Greenbelters attended three meetings this week about the proposed SCMaglev (superconducting magnetic levitation) train project. Citizens asked questions of the project developer, Baltimore Washington Rapid Rail (BWRR), on Friday, January 19 at the New Deal Café. At the Greenbelt Firehouse on January 20 community organizations and elected leaders gathered while people signed letters of concern to the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA). BWRR sponsored an additional meeting at the New Deal Café on January 23.
At the January 19 meeting, BWRR Project Director David Henley, Executive Vice-President Furqan Siddiq and Director of Community and External Affairs Kisha Brown fielded questions and distributed brochures, including a sheet of frequently asked questions and a sheet addressing misconceptions about the project. The question and answer session began at 8:30 a.m. and lasted several hours. “[Sixteen] to 20 people showed up,” according to Robert Snyder, a Greenbelt resident and project supporter who attended the meeting.
On Saturday, Greenbelt Advocates for Environmental and Social Justice, Citizens Against the SCMaglev and Greenbelt Forest Preserve advocates gathered at 11 a.m. to participate in a letter-writing campaign and view a large map with proposed routes. Over 170 people attended, according to Donna Almquist of Greenbelt Advocates for Environmental and Social Justice.
Read more of this story in the January 25 News Review.
