POTD: Back To The Future (Part One)

This photo is by Rockville Central friend Eric Jensen. There’s a punchline to the title, which you will learn later in the week!

For now, just note that this is the construction site for the new District Court House building.

DON’T FORGET! Starting tomorrow, we are going to a one-email-per-day policy. We will send one email each day between 4 and 5 pm, with the day’s headlines and links to articles. This is to save your inbox. See this article for a fuller explanation.

POTD: Walk The Line

This is the walkway along Montgomery Avenue, where the new courthouse will be. The shot is by Rockville Central friend Eric Jensen. In addition to being beautiful, I thought it was timely, as we just ran an update on court house construction!

Eric Jensen sells Fine Art Prints and is available for portrait and event photography. Check out some of his work on Flickr!

Court House Construction: Dirt Mostly Gone

While I was very sad to see the efforts to move the new District Court House away from its currently-planned site at the old public library fail, we’re not going to cry over spilt milk. Demolition is well under way and construction will soon begin.

Here is the latest update from the City on what’s happening:

95% of all the dirt has been exported and should be all cleared by the end of the week. Looking ahead, the west side of the retaining wall will be started within the next two weeks, starting from the south and working north.

Coakley Williams has hired a company that monitors the vibration coming from the construction site to protect the historic homes next door from vibration related damage. Readings so far have shown very little vibration. The State and the City are aware of the constant flow of trucks that must make their way around, and therefore have specific routes that all trucks must use to have as little impact as possible on the neighborhoods.

Coakley Williams and the State realize the amount of dirt and dust that falls on the street, and have hired a larger sweeper that will sweep more thoroughly. Coakley Williams also hoses down trucks before they leave the site to reduce the amount of dirt tracked on the streets. They will not be using water to clean the streets in below freezing temperature, so as not to have slippery roads during the cold season.

As previously mentioned, we are aware that the temporary sidewalk is a cause of concern due to the lack of visibility southbound on 28. We have passed our concerns to SHA, State and Highway Administration, and they are currently working on how to best caution drivers to slow down and be aware of the upcoming traffic light.. Safety is a top priority for everyone involved in the project.

As the City keeps us informed, we’ll pass it along.

POTD: Snow Pile

The old Rockville Library, over which area residents fought the good fight, is finally coming down. Here’s a shot showing one area in mid-demolition. The debris pile reminded me of the snow piles that sometimes accumulate in winter in the lee-corners of snow covered buildings.

News Story on Rockville Courthouse

News Channel 8 will air a story about the Board of Public Work’s approval of the $60 million contract to demolish the former Rockville Library and begin construction of the future Rockville District Courthouse. That will be at 5:30 tonight. In case you missed it, all kinds of interesting documents about the courthouse are here on RC – check some out – http://sites.google.com/site/rockvillecentral/Home/move-the-court-house-documents or see the April 15 post about it.

State Board Approves New Court House On Old Library Site

Rockville Central friend Roald Schrack attended an important Board of Public Works meeting yesterday and sent along the following report:

Yesterday, October 15, there was a meeting of the State Board of Public Works that I attended. The Board consists of Gov. Martin O’Malley, Treas. Nancy Kopp and Comptroller Peter Franchot. The Board must approve all public works in the state.

The board unanimously approved the construction of the planned courthouse in Rockville at its planned location on the old library site. The meeting was a public hearing with many items up for decision. Testimony in favor of the planned location was presented by former Mayor Rose Krasnow and [state senator] Jennie Forehand. Testimony against the courthouse construction was presented by Frank Anastasi. The members of the board spoke extensively about their decision and reviewed many points made by proponents and opponents. They consistently supported the construction of the courthouse in the library location. This hearing was the final step in approving the courthouse construction.

Thank you, Roald, for the update.

Listen To The Rockville Central Radio Replay!

In case you missed listening live, you can still listen to today’s episode of Rockville Central Radio.

Today’s show featured Frank Anastasi, on the Move The Court House steering committee, discussing his group’s new report detailing a number of questions about how the State of Maryland handled the new District Court House that is planned for the old Rockville Library site. The report is based on documents it obtained through a Maryland Public Information Act request.

Frank gave a detailed rundown of what the group found in its investigation and talked about the conclusions the report draws.

From the Move The Court House press release announcing the report:

While MTC has always agreed that a new courthouse is needed in Rockville, it says now that the project as planned is a waste of taxpayers’ money. “We always asked, why can’t we build a better courthouse, at a better location, where adequate parking could be included? Until now, we didn’t realize that we could save money in the process,” said Bridget Newton, an MTC member, and Chair of Rockville’s Town Center Action Team for many years. MTC says that DGS data show the 171,200 square-foot Rockville courthouse as planned would cost $475 per square foot, fifty-four percent more per square foot than it cost to build the new Silver Spring Courthouse. That building was completed a few years ago for $27 million (about $309 per square foot).

MTC suggested to the Board, “… in this time of billion dollar budget deficits, the State can do better than spending more than $81 million on this ill-conceived, extravagant, monument to wasteful government spending.” It asked the Board to deny approval of the contract to demolish the old Rockville Library, which it says could save around $3 million. Another $7 million would come back to the State because Montgomery County would by the site back if the courthouse is not built there. The City of Rockville had offered to buy the site previously.

MTC believes that “tens of millions of dollars more could be saved by building a courthouse with a functional design and adequate facilities, at one of several nearby, available, and more-suitable sites.” The former Giant grocery site, and 255 Rockville Pike, located just outside the Circuit Court’s eastern doors, were two sites mentioned.

Rockville Central Radio will be back next week on Friday, October 10. Just go here to listen.

Move The Court House Releases Report

This morning the citizen’s group Move The Court House released its report on its findings from a Maryland Public Information Act request filed with the state.

The full report and backup documents can be found at this page.

Rockville Central is hosting these documents as a public service and was not involved in developing the report. By hosting the documents, we are not commenting on their accuracy nor necessarily endorsing their findings.

Rockville Central Radio Friday 10/2: City As Ark; New Court House Report

We hope you will be able to tune in tomorrow at noon to listen to Rockville Central Radio because we have a fascinating show lined up!

First, we’ll hear from our good friend Ruth Hanessian about the ark that is Our Fair City.

Then we’ll turn to an issue that has been a little dormant of late but that may begin to pick up steam anew: the new District Court House. Frank Anastasi, a member of the Move The Courthouse group, will be on hand to discuss the results of the Freedom of Information Act request they filed back in April. The report they have drafted, I am told, sheds new light on the state’s decision to build a new district court house on the site of the old Rockville Public Library.

As I have consistently been upfront about, I have long been a Move The Courthouse supporter — which does not mean I am not open to hearing and publishing other views. So, please: call into our listener number at 646-200-3332 tomorrow at noon and let’s talk about it!

Just go here to listen on Friday at noon.

Move The Courthouse Calls For Investigation

In an effort to continue their efforts to get the state to choose a different site for the new district court house, the Move The Courthouse citizens’ group said Monday that it has asked Maryland’s attorney general and Montgomery County’s inspector general to look into whether the proper procedures were followed when it comes to the state’s decision to place the proposed new courthouse at the old library site.

According to the group’s press release:

The group has asked Maryland Attorney General Douglas Gansler and Montgomery County Inspector General Thomas Dagley to conduct investigations into the circumstances surrounding the State’s planned construction of the courthouse at 99 Maryland Avenue in Rockville. Move the Courthouse has asked for “the true facts concerning how the site was selected, and the subsequent alleged spending of more than $11 million to buy the site and design a courthouse”, according to its letter.

“We believe that due process was not followed, that taxpayers and lawmakers were mislead, and that former as well as current elected officials and public employees may have acted improperly in making ‘deals’ to ensure that the courthouse would be built at that location” the group wrote.

The full release has been posted at this link.