Town Council Notes
The next regular meeting will be Monday, December 10,
7:00 p.m., McCathran Hall. The public is invited to
attend. November Council actions included:
· approved appointment of Christine Dibble to Town
Board of Zoning Appeals
· approved appointments of Bob Booher, Clare
Cavicchi, Larry French, Chris Kirtz, and David
Neumann to the Town Historic Preservation
Commission
· awarded contract for Maple Lake dock replacement
· awarded contract for refinishing Town Hall floor
State Representatives Invited to Address Council
State Senator Hogan and State Delegates Barkley,
Carlson, and Stern have been invited to address the Town
Council at 7:00 p.m. prior to the December 10 Council
meeting. The public is encouraged to attend to learn
about priorities for the upcoming legislative session.
Unique Holiday Gift Mousetrap Concert Tickets
A few tickets remain for Mousetrap’s two spring
concerts. The Lumina String Quartet on Sunday, March
17 and Juliette Kang, violin and Thomas Kraines, cello
on Sunday, April 14. The perfect gift for the music lover
on your list! Call Alice Negin at 301-926-2858 or Ann
Briggs at 301-926-6347 for info and tickets.
New on the Web!
Web Coordinator Diana Talbert announces that you may
now download forms to reserve McCathran Hall or
Woodward Park fields from the Town’s website. A free
download is available from Adobe if you do not have the
necessary Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer.
Also several pages of handy information for residents
have been added. Please contact Diana at
[email protected] or call her at 301-926-5283 if
you have suggestions, comments, or contributions. We
strive to make this website a useful tool and a wonderful
reflection of life in Washington Grove.
www.washgrov.sailorsite.net.
Ridge Road Transfer to Town Complete
Thanks to the perseverance of Town Attorney Bill
Roberts, an agreement confirming the transfer of
jurisdiction over Ridge Road from Montgomery County
to the Town was executed on October 1.
Washington Grove Film Society Presents
A FREE film for the whole family . . .
Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights
Sunday, December 2, McCathran Hall, 7:00 p.m.
1931, USA, b/w, silent with music, 87 minutes
“All the different notes of his genius . . . the slapstick, the
pathos, the pantomime, the effortless physical
coordination, the melodrama, the bawdiness, the grace,
and, of course, the Little Tramp.” – Roger Ebert
Leaf Pickup Continues through December
Leaves raked or blown into windrows within 6 feet of any
walkway or roadway, excluding Railroad Street, 2nd
Avenue, 3rd Avenue, 4th Avenue, 5th Avenue, and
Boundary Street will be collected by the Town’s
contractor through December. Please place your
windrows with an eye towards traffic visibility and flow,
don’t conceal fire hydrants and don’t include brush or
limbs that foul the vacuum.
Call Nick Suzich at 301-869-9638 or, preferably, e-mail
at [email protected] with questions or concerns about
leaf pickup. Happy raking!
Children’s Chorus for Holiday Concert
All Grove kids (older kids especially welcome!) are
invited to sing at the Holiday Concert on Saturday,
December 15. Rehearsals have been scheduled at
McCathran Hall on Saturdays December 1, 8 and 15
beginning at 10 a.m. Please call Director Rose
McCathran at 301-869-5358 if you have questions.
Oxbridge Development Files Revised Subdivision Plan for Casey Fields
The revised plan proposes 125 single family detached
dwellings and 67 townhouses featuring a wide swath of
active recreation area along Ridge Road. The recreation
area shows both a regulation soccer field and a junior
soccer field, a basketball court, tennis court and tot lot.
Amity Drive follows a direct path through the 65-acre
site. The plan has been submitted to the County’s
Development Review division for their comments. The
Town continues to maintain that all development plans be
reviewed as a whole. Many aspects of the plans for both
Casey residential and industrial tracts will be scrutinized
by the Town and its consultants. Copies of the plans may
be viewed at the Town Office.
Application Filed for Special Exception to Build Productivity Housing on Casey Industrial Tract
Shady Grove Village LLC has filed an application with
the County Board of Zoning Appeals for a special
exception to build 904 housing units on a tract of land
bounded by Crabbs Branch Way, Shady Grove Road, the
railroad tracks and the back of Roberts’ Oxygen. The
County will require that 35% of these units be affordable
to families with incomes below the County median
income of $85,600. A combination of apartments,
townhouses and multi-family dwellings is planned. The
application will likely go before a hearing examiner early
next year.
Yard Waste Collection Contract to End for Season
November 28 will be the last collection date for brown
bags or containers of recyclable yard waste for the season.
Collection of recyclable yard waste, which drops
dramatically over the winter, will resume on March 1.
Town maintenance staff will pick up Christmas trees
from the curb in late December.
Gift Ideas from the Heritage Committee
· Notecards featuring historic Grove photographs (6
notes, 3 views) ($5)
· Washington Grove 1873-1937: A History of the
Washington Grove Camp Meeting Association, a book
by Grove Historian Phil Edwards ($12)
· Washington Grove 1937-1977: The First Forty Years
($20) by Phil Edwards
· Two-volume Grove History set ($27)
· Washington Grove: Town Within a Forest, 1989
videotape documentary ($15)
Woman’s Club Gift Ideas
· History of the Woman’s Club of Washington Grove by
Sylvia Tate Horan, ($20) Available from Ann Briggs
301-926-6347 or Town Office.
· Woman’s Club Cookbook “Second Helping”, 1995
edition of Grove recipes ($10) Available from Kitty
Vogan 301-840-9416 or Town Office.
· Baseball Caps Forest green with Gable logo and
WASHINGTON GROVE ($8) Available from Kitty
Vogan.
· Grove Gatherings – softcover book by Rosalie Hardy
Shantz ($5) Available from Kitty Vogan.
· Tee Shirts with Grove Cottage Peaks, in light blue,
pink, white or tan. Adult ($15) Child ($10) Available
from Mary Kay DuBois 301-926-8941 or Brenda
Gumula 301-869-5118.
Holiday Concert
Saturday, December 15, 7:30 p.m., McCathran Hall
Please join the Grove Singers and the Children’s Chorus
for this celebration of the holiday season. The children
will also dance in the “Trepak” scene from the
Nutcracker Suite. Come early to get a seat!
Yoga Classes Continue
Come relax your body and center your spirit with yoga
classes led by Integral Yoga instructor Terry Strother.
Classes are held at McCathran Hall from 7:00 to 8:30
p.m. every Wednesday except December 12. Bring a mat
and towel or blanket and $10 in cash or check made out
to Town of Washington Grove.
Planning Commission News
Next meeting will be Tuesday, December 4, 7:30 p.m.,
Town Hall. The public is welcome to attend.
Building Permits
If you are going to erect a building or structure (including
fences), make structural alterations to, or move any
existing building or other structure, you must first obtain
a building permit from the Washington Grove Planning
Commission. The Town zoning ordinance governs
setbacks, lot coverage, and height. Applications are
available at the Town Office at 301-926-2256. Please
allow at least 10 days for review by the Commission. Call
John McClelland at 301-963-3328 if you have questions
about zoning code requirements. Interior renovations,
which involve electrical, plumbing, or load-bearing
changes, generally require a County permit. The Town
must first sign off all applications for County-required
building permits.
Building Permits Issued
Brinkworth/Johnson, 204 Ridge Road, shed
Bush/Barr, 415 Center Street, shed
Kirtz, 102 Center Street, addition, fence
Rent the Woman’s Club House!
Planning a surprise birthday bash, family reunion,
graduation gala, wedding reception, planning session or
business meeting . . . consider the charming wooded
setting, spacious main room, screened porch, kitchen and
restroom facilities of the Woman’s Club House. For
information or reservations call Kitty Vogan at 301-840-
9416. Heat and air conditioning!!
Mom’s Club—Come Sing Along!
The Mom’s Club of Great Seneca will host music time
for children at McCathran Hall on Wednesday, December
12 at 10:30 a.m. Mark your calendars! All Grove
children are invited to participate. Please call Lawren
Selby at 301-963-7073 for more information or if you
plan to attend.
Kudos
To Susan van Nostrand and JoAnn Suzich for
organizing the kid’s Halloween parade and party
To Mary Kay DuBois and Birgit Henninger for
patching all the little divots in the tennis court
To Don Henninger for assembling the new tennis
bench
Burning Leaves and Waste in the Grove Prohibited
Please note that burning leaves and other waste is not
permitted in Washington Grove.
No Brush on Mulch Alley
Please do not put brush along Mulch Alley near the
Maintenance Shop. This practice was discontinued a
number of years ago in an effort to clean up the Center
Street walkway. Town maintenance staff regularly
collects brush put along the road in front of houses. If
we’ve missed you in the last couple of passes, please call
301-963-5850.
New Spanish Textbook Found
At intersection of Grove Road and Center Street. Call
Town Office at 301-926-2256 to claim.
Washington Grove Lane Clean Up
On October 27, Charlie Challstrom, John and Betsy
Klinger, Ken and Joli McCathran, Ann Philips and Joel
Shapiro, Amy Porter, Jean Potmesil, Ken and Tom
Stricklett and Lawren Selby braved the cold weather and
speeding traffic to clean up trash along Washington
Grove Lane. 1,480 lbs of trash was collected from along
the road and from the woods behind the Towne Crest
apartments. Jim Fletcher and Britt Garoni took several
mountains of trash bags to the Transfer Station. Many
thanks to these energetic volunteers. A joint pickup with
Towne Crest is being considered for the spring.
Help Us Preserve Hard Tennis Court
Please help us lengthen the life of the Grove’s hard court
by seeing that the court is used only for tennis and not for
bicycles, roller blades, scooters or any other activity that
might damage the surface. When the surface is broken
allowing water to penetrate, deterioration speeds up. In
the fall of 1998, the Town paid over $15,000 to have the
court resurfaced. With proper care, the court may last
many years. If you don’t feel comfortable stopping an
inappropriate activity yourself, please call someone who
will be able to. Thanks!
Washington Grove Tennis or Whatever it is
By Phil “Coach Adams Apple” Adams
If you would like a copy of the wonderful humorous
history of tennis in Washington Grove written by Phil
Adams, please stop by the Town Office.
Telephone Books Available
Need a new phone book? Montgomery County white
pages and yellow pages are available at the Town Office.
Old or unneeded phone books may be put out for mixed
paper recycling on Wednesdays. Please remove plastic
wrap or bags.
Planning Commissioner Irene Carrato Resigns
The Town is truly indebted to Irene Carrato who not only
served on the Planning Commission since May 1989, but
also was the Commissioner responsible for reviewing and
approving building permits for much of her tenure.
Irene’s civil engineering background was invaluable to
the Commission and very helpful in interacting with
Montgomery County. Thank you Irene for giving so
generously to your Town. The Planning Commission
vacancy will remain unfilled for now as the Town
Council is considering adoption of an ordinance changing
the composition of the Planning Commission from seven
members to five members plus an alternate to improve
the opportunities for a quorum.
Clare Cavicchi Authors Book on Historic Sites
and Districts in Montgomery County
The Germantown Historical Society and the Germantown
Community Library are sponsoring a book signing and
lecture by Clare Lise Cavicchi, author of Places from the
Past: The Tradition of Gardez Bien in Montgomery
County. The long-awaited book includes historic sites
and districts in Montgomery County with more than 730
archival and current photographs, maps, and floor plans.
The book also features artwork by Grove artist Joseph
Craig English. Clare, who lives in Washington Grove,
has been a historic preservation planner for the
Montgomery County Historic Preservation Commission
for twelve years. The book signing and lecture will be on
Tuesday, December 4, 7:30 p.m. at the Upcounty
Regional Services Center, 12900 Middlebrook Road,
Germantown. On Wednesday, December 5, all are
cordially invited to attend a wine and cheese reception at
Strathmore Hall in Rockville at 5 p.m. Copies of the
book will be available at the Montgomery County office
of The Maryland-National Capital Park & Planning
Commission, 8787 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, or
over the web at www.mc-mncppc.org/historic, or by
calling 301-495-4610.
Jim the Dog
a stray in Silver Spring, and given to Linda to bring home
for the weekend. (He remained here for over thirteen
years.) When he first arrived, he appeared to be about 4
years old, and had some mix of longhaired Chihuahua or
Pomeranian.
Jim participated in more Grove activities than most of us,
and contributed his sweet smile and cocked head to many
gatherings. He liked to roam the neighborhood despite
our efforts to fence him in, feed him well, and provide
him with a good home. He would go out at all hours of
the day or night in search of his previous home,
adventure, food, or who knows what? (but he always
managed to return home.) His scariest adventure was an
extended night out in December 1999 when he separated
from the Christmas tree hunters in the Franz Tree Farm
near Damascus.
Jim often marched in the July 4th Parade, and sometimes
received write-in votes for the Mayor of Washington
Grove. His favorite activities were Town gatherings
where he would find a strategic, though unassuming
position near the food. When confronted with the leash
law, Jim pretended to be a cat, not because he loved cats
so much, but because he envied their freedom. (He
managed to escape the law to the end.)
As Jim grew to be a senior citizen, his gait slowed a little,
although he could still hold his own in the short dashes.
His hearing vanished (selectively), and he wandered less
far from home. For the last year, Jim found a warm
second home at the Negins, where he would sit for hours
sharing their living room, and staring into outer space.
Jim died peacefully in his sleep on November 12, 2001.
His ashes will be scattered around the Grove in memory
of what it provided for him. Jim found the Grove to be a
wonderful home – larger than any one family could
provide. The Grove also very much loved Jim.
Montgomery County Commission for Women
Counseling and Career Center
Information packets available at Town Office.
www.co.mo.md.us/cfw
Hazardous Materials Disposal
Sunday, December 2, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Shady Grove
Transfer Station
Calendar
Dec 1 Children’s Chorus, Town Hall, 10a.m.
Dec 2 Chaplin’s “City Lights”, Town Hall, 7 p m.
Dec 2 Hazardous Materials Disposal, 10am-2pm
Dec 4 Planning Commission, 7:30 p m.
Dec 4 Cavicchi Book Signing & Lecture, 7:30 p m.
Dec 5 Cavicchi Book Signing & Reception, 5 p.m.
Dec 10 Town Council, 7:00 p m.
Dec 10 Deadline for Next Bulletin
Dec 12 Moms Club, Town Hall, 10:30 a.m.
Dec 15 Holiday Concert, 7:30 p m.