Minutes of Board Meeting April 2012
A regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Montgomery Square Citizens Association (MSCA, Inc.) was held, as announced via e-mail, on April 17, 2012 at the home of Secretary Tom Hall. Attendees included the President, Vice President, Treasure, Secretary, Membership Chair, Social Chair, our webmaster, and other volunteers.
President Bob Gross chaired the meeting and covered wide ranging topics, some involving specific inquiries, others recurring subjects. One topic concerned basketball backboards and hoops extending out over the street. No attendee knew of any particular restriction that applied and several noted it was not uncommon to see portable basketball hoops along the streets and in cul-de-sacs in the neighborhood, though the risk that one might be damaged by garbage trucks was unavoidable. Inquiries about tree removal are common, and the unsightly areas along Seven Locks Road between Inspection House and Montrose are the most noted. Bob has contacted the County and toured this area with a County representative, who contacted PEPCO. Some action was taken but we will follow up again on this issue. When a tree fell at the corner of Montrose Road and White’s Ford Way, emergency crews cleared it from the roadway but piled up the trunk and branches over the grassy areas and blocked pedestrian access to the marked crosswalk. The County did rectify this and clear that area back eventually when contacted by MSCA, but it took some time to get action there as well. The County does have a non-emergence service number, 311, that can be called for all County service requests, and any resident can call with a complaint or request for action from the County on almost any subject.
On landscaping, the Association has continued its contract with Greenlink for maintenance and plantings at the five main entranceways to Montgomery Square. Bob offered a list of optional, potential landscape cleanup or improvement projects and approximate pricing for the Board’s consideration. Seeding and repair of the grass areas on White’s Ford Way at the corner with Montrose Road were approved. Other more ambitious projects would require a volunteer to continue working on them to get community recommendations and sentiment on increasing our expenditures, which might necessitate an increase in dues in future years.
The status of the Seven Locks Road sidewalk and bikeway project continues to disappoint the Board, as funding for the project to proceed to the next phase of planning is already being pushed out to 2016 with no certainty of funding after that. As a more immediate action, Bob has suggested sidewalk improvements from Montrose Road to Tuckerman. A County official did express support and walked the sidewalk with Bob, but in a classic Catch 22, the County is hesitant to do work when the large project “may” come through and redo the same stretch. Inquiries about paving Seven Locks Road itself met with similar deflection by the County, which has declining resources in this area.
Discussion returned to the subject of insurance for Officers, Board Members and other volunteers. It was noted that the County Code provides some liability protection for volunteers and that none of the types of policies considered to date are really tailored to an Association such as ours, meaning they cost money to cover major liabilities in situations that we will never encounter, such as suits from our (non-existent) employees, and are hence probably not cost effective given our minimal risk posture. The Board will continue to look into this issue.
The Treasurer reported that approximately 150 households had paid 2012 dues to date with more coming in a trickle. It is not yet time to remind non-payers that we would appreciate their participation, but we will do so when appropriate through Block Captain or mail. We do have gaps in Block Captain coverage, which is an issue we may have to address.
The Social Chair presented a plan for a July 4th social event to include a decorated-bike parade, and free Starbucks coffee and Goldberg’s bagels. The event will take place at Highland Park, off Post Oak Road. Subject to planning and final approvals, the time will be 9:30 AM to 12:00 noon and include a magician or similar entertainer. The Board approved the idea and the Social Chair will pursue it. We will also begin planning for a repeat of the very successful block party from last year, sometime this fall. We discussed participation with Potomac Woods in a social event in their neighborhood, but some issues with alcohol policies would have to be further investigated before our Association could formally sponsor an event.
Immediately upcoming events include:
April 29, 3:00-4:30 PM – Ice Cream Social with entertainment by MSCA’s own Richard as Neil – the music of Neil Diamond. Corner of Old Canal Road and Old Canal Court.
May 6, 12:00-3:00 PM – Annual Community Yard Sale with Potomac Woods, from front yards around the community. VP Steve Schuck is collecting participant information.
May 21, 7:30-8:30 PM – Annual Meeting of the Association at Ritchie Park Elementary School in the Media Center.
The next Board meeting will be May 29, 2012 at the home of the Treasurer, David Grossman, 7:30-8:30 PM.
