Committee for a Better Environment

Approved: 062518 Committee for a Better Environment Davis Hall, College Park April 23, 2018 7:00 PM Members Present Absent Suchitra Balachandran X Sarah D’Alexander X Alan Hew X (arrived 7:10pm) Todd Larsen X Janis Oppelt X Jordan Schakner X Daniel Walfield X Donna Weene X Guests Present: Steve Beavers, City Liaison; Sheryl DeWalt, Contract Secretary The meeting was called to order at 7:05pm by co-chair, Mr. Larsen 1. The agenda was reviewed no changes were made. Ms. Weene made a motion to accept the agenda. Mr. Schakner seconded the motion. All in favor; no opposed. 2. The minutes from the March 26, 2018, meeting were reviewed. Ms. Oppelt made the motion to accept the minutes with the changes discussed. Ms. Weene seconded the motion. All in favor; no opposed. 3. Mr. Beavers gave the following City updates: a. No change to budget. b. There is a request for a doggie depot in Crystal Springs. Ms. Weene made a motion to spend $500 on a doggie depot for Crystal Springs. Ms. D’Alexander seconded the motion. All in favor; no opposed. Discussed the idea of having brochures about the necessity of picking up dog waste. It was suggested that we have a link on the Municipal Scene to the Animal Welfare Committee page; handing out a brochure when picking up a pet license; posting on NextDoor, asking churches to post in their bulletins, and posting a map of where all the doggie depots are located in College Park. It would be helpful to have the brochures translated into Spanish. Ms. DeWalt agreed to work on a translation of the brochure. c. Bike to Work Day is May 18. Mr. Beavers has flyers available. Sign up is online. d. There will be a vegetation control work session on May 1. Another version of the ordinance will be needed so Code Enforcement has an idea of when to write a violation. The Tree and Landscape Board will take the lead on educating Mayor and City Council.  e. There will be a presentation on the Rhode Island Avenue bike lanes as follows: i. May 9 – Davis Hall ii. May 15 – Work Session at City Hall f. CBE Annual Report will be due in July. Ms. Oppelt stated she will begin working on it. 4. Mr. Larsen checked with the County regarding for the Rain Barrel workshop. They have offered July 14 at 9:00am. Davis Hall has been booked for the event. Mr. Larsen, Ms. Weene and Mr. Walfield volunteered to be at the event and man a table of CBE information and brochure. Besides rain barrels, we will also be offering composting bin and brown yard waste carts. The bins and carts can only be purchased if you are a resident of College Park. Mr. Beavers stated he would double check the cost of the bins and carts. Mr. Larsen made a motion to spend up to $100 on food and beverage for the event. Ms. Weene seconded the motion. All in favor; no opposed. 5. Discussed the idea of a 100% renewable energy workshop and utilizing Maryland Sun. Ms. Oppelt will contact Maryland Sun about doing the presentation. 6. The signs have been placed in the Permaculture Garden. An education “walk and talk” will be scheduled for June 16. Advertising will be posted online at the end of May. Mr. Larsen made a motion to spend $50 on creating two signs for posting in the garden announcing the educational tour. Ms. Weene seconded the motion. All in favor; no opposed. Mr. Hew mentioned that the sign should have the date left blank so it can be re- used. 7. Mr. Larsen will compose a letter within the next week to Councilperson Glaros’ office regarding business recycling. It will be signed by Ms. Oppelt and Mr. Larsen as co- chairs of CBE. A copy of the letter will be sent to Mayor and Council. 8. An Arbor Day celebration will take place on Wednesday, May 2 from 1pm-3pm. Contact Ms. Oppelt for further information. 9. Discussed the draft garden fence letter Dr. Balachandran drafted. Ms. Oppelt will make minor edits to the letter and send it to Mayor and Council. 10. With the absence of Dr. Balachandran, PAYT will be tabled until the next meeting. 11. Ms. Oppelt has not yet ordered “The Last Straw” movie. Discussion took place on replacing this with a workshop on plastics and including straws. The discussions was tabled until the next meeting. 12. Since the May meeting falls on Memorial Day, Ms. Oppelt is recommending we move the meeting to the week before or the week after. Ms. Weene made a motion to move the meeting to Monday, June 4. Ms. D’Alexander seconded the motion. All in favor; no opposed. Ms. DeWalt will send an email to the City Clerk’s office informing them of the  change and requesting Davis Hall. If Davis Hall is unavailable, the committee will be at the Methodist church. Ms. Oppelt made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Ms. Weene seconded the motion. All in favor; no opposed. The meeting ended at 8:25pm.. Respectfully submitted by Sheryl DeWalt, contract secretary.