The re-appointment of a Planning Board member, Sports Tourism Task Force appointments and a public hearing on fire department funding top the Montgomery County Council’s agenda this week.
The council will meet at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the Stella Werner Council Office Building in Rockville for its regular weekly business meeting. Here’s what to expect:
Reappointment of Shawn Bartley to Planning Board
The council will vote to re-appoint Shawn Bartley to the county Planning Board. Bartley, a Republican, is reaching the end of his partial term and his new four-year term will begin June 14. He began serving in March 2023.
Bartley was selected for a seat on the board after the entire Planning Board resigned in October 2022, following controversy involving former Chair Casey Anderson and other members on the board. He is a longtime attorney in the county and currently serves on the Maryland State Board of Education, according to the resume he submitted to the council.
The Planning Board serves as the council’s principal adviser on land use planning and community planning. Planning Board members also serve as commissioners of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission. Currently, the Planning Board is tasked with implementing the Thrive Montgomery 2050 plan, an update to the county’s general master plan that is expected to guide development for the next 30 years.
Yearly compensation for board members is $30,000, according to county documents. Members generally serve four-year terms and are limited to two full terms. No more than three members of the Planning Board may be from the same political party. Currently, two unaffiliated voters, two Democrats and one Republican serve on the board–Bartley is the only Republican.
Artie Harris is the chair of the Planning Board and Mitra Pedoeem, James Hedrick and Josh Linden are the other members.
At an April 30 interview before the council, Bartley said he values a “diversity of housing” and said it’s important to consider different ways of life among county residents.
Sports Tourism Task Force appointments
As part of its consent agenda, the council will vote to appoint a Sports Tourism Task Force. The task force will be led by Keith Miller of the Montgomery County Revenue Authority and will conduct assessments related to sports infrastructure needs in the county, according to council documents.
The task force’s work will include conducting a facility needs assessment, including assessing the viability of creating a multi-use facility, identifying workforce development needs related to sports tourism, and assessing marketing and coordination with other groups and companies to encourage and streamline sports tourism in the county.
Public hearing on fire department funding
The council will host a public hearing at 1:30 p.m. on whether to make a special $16 million appropriation to the current fiscal year budget for the Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service (MCFRS).
County Executive Marc Elrich (D) proposed the special appropriation for general personnel and operating expenditures through the end of fiscal year 2024 on June 30, as actual expenditures are expected to exceed the department budget, according to council documents. In part, personnel costs have been higher this year because of increased overtime, according to the proposal. Insurance premiums, vehicle maintenance, medical equipment and other costs threaten to exceed the operating budget.
If approved by the council, the money would come from the county’s undesignated fire fund reserves.