At its August 8 regular meeting, the Greenbelt City Council approved the first set of expenditures for the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds the city received. In response to a petition from Public Works employees, council deferred action on premium pay for city employees until August 29. Council also rejected a contract for monument signage and extended the application period for the Reparations Commission.
Premium Pay
Public Works employee Michael Canavan petitioned council to increase the premium pay for first responders. He was accompanied by approximately 30 current and former Public Works employees who are first responders. He noted that their duties include both emergencies like downed trees and snow removal, and regular responsibilities of maintenance of facilities, ballfields, landscape and vehicles.
Canavan questioned whether giving premium pay to all city employees is consistent with federal guidelines. Interim City Manager Timothy George said a portion of the ARPA funds is unrestricted. Canavan said that first responders face increased health risks as they do their jobs and interact with the public. When they go home, protocols for preserving the health of their families may require additional precautions such as isolation and disinfecting clothes. Canavan noted that Public Works and the Police are both first responders.
George responded that he had decided not to use a “tiered” payment system (where some employees are essential and other employees are not essential) due to the difficulty in deciding which employees faced a greater risk. Several Public Works employees said it was unfair for first responders to get the same pay as employees who faced minimal risk.
Mayor Emmett Jordan favored the tiered approach and suggested breaking the Premium Pay for Essential Employees (ARPA priority Item #1) payment into two payments. Councilmember Colin Byrd suggested a first payment of $4,500 and a second payment of $2,500 for premium pay. Councilmember Judith Davis suggested altering the payment schedule for tax reasons. Byrd suggested leaving the payment schedule decision to first responders themselves. Resident Lois Rosado urged council to approve premium pay without any further public meetings.
Davis suggested a separation of the ARPA priorities 1-24 into ARPA Premium Pay as Priority 1 followed by ARPA Priorities 2-24. Davis then moved to separate the ARPA priorities 1-24 and the motion passed with Councilmember Rodney Roberts voting no to the motion.
Council next addressed the need for speed in getting these checks out to the first responders. Council’s next regular meeting will be September 12.
Councilmember Ric Gordon moved that August 29 be a special council meeting for Premium Pay ARPA Priority #1. Council unanimously approved the motion.
Other ARPA Approvals
Council then turned its attention to the next 23 ARPA priorities. Items of particular interest are:
- Item #3, Provide grants and develop programs to support Greenbelt businesses and nonprofits – $1,500,000. Jordan suggested expanding grants to include community grants and microgrants.
- Item #5, Expand Greenbelt CARES services: Fund evidence-based youth mental health programs, more services for those with mental health issues; Aging Support Services for frail and at-risk seniors – $1,500,000.
- Item #12, Residential rental and utility assistance; homeowner assistance – $1,500,000.
- Item #19, Design an addition to Springhill Lake Recreation Center (parking issues) – $100,000, and
- Item #19b, Design-build project for addition to Springhill Lake Recreation Center – $400,000. This item may include a police substation consisting of a police officer and a vehicle in the Springhill Lake Recreation Center along with space for Greenbelt CARES. Roberts suggested that adding a police substation to Beltway Plaza might be more effective than a police substation at Springhill Lake Recreation Center.
Davis then moved to approve ARPA Items 2-24 with resultant funding. Six councilmembers voted yes to the motion with Roberts voting no to the motion. The ARPA Priorities Spreadsheet is on the city’s website, greenbeltmd.gov (under Government, City Manager’s Office), and includes all 70 priorities.
Administrative Reports
George reported that the grant coordinator position has been posted and the new inclusion position is in the works. Director of Planning and Community Development Terri Hruby discussed a slight delay in the paving of Buddy Attick Park parking lot caused by a grading issue.
Legislation
Council considered a contract to build a new signage wall at the entrance of Historic Greenbelt on Southway for $39,000. Community Planner Holly Simmons explained that the monument signage purchase would be a cast stone monument with sidewalk repair. The contract does not include lighting or pole signs. Roberts said the contingency clause in the contract was not acceptable and he preferred a fixed-price contract. Total cost for the project would be $59,006.20. Jordan expressed that he does not favor this proposal because he would like more signs for Greenbelt East and West to better demarcate the city. Jordan also would like to include cleaning up the sign “clutter” of old and obsolete signs throughout Greenbelt. Council rejected legislation on the purchase of a gateway signage wall by a 3 to 4 vote.
Davis introduced a resolution for first reading to authorize the city to make recurring purchases exceeding $10,000 annually from specified vendors.
Reparations Commission
Council considered whether to extend the deadline for Reparations Commission applications, and discussed the interview process. Jordan questioned the necessity of having a deadline. He moved to keep the application process open until all positions are filled. Davis said that might lead to applicants being selected before all applicants had been interviewed. She wanted a fixed date and all applicants interviewed. If all the commission is not selected from that applicant pool, then the deadline can be extended. Davis felt that to get a diverse committee, all applicants in the pool must be interviewed until the committee has all its members. In terms of private vs. public interviews, the applicants for the Reparations Commission will be interviewed in the same way as for other committees. Rosado encouraged council to include a diverse group of applicants, including those from the business, religious and homeowners association (HOA) communities. Councilmember Kristen Weaver moved to extend the deadline until the end of August and do more to promote the committee to business, HOA communities and other groups. Six councilmembers favored the motion with Jordan voting no.
Labor Day Festival
A full Labor Day Festival is happening this year, for the first time since the pandemic. The Labor Day Parade will take place on Monday, September 5 from 10 a.m. to noon. The first parade took place in 1956. Resident Linda Ivy, president of the Greenbelt Labor Day Festival, mentioned the attractions of the Festival. Rides will be running on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. A wide variety of live music will be on site. For the latest information on the Labor Day Festival, go to greenbeltlaborday.com.
Nichelle Nichols
Byrd proposed that December 28 be named Nichelle Nichols Day, as Nichols was regularly active in NASA and visited Goddard Space Flight Center frequently. Nichols was an actor who played Lt. Uhura in the Star Trek television series, and was highly regarded for her work promoting science and engineering in space. Davis and Weaver suggested that establishment of an annual “person” day might lead to having every day be a person day. Jordan suggested having a proclamation this year only on December 28 for Nichelle Nichols based on her association with Greenbelt.
Davis moved for approval of the Forest Preserve Advisory Board Proposal to remove a small pavilion and the metal grill from the Greenbriar tract. Council unanimously approved the motion.