the same sun and moon shine on all alike. Yet each of these communities seems to deal with the county government and to seek remedy - for the same things - as individual communities. Each would benefit by more understanding of the neighboring communities, as commonalities would be come evident, and with commonality, perhaps a more unified and much larger set of petitioners to the County. Rather than dealing with each community as an isolated group, potentially playing zero-sum games of setting one against the other in a scramble for programs and funding, the County could be dealing with an entire Council District that has decided amongst themselves what they want and don't want. This would be a return to self-governance, to unity as a people, and potentially could be a check and balance against the tendencies of one-party governments towards top-down and occasionally arbitrary impositions of policy on the governed.

We don't know when or where our next meeting might be, yet, but at least this is a start. We will see how all of this unfolds over the next few years, as this is a long-term project at the very least. At the very best, who knows? It's utterly grass-roots which ought to please a certain type of Democrats and Independents, and if it gets results and helps hold down taxes while putting more power in the People and less in the government, sensible centrist Republicans ought to get on board as well. But party or ideology isn't the issue: the issue is increasing awareness and communication, and forming common cause to the public benefit.

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former councilmember praisner memorialized in library, recreation center

WHAT'S UP THE PIKE: TV plastic surgeon meets adoring fans at White Oak Sears; One-quarter of Guatemalan town has moved to Langley Park; Riders forced to pay fare on some Metrobuses during Code Red day.

Newly-elected Councilmember Don Praisner unveils a sign dedicating the Fairland Library to his wife Marilyn as County Executive Ike Leggett and Councilmembers George Leventhal, Mike Knapp and Duchy Trachtenberg look on. Check out this slideshow of the ceremony.

Over one hundred friends and supporters braved hundred-degree temperatures Saturday morning to dedicate two community facilities in Burtonsville to former Councilmember Marilyn Praisner (D-Calverton), who fought to ensure East County had the same amenities available in other areas.

"I know my mother is looking down on us, shaking her head, saying 'I don't deserve this," said Alison Klumpp, one of Praisner's two daughters, during a ceremony in front of the Marilyn J. Praisner Library and Community Recreation Center, formerly the Fairland Library and Community Recreation Center. "But you do for making this community a better place for children children and adults alike."

Family members, community leaders and elected officials offered memories of Praisner's life and career, which ended upon her passing away in February. Three students from Paint Branch High School played a musical tribute including a rendition of the song "My Way" by Frank Sinatra. The ceremony ended with an unveiling of three new signs - on both buildings and at the complex's entrance on Old Columbia Pike - bearing the former councilmember's name.

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County Executive Ike Leggett speaks about Marilyn Praisner's life as Don Praisner looks on.

County Executive Ike Leggett, who had been close friends with Praisner for several decades, spoke of loss and rebirth. "We're saddened that we do not have this brilliant mind, dedication to county, making sure what is done is right," said Leggett, speaking slowly and deliberately. "But now it is time to turn the page. A new beginning for this community . . . It's difficult because when we look at the challenges facing Montgomery County today we need Marilyn Praisner more than ever."

Leggett pointed to Old Columbia Pike, where Praisner had pushed for road improvements and expansion of Ride On service, as a lasting example of her work. "If you look down this street you'll see sidewalks up and down connecting schools, libraries, houses of worship," said Leggett. "We are connected because of Marilyn Praisner."

Widower Don Praisner, who won a special election last month to finish the rest of his wife's term, was visibly shaken as he made a brief statement during the ceremony. "It's a little difficult for me," he said, "but I want to thank all those voters in District 4 for voting for me . . . being retired for fifteen years, it's hard to go back and get a job."

Gene Neal, retired Program Manager for the Department of Recreation, talked about Praisner's fight to build the recreation center, which was not completed until 2002, seven years after the library. "Many facilities are named after people we don't even know," he said. "I don't think there's a person in Montgomery County that could say this isn't the right thing to do."

Students from Paint Branch High School, where all three Praisner children attended, play a musical tribute for Marilyn Praisner.

The unveiling ceremony was a relief for Klumpp, who with other family members has attended many events commemorating her mother's life over the past four months. "It's neat to know that my mom's name will live for a generation to come," says Klumpp, a teacher at Fairland Elementary School. "This is our culminating event . . . which I'm somewhat thankful for. It's so emotional to hear all these honors."

At-Large Councilmember Nancy Floreen, was glad to see the dedication made. "I think it's a great legacy for her," says Floreen, who served with Praisner since first being elected in 2002. "It's just horrible that it has come so soon . . . I still can't believe that she's not here."

Burtonsville resident Stuart Rochester, who worked with Praisner as chairman of the Fairland Master Plan Advisory Committee, recalled the "easy access" he and other citizens had to their councilmember. "I could call her at work, even on vacation," he says. "No one gave more generously of her time . . . we had a wonderful personal and civic relationship."

Don Praisner, who joined the County Council for its new session yesterday, expressed gratitude for the "outpouring of support" his wife received for her years of hard work. "I always questioned her 'why did you do all the things you did,'" he says, "and it's clear with all the support we've received. Even driving up and down Old Columbia Pike is still gonna bring back memories."

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east county in review: wikis, picnics, and block parties

WHAT'S UP THE PIKE: Local twins fail to win Tila Tequila's heart on Shot at Love; Study shows increasing gap between income, housing costs in East County; MTA predicts 68,000 daily riders on Purple Line.

Hey! Just Up The Pike is back from a week of digging holes, swinging hammers and swilling hand-grenades in New Orleans, and I'm pleasantly surprised to find out I missed out on quite a lot while I was gone. While I'm catching up, here's a look at what's happening in East County this week:

District 4 Wiki, a new user-generated website created by local activists Eileena York and Thomas Hardman, will be holding its first community meeting this Thursday at the Long and Foster in Burtonsville. The website, which runs on the same software as the encyclopedia Wikipedia, aims to create a resource for community information and dialogue between residents, business owners and elected officials.

Former Councilmember Marilyn Praisner will see her name on the Fairland Library and adjacent Fairland Recreation Center after a renaming ceremony Saturday at 11 a.m. The complex, located on Old Columbia Pike in Burtonsville, will be dedicated as the Marilyn J. Praisner Center. Newly sworn in Councilmember Don Praisner, who won a special election to succeed his wife after she passed away in February, will make one of his first public appearances at the event.

IMPACT Silver Spring, which helps to develop and strengthen cross-cultural ties in the Downcounty, will be holding a community picnic for local residents Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Takoma-Piney Branch Local Park in Takoma Park. Some grilling will take place, but picnickers are encouraged to bring their own food and blankets.

A ground-breaking ceremony for the new Mid-County Community Recreation Center (pictured) will take place Saturday at 1 p.m. The new facility, on Queensguard Road in Layhill, will have 25,000 square feet of recreational and activity space and is expected to open in 2009.

Urging its residents to "break out" of the neighborhood's many new apartment and condo towers, South Silver Spring holds its second-annual Block Party this Sunday from 11 to 5 p.m. The event will feature fifteen live bands, food from nine local restaurants, and over eighty vendor stands along Kennett Street in South Silver Spring.

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montgomery's indoor picnic features chili, paper ballots

WHAT'S UP THE PIKE: Chevy Chase study insists Purple Line can't get federal funding; Takoma Park movie premieres at New York film festival; Pedestrian hit at 29 and Briggs Chaney last weekend; Man jumps in front of Red Line train at Wheaton.

Catherine Leggett, wife of County Executive Ike Leggett, Olney Theatre manager Amy Marshall, and Delegate Karen Montgomery at the Lamb, Ham and Vegetarian picnic last Sunday.

A diverse menu and a recent legislative victory were more than enough for Maryland's movers and shakers to brave the rain and attend Delegate Karen Montgomery's seventh annual Lamb, Ham and Vegetarian picnic held last Sunday in Brookeville.

Despite uncooperative weather conditions, Montgomery (D-Dist. 14) entertained dozens of friends and colleagues at her home on Market Street, portions of which date to 1813. Between directing people in search of trash bags and jumping up to check the oven, she explained the secret to her cooking. "You put enough garlic and spices in," she says. Montgomery made the lamb and chili herself, while the roast beef, ham and rice were prepared by others. The biscuits, meanwhile, came from New Orleans-themed local eatery Popeyes.

The delegate - whose sprawling district stretches from Damascus in the west to Burtonsville in the east - also received a certificate celebrating her recent success in ensuring that voter ballots can be easily recounted. Montgomery has been "working to ensure transparency, accuracy and accountability in our voting system," said Bob Ferraro of SAVE Our Votes, a nonprofit group demanding verifiable election results.

so much more AFTER THE JUMP . . .

County Executive Ike Leggett speaks inside Delegate Karen Montgomery's living room.

Maryland uses computerized machines from Diebold, the same company responsible for the ballot controversy in Ohio during the 2004 election. Demanding that they be able to provide recountable election results - whether on paper or electronically - was a "four-year struggle," says Montgomery, who was concerned about studies that proved they could easily distort voting records. "Two guys who had been indicted and jailed for computer fraud were working for Diebold," she says. "I frankly believe that using those Diebold machines that the election was stolen when Bush won. We need to have a record . . . that can be counted."

Elected officials from across the state came out to support Montgomery, including Dels. Dan Morhaim (D-Dist. 11) and Charlie Barkley (D-Dist. 39) and Craig Zucker, representing Comptroller Peter Franchot (D). In addition, County Executive Ike Leggett (D) said a few words about Montgomery to an assembly in her living room. "I'm so happy to be here with the three delegates that represent me," says Leggett, who lives in Burtonsville. "I feel at home."

Her next challenge in the State House will be the ongoing budget crisis, which she states is a symptom of the national economic slowdown. "It is not fair to tear into our people for what is a federal problem," she said, referring to the Bush administration's policies, earning her a round of applause from the crowd.

Alongside the lamb and chili was a surprise birthday cake for James Offord, Montgomery's perennial campaign chair and a Tamarack Triangle resident. Offord, who jokes he's turning "thirty-nine again," became friends with Montgomery after meeting her at the Olney Theatre several years ago and has since worked on all of her campaigns. As an African-American, Offord faced criticism for supporting a white candidate. "There's always subtle racial tension," says Offord. "People wanted to know why I was supporting this white woman and I said 'She's the best candidate. Race doesn't matter'."

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student leaders, transit advocates team up for purple line push

WHAT'S UP THE PIKE: Planning Board approves requirements for SilverPlace headquarters; New building on FDA campus dedicated; Metro plans rapid-bus expansion along 16th Street, Veirs Mill Road by 2009.

As Downcounty residents pored over the MTA's latest plans for the Purple Line last Wednesday, a group of student leaders met with members from the Action Committee for Transit at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School to learn how to make the proposed transitway between Bethesda and New Carrollton a reality.

"I think students and people in general are vested in the interest for transit," says Ben Moskowitz, senior at Walter Johnson High in Bethesda and student member of the Montgomery County Board of Education.

Roughly ten students, representing their schools' student government associations and newspapers, came from as far away as Watkins Mill High in Montgomery Village and Centennial High in Ellicott City. ACT President Ben Ross says it's just a sign of how popular the Purple Line is across the region.

"All I can say is . . . it is not just students that we see support from Upcounty," says Ross. "We leafletted the Metro stations two years ago and letters came from all over the County . . . people just look at that map and say 'this makes so much sense'."

so much more AFTER THE JUMP . . .

Deirdre Smith and Carlos Abinader from the MTA gave a brief presentation on the project, including an explanation of light rail and Bus Rapid Transit, the two technologies proposed for the Purple Line. Abinader, who lived in Germany for several years, stressed how important transit can be to its users. "Kids, adults, everyone, they live it, they breathe it, they ride it," says Abinader. "It's wonderful."

One student from Whitman High in Bethesda expressed concerns about the line's effects on existing residential neighborhoods. "Things will be impacted," responds Abinader, "but we are trying to minimize any impacts."

A successful student-led protest against proposed Ride On cuts last winter encouraged ACT to reach out to high schoolers. "You need a few people who are really committed and it'll sweep the schools," says ACT Vice President Hans Riemer, who recently left a position as youth coordinator for Barack Obama's presidential campaign. "Student empowerment, that's the core tactic . . . talking to students about their power."

The students joined Ross for a round-table discussion about ways to generate interest in the Purple Line, with suggestions ranging from additional student meetings to a new Facebook group. Alex Blocher, a junior at Blake and president of its SGA, says he hopes to reach out to people who don't see the utility in the project right away. "People who have a reason for it . . . who actively travel Montgomery County are aware of it," states Blocher, "but the general population isn't as aware as I'd like it to be."

Moskowitz knew about the Purple Line for years, but first became interested in supporting it after working on Steve Silverman's County Executive campaign in 2006. As the campaign and his position on the Board took him across the County, he "became even more passionate about it in my car driving from Bethesda to Silver Spring and once even taking the Metro from Glenmont to White Flint."

Although he'll be going to the University of Pennsylvania in the fall, Moskowitz hopes events like this will groom a new generation of student advocates. "The biggest advantage we have is there's a lot of people who have time to stay with this," he says.

Riemer looks forward to the possibilities. "I know that high school students in Montgomery County are some of the most organized around," says the East Silver Spring resident, who ran for County Council two years ago. "What if you could get the media to see young people care about the Purple Line rather than focusing on the people carping about what they might lose?" Read more!