This story appeared in the Winter 2016 edition of the Roland Park News.

Open Space Campaign Update.

RPCF Increases Leadership Role in Roland Water Tower Restoration.

The Roland Park Community Foundation (RPCF) has recently increased its leadership role in the restoration of the Roland Water Tower to help move the project forward. The Board voted to oversee the construction of the project and hired a construction manager whose experience includes the Project Manager of the reconstruction of the Washington Monument in Mount Vernon. The 2010 Greater Roland Park Master Plan identified the Tower’s restoration as one of the most urgent Open Space projects, and after years of working with the City, the RPCF felt the need to step up their role if it was ever to see the restoration completed.
To recap the progress so far, in 2011, the RPCF, under the leadership of Ken Rice, secured a matching $2,500 grant from The Heritage Fund, a joint program sponsored by Preservation Maryland and the Maryland Historical Trust, to perform a structural analysis of the Tower. The Friends of the Water Tower donated $250 to the $2,250 provided by the Foundation. The study determined that the structure was essentially sound and that the Tower could be restored.
In the fall of 2011, the 41st and 42nd Legislative teams in Annapolis came to the community and proposed the initiation of a Bond Bill in the 2012 Session toward the restoration of the Tower, subject to the community’s willingness to match the Bond Bill. The RPCF voted to pledge the funds to match the Bond Bill. Matthew Fitzsimmons and Elisabeth Sachs, two individuals on the leadership team, went down to Annapolis to testify on behalf of the Bond Bill and the City was awarded $250,000 toward the restoration of the Tower.
In October 2012, the RPCF spent $37,000 to remove decades of dirt and debris inside the Tower. Workers in hazard material suits swept, scrubbed and secured the building with screens to preventing birds from returning. This first step in the restoration process allowed contractors and architects to gain safe access to the building.
Due to its original function, the Roland Water Tower still fell under the auspices of the Department of Public Works (DPW), although City monuments are usually the responsibility of the Department of General Services (DGS). DGS said they were willing to have the Roland Water Tower transferred to them, but only if it came with some funding. The DPW team agreed to transfer the funds set aside to demolish the Tower, referred to as “virtual demolition funds,” over to DGS. This transfer process took many months and persistent phone calls from RPCF board member Al Copp, but it was finally completed on March 27, 2013. The Board of Estimates approved the transfer of $337,000 from the Department of Public Works to the Department of General Services for the restoration of the Tower, subject to a management agreement.
With the transfer in place, the project’s design phase could now begin. Three project stages were identified: Phase One, stabilizing and restoring the Tower; Phase Two, internal access to the top of the Tower; and finally, Phase Three, the creation of a pocket park at the base.
It is here that the project stalled. The initial design estimates for Phase One proved far higher than anticipated and Baltimore City did not accept the proposal. In April 2014, the Mayor’s Office suggested that the RPCF take on the design process to speed the process and save money. The RPCF worked with two different firms but both of the proposals were rejected. The first design firm was uncomfortable with doing the design work for one entity and then the construction work would be performed for a different entity. They placed exceptional requirements on the RPCF and after checking with legal counsel, these were rejected.
RPCF attempted to secure another acceptable design proposal, but ran into obstacles when the new design company requested scaffolding to complete the estimate. Scaffolding is one of the largest costs of this construction project but because the design was going to be paid for by the RPCF and not the City, the City would require the scaffolding be removed before it was erected again by the construction company. The costs associated with erecting and dismantling the scaffolding for both the design and the construction phases, which the RPCF, rather than the City, would have to absorb, were simply too high.
After more than two years of delays, it was clear that a new approach was needed. In early 2016, the City applied to receive an extension to the 2012 Bond Bill that authorized $250,000 in matching funds for the renovation of the Roland Water Tower. This presented an opportunity to request an amendment to the Bill, changing the recipient of the funds from Baltimore City to the Roland Park Community Foundation. Both the City and the RPCF Board approved this switch, which would increase RPCF’s responsibility for the overall project management.
At the RPCF’s March 2016 board meeting, a motion was made and approved to formally request the City to begin the transfer of the Roland Water Tower’s restoration to the Foundation. Later in the spring, members of the Roland Water Tower Committee met with City representatives, including Councilwomen Mary Pat Clarke, Sharon Green Middleton, and then-Deputy Mayor for Operations Khalil Zaied. An agreement was reached whereby the City would pay for the Phase One design estimate, thus enabling cost estimates to proceed. In July, the first draft of the design proposal put the estimated cost within the $837,000 available for the project.
The RPCF also agreed to oversee the construction phase and create a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the City to determine the full scope of Phase One and their various financial responsibilities. To prevent further delays, the RPCF has recently hired Tom McCracken of McCracken Consulting, LLC to work with the City on its behalf and act as Project Manager during the Tower’s restoration. Mr. McCracken, a Roland Park resident, represented the Mount Vernon Conservancy during the restoration of the 200-year-old Washington Monument in Mount Vernon and has considerable experience with historic restoration projects in Baltimore City.
At present, Mr. McCracken is liaising with the City on the design contract with JMT, a multi-disciplined architectural and engineering company, to further refine the design proposal.
During its 111-year history, the Roland Water Tower has performed several practical and symbolic functions for the surrounding neighborhoods. Once restored, with a pocket park at the base, this iconic structure will take on a new role as an attractive local landmark and welcoming green space.

Roland Park Civic League First Vice President Chris McSherry writes with this update:

“Dear Neighbors,

Many thanks to everyone who has supported the Civic League in trying to get the land at BCC zoned like the area surrounding it.  The Civic League and the Community Foundation made a presentation to the  City Council Land Use and Transportation Committee last Wednesday, September 28 about why we have asked for the R-1-C or R-1-D zoning for that parcel.  We explained that we have been advocating for the lower density since 2010 and have never agreed to anything else.  We also explained that we are not trying to devalue the land, only to protect it for future generations should it ever be developed.  BCC also make a presentation about why they want it to be the denser R-1-E. Their basic argument is that the new zoning code doesn’t allow for as much density as the old zoning code and they don’t want to limited in their development potential. Special thanks to the 32 neighbors who attended the hearing in support of the Civic League, some of whom even testified very forcefully.  We know that our Councilwomen Sharon Middleton and Mary Pat Clarke will support us on this amendment, and we believe that several other members of the committee also support us.

Thank you to all of you who have written to the City Council Land Use and Transportation Committee about the zoning of the BCC property at 4712 Club Road.  If you haven’t written or called them yet, please do so.  The contact information and details on the issue at hand have been repeated below from our last e-letter. We  have learned that the vote in the committee will not occur this Wednesday, October 5, but rather will be at a later meeting, so there is still time to ask the committee to support the R-1-C or D zoning for the land.  The bill will have to go to the entire City Council before it is final and that is not likely to happen until November, so please keep those calls and letters coming to the members of the committee.

ACTION

Please email or call your City Council representative – Councilwoman Sharon Green Middleton or Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke – today.  Thank her for consistently standing with the Roland Park community, and ask her to please do it again.

Sharon.Middleton@BaltimoreCity.gov  410-396-4832
MaryPat.Clarke@baltimorecity.gov 410-396-4814

In Baltimore City Land Use decisions, the other members of the City Council vote in support of the City Council person who represents the area in question.  Please also emailor call the other City Council members on the Land Use Committee and thank them for supporting Councilwoman Middleton and respecting “councilperson courtesy” in deciding what is best in her district.

CouncilPresident@BaltimoreCity.gov 410-396-4804
Edward.Reisinger@baltimorecity.gov 410-396-4822
James.Kraft@baltimorecity.gov 410-396-4821
Warren.Branch@baltimorecity.gov 410-396-4829
Bill.Henry@baltimorecity.gov 410-396-4830
Nick.Mosby@baltimorecity.gov 410-396-4810

In order to preserve and protect the unique historic character of Roland Park, it’s vital that we ask our elected City Council Representatives today to:

1.    Reject BCC’s demand for R-1-E zoning and support the RPCL’s request for R-1-C or R-1-D zoning on the land.
2.    Remember that Roland Park has one of the highest tax bases in the City and that we cannot afford to have our properties devalued by inconsistent zoning.
3.    Remember that we are trying to preserve the integrity of our neighborhood.  By voting for (on behalf of) the Roland Park community they are sending a strong message that City neighborhoods matter.”

The following notice was issued this week by Kohl.Fallin@baltimorecity.gov; (443-984-4095 (Office) who is our city neighborhood transportation liaison:

The Roland Avenue Resurfacing project from Cold Spring Lane to Northern Parkway has been completed. This is the first parking-protected bike lane in Baltimore City, and the Baltimore City Department of Transportation (BCDOT) would like to alert residents of the new parking pattern on Roland Avenue.  People in cars are advised to park in the parking lane next to the bike lane and not against the curb or in the striped buffer zone.
The BCDOT has alerted parking enforcement that there will be a 2 week grace period of enforcement until October 1, 2016 for residents to adjust to the new parking arrangements. After October 1, 2016, cars parking in the bike lane or the buffer may be issued a citation. The below diagram illustrates where the parking lane is placed relative to the curb as well as examples of how to park properly.

ALSO, a friendly reminder that the speed limit on Roland Avenue is 25 mph. Lower speeds makes our roads safer for everyone, especially pedestrians. We all want to arrive safely, so please be mindful to not exceed the 25mph speed limit.

Parking enforcement supervisor, Yolanda Cason has clarified the amounts of parking tickets as:  be $32 for parking in the buffer, $32-52 for parking in no stopping areas and $77 when parked in the cycle track lane. Please send requests for assistance with individual tickets to tickets@rolandpark.org.  Police patrol cars will also be issuing speeding tickets per Major Gibson, Northern District. The City’s 6 month review is expected to be complete in early 2017. The Cycle Track Committee continues to meet monthly, collect data and interface with the City’s Department of Transportation staff. Plans are underway for a related community meeting to be held later this fall, details to follow soon.

Caroline Wayner, President of Wyndhurst Improvement Association, has forwarded along this important information from the Baltimore Department of Public Works (DPW) to the Roland Park Civic League.

While inspecting sewer lines in Tuxedo Park near the Stony Run path, DPW has found an old terra cotta pipe in danger of imminent collapse. Were it to collapse, it would severely impact the sewer system of the surrounding neighborhood. DPW is going to fix this right away, but the procedure will require the closure Stony Run path between Gladstone and Deepdene for up to two weeks. Please see the following map:

The pipe in question runs from the dead-end of Colorado Avenue and under the Stony Run.

Tree removal will begin this week. The Friends of Stony Run, Blue Water Baltimore, the North Stony Run Green Team, and the City’s Urban Forestry Division are working with neighborhood groups to make sure that plenty of native trees, shrubs and other plants will replace what is removed. As it happens, much of what is being removed is invasive and undesirable.

Excavation of the dirt above the pipe, which lies 10 feet under, will begin after tree removal. Then the repairs will be made and the path rebuilt. Replanting will commence after September 15.

DPW has advised the Wyndhurst Improvement Association that all work should be finished by the start of public school, which is Monday, August 29th.

Dear Fellow Roland Park Community Members- as I am sure all of you are aware, our community has experienced some violent crimes in recent weeks. Indeed, I can only imagine the shock that Molly Macauley’s family, friends, and colleagues are still going through. Obviously, these events are unusual in this safe community we know and love, which has caused me – and many of you – some serious concern and to question what we could and should do to enhance our public safety. To that end, I plan on dedicating our next scheduled RPCL board meeting [Wednesday, 9/7/16, 7PM, RP Presbyterian Church, 4801 Roland Avenue] to discuss and define the problem and options.

I invite you to join us, as we, the board, need to capture all perspectives on this important issue.

At present, we are working on gathering information to define the problem and options; the former to include Police reach-out on crime statistics and trends, and the latter, for instance, on investigating additional actions we may take, such as hired security or citizens’ patrols. Just recently, at a Northern District Police event, I connected with Homeland’s citizens’ patrol leader, and I will be connecting with Guilford leaders to learn more about their community-paid security service. I realize some of these topics have arisen in the past, and while we need to learn from that past, we also must address our current situation.

Finally, although this has been a truly awful time, I now have the benefit of firsthand knowing that our Police, led by Major Gibson, are there for us and will do everything in their power to secure our safety and work with us. For that, I am very thankful. I hope to see you in early September. In the meantime, please feel free to contact your RPCL Plat representative (contact information here), be safe, and look after your neighbors.

Thank you….Ian MacFarlane, RPCL president