After Election, Report on Embezzlement of County Funds Finally Released. It was just a "misapproriation."

Later that same day, the Consultant/BHI CEO e-mails the DED COO “Houston…We have a problem!” Page 93. 

and

" ... top-level DED management oversight was extremely weak." Page i

and

"Former DED Directors used a 2006 agreement with a public entity to escape oversight by County government and create a standing reserve fund for use by the DED Director. The fund's availability increased the risk of improper financial transactions. Essential segregation of duties was absent within DED, and top-level DED management oversight was extremely weak. Over an eleven year period, the DED COO took advantage of control weaknesses to divert at least $7.2 million from the County's Incubator Program without apparent detection or impact on program operations. In implementing the BioScience initiative, DED management used public entities to fund the development and operations of a BioHealth intermediary without executing a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or Contract. " Page 5

The IG Report:   https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/OIG/Resources/Files/PDF/IGActivity/FY2019/mcded_mismanagement_final_report_19_nov_2018.pdf

The report states on Page 5: 
Four individuals served in the position of Director of the Department of Economic Development between 1995 and 2016:
• DED Director 1 served from 1995 until 2006 during the creation of the Incubator Program2 , and subsequently served as Maryland Secretary of Business & Economic Development, as a Senior and Executive Vice President with different banks, and currently with Scheer Partners Management, Inc. (Scheer), a commercial office real estate firm and a sub-contractor to DED with whom he has served as a Senior Vice President since 2011. Former DED Director 1 was replaced as department director during the government transition that followed the election of County Executive Isiah Leggett.  [That would appear to be Henry Bernstein] 

• DED Director 2 succeeded DED Director 1, and served until 2009,
• The Former DED Director served between 2009 and 2015,
[That would appear to be Steve Silverman] 
and
• A person we will refer to as the Former Acting DED Director, who had served previously as the Director of the Rockville Economic Development Inc. (REDI) and as the former Deputy Director of DED, served as Acting DED Director from January 2015 until the DED was dissolved and replaced in 2016 by a non-profit, public-private partnership, the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) created with the recommendation of the County Executive and vote of the Council.
[ That would appear to be Sally Sternbach ]

References to "former DED Director" in IG Report:

Page 8:
In a voluntary interview during August 2018, the Former DED Director described his management of DED as “Hands Off”. Other evidence we located indicates that the Former DED Director was not engaged in daily DED operations. In a June 2009 e-mail, the DED managers were advised to go through the Former DED Director’s calendar and send him “a BRIEF e-mail updating him on any issue(s) that may be discussed during his meetings for that week.” The purpose of the “bulleted” e-mails was to be sure that the Former DED Director was aware of what the staff reported they were doing in a concise fashion. This change followed an earlier message in which the DED COO had been directed to reduce the Director's weekly meeting with the department managers from one hour to one half-hour. Politically appointed Directors are often short-tenured, focused on executing the policy objectives of an administration, and may not be either willing or qualified to manage career staff in a governmental organization...

Page 9:
The Former DED Director acknowledged that he had provided his password to the DED COO and possibly to other staff members, although he could not specifically remember with which other staff members he might have shared his password. Access to the shared password would have given the DED COO the ability to log on to the County information technology system as the Former DED Director and conduct transactions, such as sending e-mails, under the Former DED Director’s name.

Page 14
During his tenure, the Former DED Director was in a position to detect the existence of the shell company.

Page 15
It is somewhat surprising that the Former DED Director never reviewed financial statements of the incubator programs since, as he told us, he had to become personally involved in managing issues related to licensees whose past due rent payments were putting a financial strain on the program.

Timeline of Events Related to Theft Charges Filed Against Mont. Co. Dept. Economic Development County Employee

“Peter Bang was a career County employee. He began working for the County as a merit-protected employee on February 24, 1997 – more than 21 years ago. Beginning in July 2010 until April of 2016, Peter Bang used his position in the County Department of Economic Development, which was privatized in 2016, to divert more than $6.7 million in County monies to his private uses." 11/16/18 Press Release

The fraud was discovered after the Internal Revenue Service reviewed reports of suspicious activity made by several casinos. Bang, who had filed for bankruptcy in 2007, brought cashier’s checks to the gambling sites that ranged in size from $35,000 to $200,000, officials said, but declined to tell the casinos the source of the funds. Investigators obtained copies of the checks and traced the money to fraudulent bank accounts Bang had created, and then to Montgomery County.  Washington Post 11/16/18

During part of that time, the county government had issued procurement freezes to deal with budget shortfalls; Bang created fraudulent Procurement Freeze Exemption Requests that were submitted to the county’s Office of Management and Budget and ultimately approved. Once the money was in one of the four accounts created in the name of the Chungbuk Incubator Fund LLC, Bang used the money for his own benefit, according to the plea agreement.

 In addition to money taken directly from the county, Bang also fraudulently obtained county funds being held by the Maryland Economic Development Corporation and Scheer Partners, a private company that worked as a management agent for the county’s incubators. Between August 2010 and July 2014, MEDCO and Scheer issued nine checks to the incubator fund totaling $1,213,987.63.  In a scheme unrelated to the incubator fund, Bang also stole 21 rent payments from the Conference and Visitors Bureau of Montgomery County, which shared office space with the Department of Economic Development and paid rent to Montgomery County. Between February 2011 and April 2013, Bang directed the bureau to make 21 rent checks payable to Chungbuk Incubator Fund LLC. The payments totaled $45,585.17.  Maryland Matters

November 2008 

• Leggett snags $2M from Korean governor for business project   https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/leggett-snags-2m-from-korean-governor-for-business-project

July 2010

• Beginning in July 2010 until April of 2016, Peter Bang used his position in the County Department of Economic Development...to divert more than $6.7 million in County monies to his private uses." 11/16/18 Press Release

March 2012

• MoCo v. Fairfax, Pr. Geo. Dep'ts. of Economic Development --how are we doing?

http://parentscoalitionmc.blogspot.com/2012/03/moco-v-fairfax-pr-geo-depts-of-economic.html

April 2012

• Sally Sternbach became Deputy Director of DED and then Acting Director in 2015 when Steve Silverman left.

Montgomery County officials are investigating allegations by employees at the Department of Economic Development that acting director Sally Sternbach has fostered a hostile work environment marked by “persistent inappropriate and intimidating behavior.” Washington Post

December 2014

• Steve Silverman leaves as Director of Montgomery County Department of Economic Development (DED).

April 2017

• IRS alerted the County that Mr. Bang may have embezzled County funds.  As a result, the County undertook its own investigation.  Once it became clear that there was probable cause to believe that Mr. Bang had embezzled County funds, the matter was referred to the State’s Attorney. 

June 12, 2017

• Peter Bang’s employment with the County was terminated

November 2017

• The County retained an independent forensic auditing firm on November 28, 2017 to review the transactions engaged in by the former County Department of Economic Development going back 10 years. 

May 2018

• Montgomery County, Maryland Office of the County Executive Office of Internal Audit 

https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/exec/Resources/Files/Internal_Control_Review_of_Procure_to_Pay_5-9-2018.pdf

July 12, 2018

• Montgomery County Council Audit Committee briefed on recent audits, including:

One report has been released since they were last before the Audit Committee in December 2017: Internal Control Review: Procure to Pay - Specific Functions (MCIA-18-1 ). 

Montgomery County Council Audit Committee is briefed on MCIA 18-1 audit done after embezzlement of DED funds was discovered. But note the word embezzlement is never used. Instead the discussion is about "specific targeted review" - "focused on some activities in the incubator program." At minute 1:13 of the video below watch as Councilmember Nancy Navarro asks vague questions about the incubator audit. Listen to the discussion.

August 29, 2018

• State Tax Lien filed for $ 22,741.87

October 25, 2018

• Stipulated Facts: United States vs. Byung Bang

Note the Stipulated Facts refers to another person involved in this investigation.  That person is referred to as Individual 1.  That person's identity is known.
https://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/documents/local/stipulated-facts-united-states-vs-byung-bang/3314/

November 6, 2018

• Montgomery County General Election

November 16, 2018

• Plea Agreement entered in U.S. District Court 

In separate federal and state court appearances Friday, Bang, 58, the former chief operating officer at the county’s now-defunct Department of Economic Development, pleaded guilty to federal charges of wire fraud and making false statements on a tax return, and to state charges of a theft scheme and misconduct in office.  Washington Post 

Bang pleaded guilty Friday afternoon in Montgomery County Circuit Court to one count of wire fraud and one count of making a false statement on a U.S. income tax return. His sentence hearing was tentatively set for March 7. Bethesda Beat

Michael Subin asks that security be called on reporters at press event in Rockville

Former County Council member Michael Subin asks that security be called on reporters at press event in Rockville: pic.twitter.com/BpqUZBXgug

— Bethesda Beat (@BethesdaBeat) August 8, 2016

Brickyard Coalition and its Convenient Memory Lapse

Yesterday, I received an odd email from the Brickyard Coalition, here in Montgomery County.

Here is the 'breaking news" from the Coalition - they have decided to endorse Doug Duncan in the upcoming Democratic Primary for County Executive. 

Are they serious?  I asked them, and have yet to get a response.

Remember back to 2003 when Steve Silverman, then a County Council member, went public with his plan to bring affordable housing to the Brickyard site?  Here is the Gazette article from November 19, 2003. 

Turns out, that a few weeks before, the COUNTY EXECUTIVE DOUG DUNCAN demanded that the Montgomery County Board of Education turn over all property not currently planned for school purposes.  You can see the March 22, 2004 Board of Education memorandum below. 

Even more surprising at the time - the County and the Board of Education had been turning over numerous school sites, in secret, without any public hearing or notice.  We were only tipped off to this transfer because of Steve Silverman's slip of the tongue.

Without going into all the history, many of us learned a lot about our elected representatives, who we thought we could trust.   The resulting battle also cost a lot of folks a substantial amount in legal fees.

Even after the property was "saved" from housing, the ever trusted right hand to Mr. Duncan, Jerry Pasternak, subsequently tried to turn the Brickyard property into soccer fields.   With more legal fees.

What has changed?  Can we trust Doug now?

Brickyard

So - did the Brickyard Coalition simply forget? Has Doug Duncan changed his mind about the property? Is Jerry Pasternak still Doug's right hand go to man?  Or does Doug still want to use the property for housing? If I were a member of the Brickyard Coalition, I would think carefully before I would endorse an official who generated much angst and huge legal bills for my neighbors.

Memory lapses seem to be abundant this election year. 

Maybe the motto of the Parents Coalition should be "We keep files so you don't have to."

Ike Leggett's Little Secret

Ever wonder why Ike Leggett, Montgomery County Executive, and his ace advisor Steve Silverman, Director of Economic Development for Montgomery County, finally agreed to return the Brickyard Middle School site to the Board of Education?  Did he suddenly become a friend of the earth?  Or did he realize that soccer doesn't need a fancy field.

Sorry. 

The real reason is that Ike Leggett and the rest of the county already own a prime, five acre school site that is just ready for . . . whatever the county council and its executive desire.

The property is at 175 Watts Branch Parkway, with great access to I270 and fair access to public transportation.   The property doesn't require access through a residential neighborhood, and its only neighbor is a gas station and existing park space.  The property is the site of the former Karma Academy, an alternative program that no longer exists.  Even better?   The neighbors are talking about getting the site incorporated Woottons Mill Park, an existing public space of over 100 acres!

So - what do we know about this site? 

Lots of articles in the newspaper about the possibility of historic review and the recent fire, but no talk of development or use of the site.  Just an old farmhouse that, per usual Montgomery County standards for real estate, falls apart.  Think Peary HS, think of all those excess schools in the 1980s that became havens for rodents.

Isn't it curious?  When Ike and company own a piece of property adjacent to a park, that is abandoned and a fire hazard, no one thinks about development or alternative uses.  But school sites that belong to someone else?  These are much more attractive, with Ike and Steve drooling over the possibilities, even before the land belongs to the county. 

No wonder the county's Office of Legislative Oversight found that the county's incentives for development were less than stellar, in particular by 3500 new jobs short of expectations.  

And the legal bills!  The first battle of Brickyard concerned the county's attempts to secure Brickyard Middle School for "workforce housing."  The more recent one concerned soccer fields.  Both involved interests who wanted to get their hands on cheap property, and talked public officials into doing their bidding - at taxpayer expense.

Ike and Steve - its time to realize that cronyism just doesn't work.  Or perhaps, maybe its time for MoCo locals to elect officials who will be more successful at using county resources to benefit county residents, instead of political war chests. 

We're Havin' a Party!

Yep, that's right.  EYA, property developers in Montgomery County and the greater Washington area, are celebrating 20 years of business.   Entertainment by Dark Star Orchestra. To be held at the Fillmore, Silver Spring on November 29th.

And guess who is on the guest list and has accepted?

Of those listed below, the highlighted names have direct impact on how many units EYA can build in any of its developments.

Confirmed:

Casey Anderson (party of 2), Planning Board Member

David Dise, Director, Montgomery County Director, Department of General Services

Hans Riemer, County Council member (D-At-Large)

Nancy Floreen, County Council member (D-At-Large and Chair of Planning, Housing, and Economic Development [PHED] Committee)

Robert Kronenberg, Planning Department staff member

Steve Silverman, Director, Montgomery County Department of Economic Development

Cheryl Cort, Policy Director, Coalition for Smarter Growth

Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director, Coalition for Smarter Growth

Maybe:

Ike Leggett, County Executive

Roger Berliner, County Council member (D-District 1 and County Council President)

EYA hired Dark Star Orchestra, a Grateful Dead tribute band whose gigs (U.S. and Canada) are managed by SRO.  Tickets for events at the Fillmore usually go for $35 and up. Fillmore's pricing list for renting the place...about $10,000, plus the requirement to use their bar ($42/person if you want top shelf booze);  and their caterer. 

It appears that EYA will be spending over $50/person -- the legal limit according to County ethics law.

Sec. 19A-16. Soliciting or accepting gifts.

(c) A public employee must not knowingly accept a direct or indirect gift from any individual or organization that the public employee knows or reasonably should know:

              (1)     is registered, or must register, as a lobbyist on a matter

that is or could be considered by the County agency with which the public

employee is affiliated;

              (2)     does business with the County agency with which the public

employee is affiliated;

              (3)     owns or operates a business that is regulated by the County

agency with which the public employee is affiliated; or

(4)     has an identifiable economic interest that is different

from that of the general public, which the public employee may substantially

affect in performing the public employee's official duties.

(d) Subsection (c) does not apply to:

              (1)     meals and beverages which do not exceed $50 from the same

source in any calendar year;

              (2)     ceremonial gifts or awards with a resale value of $100 or

less, if the gift or award commemorates an event or achievement associated with

the public employee.

              (3)     items of personal property, other than cash, worth less

than $10;

              (4)     reasonable expenses for food, travel, lodging, and

scheduled entertainment of the public employee, given in return for the public

employee's participation in a panel or speaking at a meeting;

              (5)     gifts to an elected official, or that official’s designee

who is assigned to represent the official at an event included in this

paragraph, if the gift:

                       (A)     is a courtesy extended to the office; and

                       (B)     consists of tickets or free admission for the employee

and one guest to attend a charitable, cultural, civic, labor, trade, sports, or

political event, including meals and beverages served at the event;

              (6)     any item that is solely informational or of an advertising

nature, including a book, report, periodical, or pamphlet, if the resale value

of the item is $25 or less;

              (7)     gifts from a relative;

              (8)     honoraria or awards for achievement; or

              (9)     a specific gift or class of gifts which the Commission

exempts from this Section after finding in writing that accepting the gift or

class of gifts is not detrimental to the impartial conduct of the business of a

County agency.

(e) Subsection (c) does not apply to unsolicited gifts to a County agency.

(f) A public employee who receives a gift that the public employee must not accept under this Section must report the gift to the Commission, if otherwise required to report it, and return the gift to the donor or transfer the gift to the County. If the unacceptable gift is a perishable item, the employee, instead of transferring the gift to the County, may transfer it to a charitable or educational organization that can make timely and effective use of the gift, so long as the employee is not an officer, director, trustee, partner, or employee of the receiving organization. (1990 L.M.C., ch. 21, § 1; 1994 L.M.C., ch. 25, § 1; 1997 L.M.C., ch. 37, § 1; 2010 L.M.C., ch. 5, § 1.)

NOTE—See County Attorney Opinion dated 12/6/02 discussing whether a public employee may accept an honorarium or other reimbursement of expenses in return for a speech or presentation. See County Attorney Opinion dated 7/8/02 describing the extent to which quasi-judicial officials may engage in political activities. See County Attorney Opinion dated 12/14/98 addressing the creation of “Friends of Recreation” for revenue-raising activities. 

If you can’t make it next week, we hear there is an even bigger holiday party at the Congressional Country Club -- sponsored by Linowes and Blocher.

Throw me a party and I'll Sign Your Letter

A few weeks ago, this blog posted about a letter drafted by Dr. Starr concerning Mitchell Rales's request for a public sewer line to his estate in Potomac.

This looked sort of silly - after all, why would a Superintendent of Schools care about the state of the septic system at Glenstone?

More than we even knew. Apparently, all it takes is a few cookies to get Dr. Starr's attention.

When Dr. Starr was new in town, Mitch Rales thought he could do some partying with a purpose. His goal - "introduce him to arts-academic-business people who might not get to meet him otherwise." See August 12, 2012 email from his PR guru, Charlie (all references are to documents at the end of this post).

Funny - but looks as if Dr. Starr probably knew most of the folks who showed up.

-Three Board of Education members - Laura Berthiaume, Shirley Brandman, and Pat O'Neill
-Four County Council members (Andrews, Berliner, Ervin, and Riemer)
-At least two MCCPTA officers
(I thought you folks interviewed him for the job?)

-Six MCPS staff members
(Mr. Edwards - don't you and the rest of these folks see Dr. Starr at work?)

And the rest of the crowd?

Montgomery County Economic Development (two persons), MoCo Planning Board (three members), higher education reps in Montgomery Co (five), state representatives and delegates (two), and a few family members, staff, and friends (at least four by my count).

Can you locate the "business people who might not get to meet [Dr. Starr]?" I had trouble identifying them, perhaps someone else can help out.

I am sure everyone at the party had a great time.

Here is my question.  Is this a new way to conduct business by the Board of Ed, the County Council, and the Planning Board?   Looks to me like a way to make some deals, out of the public view.

Or is sharing a few cookies and drinks and then signing a letter to support the Rales's application for a sewer line no big deal, among friends?

After all, think of the great parties we can have after the Rales get their sewer line. But - if you go, remember, no blogging, because Mr. Rales prohibits bloggers from visiting his premises.
Glenstone

Testimony at County Council Public Hearings on the Operating Budget

Testimony from the Public Hearings on the Montgomery County Operating Budget, April 11th, 2012:

Thank you. I’m Paula Bienenfeld. Tonight I have three minutes so I want to make three points.

First, I want to express my deep gratitude and thanks to Senator Brian Frosh and his informed constituents. I thank Senator Frosh for voting against the draconian MOE legislation which every other member of our Montgomery County delegation voted for. I also thank Senator Frosh for coming out against the bill which would give the student member of the Board of Education the additional voting power over financial matters. As you know this legislation would mean that 13 and 14-year-old children in middle school would have more control over the county’s budget than you, our council members, would, given that the BOE controls more than half of our entire budget. While the bill failed in this session it is likely to come up again in the next session.

My second point regards the cronyism and secrecy – the back-room and unrecorded deals that are rampant in this county. No-bid contracts, in which millions of dollars are spent; this pattern has to end to get our fiscal house in order. The Montgomery County Civic Federation, of which I am the Education Committee Chair, is working on the Checkbook Online Project. We want to see Checkbook Online put in place in the county government and in the public school system. Checkbook Online is used nationwide including in the Miami-Dade County Public School system, the fourth largest school system in the country; and, closer to home, in Goochland County, Virginia. According to officials in Goochland County, implementing Checkbook Online cost the county next to nothing to put up online. As MCPS claims to be ‘data-driven,’ the same can be expected from them as well as from you, the County Council. I understand Checkbook Online actually saves government agencies money, as more eyeballs on the finances means more opportunities to identify waste and provide solutions. We ask that you put Checkbook Online on the county website within this fiscal year. As Justice Louis Brandeis wrote, “Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.” The Civic Fed will be working on the Checkbook Online Project this year and we ask other civic organizations, and the Council, to join us in bringing the county’s secret books into the sunlight. We are all responsible for how we spend our taxpayer dollars.

Third, in looking to the future I ask that you put in place a professional economic development group and not rely on the well-known Montgomery County Crony System. Each year the Washington Business Journal publishes the list of regional economic development offices and the number of jobs they have created in the last fiscal year. This year again our Department of Economic Development fell short when compared with other areas. In Montgomery County, the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development created 556 jobs. By comparison, the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority, led by a professional in the field, created 8,765 jobs. The Prince George’s County’s Economic Development Corporation created 1,191 jobs. It is time to end the secret deals and the cronyism in this County.

Thank you.

MoCo v. Fairfax, Pr. Geo. Dep'ts. of Economic Development --how are we doing?

The recent Washington Business Journal (March 23-29, 2012) has published their annual list comparison of regional Economic Development agencies. How well is Ike Leggett's appointment, Steve Silverman doing?

Here's the comparison:

Montgomery County Department of Economic Development
Annual Budget: $6.25Million
Previous Annual Budget: $6.68Million
Percent Change: -6.56%
Date fiscal year ends: June 30, 2012
Jobs created in last Fiscal Year: 556
Senior Local Executive: Steve Silverman, Director

Fairfax County Economic Development Authority
Annual Budget: $7.05Million
Previous Annual Budget: $6.8Million
Percent Change: 3.68%
Date fiscal year ends: June 30, 2012
Jobs created in last fiscal year: 8,765
Senior Local Executive: Gerald L. Gordon, President and CEO

Prince George's County Economic Development Corporation
Annual Budget: $7.54Million
Previous Annual Budget: $9.83Million
Percent Change: -23.23%
Date fiscal year ends: June 30, 2012
Jobs created in last fiscal year: 1,191
Senior Local Executive: Gwen S. McCall, President and CEO

Them That's Got: Leggett Appointments

Ike Leggett appointed Steve Silverman to the position of Director of the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development in 2009. Salary, $180,000. How does the Department measure up to similar departments in neighboring areas? This past Friday’s Washington Business Journal has the answer. Research was conducted by Lindsay Smith. Thanks, Ms. Smith!

Here is how Steve Silverman is doing: Current Annual Budget: $6.8 million. Previous annual budget: $10.8 million. Jobs created in the last fiscal year: 1,999. The fiscal year ends on June 30, 2010.

Fairfax County Economic Development Authority: Current Annual Budget: $6.5 million. Previous annual budget: $6.5million. Jobs created in the last fiscal year: 6,283. The fiscal year ends on June 30, 2010.

Arlington Economic Development: Current Annual Budget: $4.55 million. Previous annual budget: $4.74 million. Jobs created in the last fiscal year: 5,077. The fiscal year ends on June 30, 2010.

Guest Post - Brickyard MS Site Slated to Become a Sports Complex

If you have been following the Parents Coalition for a while, you may remember one of my first countywide advocacy efforts.  The issue at the time involved two school sites in Potomac, including 20 acres of land designated for Brickyard MS.  


In 2003, the County Council "demanded" that the Board of Education turn over the land to the County, so the county could develop the property.


Many other school sites before then had been turned over in closed sessions of the Board of Education, even though many of our kids in county schools were in portable classrooms.   With the help of a lot of folks, we shed some sunlight on this issue, and the Potomac school sites were kept in the inventory.  


To quote Yogi Berra, "It's deja vu all over again."  (Note:  thanks to the the FDABlog and HPM)  

Even with a new County Executive at the helm, the Montgomery County Government just can't keep their hands off this property.


Now the proposal is for a "public-private" partnership to develop ballfields on the site.  Under the proposal, MCPS will "lease" the property to the County for $1500.  


Where is the public input?  Government in the Sunshine?  


Here is a guest post from the current tenant of the property.  This is reprinted with his permission.
***********************************************************
As my neighbor on Horseshoe Lane, you know that for the past 31 years I have been farming organically on the Brickyard School site at 8615 Brickyard Road.   

I have had a lease with the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) to farm the land, but at noon today I was told that my lease would not be renewed anymore.  My current five year lease expires in less than 3 weeks on March 22, 2011.   There is an agenda item this coming Tuesday, March 8, 2011 at the Board of Education general business meeting "Lease Agreement-Brickyard Road Site" http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/boe/meetings/agenda/2010-11/2011-0308/030811.pdf    The action item for the School Board to vote on is presented in a memorandum from Superintendent Weast to the Board of Education http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/boe/meetings/agenda/2010-11/2011-0308/4.2.5 Brickyard Land Lease.pdf  The Board of Education would grant a ten year land lease to the County but could recover the land if needed for a school.  After receiving the land lease, the County would then work with a private athletic organization in a public-private partnership to construct ball fields.  These agenda documents were posted only this afternoon.

It would seem that the local community is not being consulted.  As you know, during the Potomac Master Plan discussions, the community did not want playing fields, but would prefer a park if the land use had to be changed.

I contacted the Real Estate Office at the County to find out more about the proposal.  I was not able to get any information,  The Real Estate Office was only interested in knowing how I found out about this proposal.  I was told that there was a proposal but this particular employee did not know anything about it or who was handling it.  I was told that someone would call me back....

I contacted Roger Berliner's office, my Councilman on the County Council.  The staff person there said he would try to look into for me and tell me what he found.  I asked if this type of action, public-private partnerships for athletic activities, was a trend in Montgomery County.  He said he thought there were two such partnerships now, the Soccerplex in Germantown and the Ice Skating Ring in Silver Spring.  Based on this type of model it is not clear that any of the children in Potomac would be able to come home from school and head over to the Brickyard playing field for a friendly game.  It is also not clear what the impact would be on traffic and parking, nighttime lighting, noise and trash.

After talking to you about what happened with these public-private playing fields in Virginia http://connectionnewspapers.com/article.asp?article=247674&paper=68&cat=104 and http://connectionnewspapers.com/article.asp?article=278583&paper=68&cat=110 and after talking with Neal Fitzpatrick at Audobon Society about the ill effects to ground water if artificial turf is used, I think there are very real issues that should be debated before any action is taken this Tuesday, especially if it could affect our neighbors' well water.

I think our neighbors need to voice their opinions.   I think the Board of Education action should be delayed until all of the facts are made known.

The School Board Meeting is Tuesday, March 8 from 10 am-3:30 pm at Room 114, 850 Hungerford Drive, Rockville MD.  This is the main Board of Education Building on route 355 near Montgomery College.

The public is allowed to comment on agenda items for 2 minutes each between 10:05 - 10:35 am.  The agenda item is currently scheduled sometime between 2-3:30 pm.

To comment in person, you have to call 301-279-3617 between 10-10:30 on Monday March 7.  Only the first ten callers will be given the opportunity to comment verbally.  A show of popular support by attending the meeting is very important. 

Anyone can submit written comments on Monday March 7 without attending. You should reference "Agenda Item 4.2.5 Lease Agreement-Brickyard Road Site" and state your opinion.  Those who are able to comment in person will also be asked to submit their talking points or written statement on Monday so it can be distributed to the Board members.

As I find out more, I will keep you informed.

Nick

Gambling with Tax Dollars v. A Certain Investment

Dear Delegate Brian Feldman and members of the Montgomery County Delegation;

Last year I came before you and spoke about the need for transparency in the expenditures made by Montgomery County Public Schools. Specifically, multi-million dollar procurements were not being brought before the Board of Education for discussion or votes. While a bill requiring MCPS to make an online database of procurements public was passed, the implementation of that database was delayed for two years. 

Last week, you placed bill 18-10 on the Delegation's agenda.

The public hearing on the bill is tomorrow. The bill says it is for;

"a certain investment in a certain company".

Without a doubt that is more transparency than we have seen from MCPS, however, it certainly leaves a lot to the imagination of the public.

What investment? What company? How exactly can the public comment?

Not knowing what is contemplated by this vague legislation, I offer my own suggestion of "a certain investment in a certain company".

Taxpayers have already seen the results of Superintendent Weast's "certain investment in a certain company".  As best as the public can ascertain, Superintendent Weast made a $500,000 to $1,000,000 investment in a company called Wireless Generation around 2004. How does the public know that? The investment wasn't brought before the Board of Education for discussion or a vote. The investment was revealed in an article put out by the Harvard Business School.

Did the investment yield a profit for taxpayers? Apparently, not. While no accounting was made for this investment in Board of Education meetings, Maryland Public Information Act requests by members of the Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County yielded some information in 2009. The results of our MPIA requests can be read here and here.  

And now the Montgomery County Delegation is looking to pass legislation to make "a certain investment in a certain company".
 

What is certain is that Montgomery County public school students are still being denied a free public education, our schools are left to decay, and our students are being charged to attend their own graduations.

 

If the Montgomery Delegation is looking for legislation to make a "certain investment," might I suggest legislation that reinforces the right of every child in Montgomery County to a free public education; legislation that reinforces the right of every child to attend their own high school graduation free of charge; or, legislation that requires the Board of Education to maintain school buildings at a minimum level (running water, flush toilets, working sinks, rats-free, safe drinking water, no wasting of valuable school space). 

 

At present, students are still being charged to attend public school classes, being charged to attend their own graduations, and there is no inspection of school restrooms for health violations or even any requirement that restrooms in a school be open.

 

Those are three good areas, ripe for legislation that would "invest" in the health, well-being, and rights of our students in our Montgomery County public schools.

 

A certain investment - free public education and functioning, safe, healthy school buildings; in a certain company - our students.