OldNews

Last updated 4/14/2005

Prior News Articles:

2005

Mayor Beck to Stand Trial February 22, 2006 December 21, 2005 According to court docket papers (PDF Format), Mayor Beck is scheduled to stand trial for two counts of assault on February 22, 2006 at 1:15 p.m. in room 263 in the Prince George's District Court in Upper Marlboro, Prince George's County, Maryland. Also scheduled to stand trial with Ms. Beck on one of the assault charges are Katharina Clark and Mary Wimbush. of Forest Heights.

Both cases stem from alleged incidences in the Forest Heights Municipal Building located at 5508 Arapahoe Drive in Forest Heights in which a door was alleged to have been used in the assault -- in the first incident a Forest Heights Police Officer in the entrance hallway outside the Town Clerk's Office, and in the second incident in the main meeting room on the second floor of the building. Details of the charges filed by former Police Chief Michael Eubank involving Lt. Waithe of the FHPD can be viewed by clicking here (PDF Format 1.1MB) (HTML Format) and the charges filed by former Councilwoman Lynn Smith-Barnes (PDF Format) (HTML Format).

Please note that the court documents cited above may be changed in the future by the District Court, and therefore should not be relied upon for legal purposes. Persons wishing to use such documents for legal purposes should obtain current documents from the Clerk of the Court in Room 170B of the Prince George's County Court House in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

Charter Amendments December 20, 2005 On November 16, 2005, the Town Council approved 12 resolutions to change the Town Charter numbered 3 through 14. These resolutions would do the following: [number in parenthesis refer to the amendment number; all links are to PDF Format files] (3) delete charter language establishing the Mayor as the Chief Executive Office of the Town government; (4) provide for Council approval of the dismissal of Department, Office and Agency heads; (5) eliminate the Mayor's financial control over the financial administration of the Town; (6) provide that the mayor holding office on January 6, 2006 shall cease holding such office and a new Mayor chosen according to Charter procedures; (7) provide that the Town Clerk may act as the Town Treasurer for a period of no more than ninety days and shall be supervised by a Council person selected by the majority of the Council; (8) change the date of the next election to the office of Mayor to the second Wednesday of May 2007 and every four years thereafter; (9) change the term of office of Council members to four years; (10) provide for the financial power of the Treasurer, serving under the supervision of the Council; (11) remove the Mayor as having supervision of the Treasurer, (12) defines the terms Mayor and Council as used in the Charter to refer to the Council as a body; (13) set a procedure for the Council enforces a code of conduct for the Town's elected and appointed officials; (14) provide that Town checks be signed by the Treasurer, Council President and one other Council member.

Under Maryland Annotated Code Article 23A, the Charter amendments will go into effect on January 6, 2005, unless a petition is signed by 20 percent of the Town's registered voters requesting that a referendum be held on the Charter amendments. For basic rules relating to municipal charter amendments, readers are referred to the Maryland Municipal League's handbook on Charter Amendment Procedures.

Mayor Beck Charged with Assault October 26, 2005 Mayor Joyce A. Beck was charged with second degree assault in Maryland District Court in Upper Marlboro on October 20, 2005. According to court papers (PDF Format) her trial date is set for November 23, 2005. The charge relates to an alleged incident occurring on September 12, 2005 at the Forest Heights Municipal Building.

Police Chief Dismissed October 25, 2005 Mayor Beck fired Michael Eubank as Chief of the Forest Heights Police Department and appointed Officer Larry Blake as the acting commander of the Police Department. The FHPD has now three police officers protecting Forest Heights.

Mayor Nominates Treasurer September 9, 2005 Mayor Beck nominated Joycelyn Boissiere to be the Town Treasurer at the September 6, 2005 Council workshop session. Ms. Boissiere indicated that she had worked for the Embassy of Nigeria and several firms as an accountant, and has an associate degree in accounting from Prince George's Community College. It is expected that the Council will consider her nomination at the September 21, 2005 Town meeting.

There was some discussion as to whether the Council would go into an executive session to further discuss the hiring of Ms. Boissiere, but it was finally decided that an executive session was not necessary. However, during that discussion, Mayor Beck described the Town in rather stark language, complaining the Town was operating in a state of financial or fiscal chaos for a number of years. She said that the Town looked like trash and a ghetto. She also said that she was ready to ask the State to revoke the Town Charter. Readers are invited to listen to Mayor Beck's full statement on this matter by clicking here. [Note this is a large 2.3 Megabyte MP3 file and can played on Window's media player or other multi-media software programs. It is approximately two and a half minutes long. Your PC must have speakers attached, and should have DSL or cable high-speed internet access.]

At the workshop session the Council also discussed the possible operation of an on-call bus service using a 17 passenger bus awarded to the Town as a grant by Prince George's County. Some input was obtained from Town residents attending the meeting on various aspects of providing bus service to transport senior citizens, handicapped persons, students and other Forest Heights residents to medical appointments and other destinations in the vicinity of the Town. The service would also be made available to residents of nearby communities such as Glassmanor and Birchwood City. Mayor Beck proposed that the fare would be $2 to cover the cost of operating the vehicle, but would be low enough to generate sufficient demand to justify the operation of the vehicle.

Mayor Beck announced that the Town would be participating in an effort to raise contributions for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. She said that a flyer would be distributed the next day to Town residents with specific instructions. She said that a Town employee, Gloria Wallace, had attended a press conference held by the Governor and the County Executive, at which coordinated efforts were presented for Maryland and Prince George's County in providing relief aid.

Jim Halsted of J&J Contractors gave a presentation at the beginning of the work session on his proposal for replacing the roof on the municipal building. Based on his inspection, he recommended replacing the entire roof, including the caps on the top of the building's walls. He noted that the original roof was gravel over tar paper which did not require a drain slope, but in subsequent years that surface was replaced by a membrane roof which led to water accumulating on the roof. His proposal, for about $40 thousand, would use insulating material to create a proper taper for drainage. The other proposal presented at the meeting was for Clinton General Contractors, and under that proposal, only part of the roof would be repaired for about $8 thousand. Mr. Stroud, of Habitat for Humanity, who gave the presentation, said that he did not believe the entire roof needed to be replaced at this time, although eventually it would have to be replaced.

Mr. Stroud, speaking then for Habitat for Humanity, also gave a presentation regarding a proposal by Habitat for Humanity to build a house on the vacant lot at 135 North Huron Drive. The vacant lot, formally a WSSC pumping station, is now owned by the Town of Forest Heights. Under a proposal by Mayor Beck to donate the land, Habitat for Humanity would construct a house using volunteer labor, and then sell the House to a low income family, with the highest priority being a family now living in Forest Heights. Mr. Stroud said that his organization would provide continued support to the new owner, and in their experience these owners tend to be good neighbors and an asset to the community.

Council Amends Town Budget August 29, 2005 At a special meeting of the Town Council on August 29, 2005, the Council further amended the Town's FY 2006 budget to adjust the appropriation for the Forest Heights Police Department and other technical amendments. The budget can be viewed in PDF format by clicking here.

While the Council was debating the budget, Mayor Beck abruptly called the public hearing on the budget adjourned and declared the remainder of the meeting a work session. However, the Council refused to agree to adjourn the meeting. Mayor Beck ordered the acting town clerk to leave the room, and Mayor Beck also left. The Town Council continued the meeting with Council President Larry Stoner chairing the meeting.

Council Passes Emergency Ordinance August 29, 2005 At the conclusion of their work on amending the Town budget, the Council passed an emergency ordinance limiting unescorted access to the Police Department area within the municipal building. The concern was that the Forest Heights police could lose their access to FBI and other investigative data bases under the current situation wherein a person who was not a sworn officer or an official of the police department could enter the police area and read investigative reports and other sensitive material that were meant for police officers. Councilman Wiggers introduced a proposed resolution that would formally establish the Forest Heights Police Department under section 33-20 (b) (39) of the Town Charter. However, during the discussion on the proposed resolution, Councilman Spires said that the FBI was aware of the situation, and that he had been informed that either the Council take action on the matter or the FBI would take steps to revoke the Forest Heights Police Department's access to the Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS).

The Maryland Code provides that "except in accordance with applicable federal law and regulations, a criminal justice unit and the central repository may not disseminate criminal history record information" [Md, Code Ann. Crim. Pro. § 10-219 (a)] and furthermore, a criminal justice unit, includes among other things a municipal police unit when such unit is exercising jurisdiction over criminal matters, alternative dispositions of criminal matters or criminal history record information [Md. Code Ann. Crim. Pro. § 10-201 (f) (2)].

Councilman Spires therefore moved that the resolution introduced by Councilman Wiggers be amended to make it into an emergency ordinance which would, among other matters, forbid any civilian, town official or non-police department personnel access to the police facility without an escort by an officer or police department official. Councilman Spires said such an ordinance was necessary in order to maintain the effectiveness of the Forest Heights Police Department in maintaining safety and security in the Town of Forest Heights.

The emergency ordinance was passed on a 5-0 vote by Councilmen Atkinson, Ross, Spires, Stoner and Wiggers. The emergency ordinance can be viewed in PDF format by clicking here.

Chief Eubank Demoted August 23, 2005 The special Town meeting of August 23, 2005 was initially called to work on the Town budget, but the Council decided that it did not have enough information to work on the budget that evening. Mayor Beck attended the meeting, but announced that she would sit in the audience as a citizen, as she did not have proper notice that the meeting was being called. Notwithstanding her assertion that she was not participating in the meeting as a Town official, Mayor Beck continued to participate in the meeting, at one point asserting that she was the Mayor.

There was a caustic interchange during the meeting between Mayor Beck and Councilman Spires about the Police Department, and Councilman Spires asked Mayor Beck whether Eubank was the chief of police. Mayor Beck responded that he was the chief and sitting downstairs. At that point, Councilman Spires read into the record a July 26, 2005 letter from Mayor Beck to Chief Eubank relieving him of his responsibilities as chief of police. The letter is now in the public domain, and it can be downloaded in PDF format by clicking here. In the ensuing discussion, Mayor Beck called the letter a lie and demanded to know who had provided it to the Council.

Council Passes Three Resolutions August 17, 2005 At the August 17, 2005 Town meeting, the Forest Heights Town Council passed three resolutions (1) Adoption of Rules of Order (PDF Format), (2) Amendment of the Town Budget (PDF Format), and (3) Replacement of the Treasurer at the Request of the Mayor (PDF Format).

In the Council's debate over the passage of the Rules of Order, Mayor Beck made two points: (a) section 33-6 of the Town Charter requires that the Council adopt the rules of order at the Town meeting on the third Wednesday in May because it states: "The Council shall meet at 8:00 P.M. on the third Wednesday in May of each year for the purpose of organization, after which the Council shall meet the third Wednesday of each month.
Special meetings shall be called by the Town Clerk upon the request of the Mayor or at least three of the members of the Council. All meetings of the Council shall be open to the public, and the rules of the Council shall provide that residents of the Town shall have a reasonable opportunity to be heard at any meeting in regard to any municipal question", and (b) the Council had already adopted rules of order at the February 2005 workshop session. Councilman Wiggers pointed out that section 33-6 does not prohibit the Council from adopting rules of order at any times, and section 33-10 gives the Council express authority to adopt its own rules. Councilman Ross pointed out that the rules developed in the February 2005 workshop were not formally adopted as the Council does not normally vote in workshop sessions.

In the debate over the amendment to the Town budget, Mayor Beck said that the Council could not amend the budget based on advice from the Town Attorney which she read at the meeting. Click here for a copy of the Attorney's letter. [Editor's note: We would typically not publish a letter containing legal advice from the Town Attorney, but since Mayor Beck read the letter into the public record at the meeting, it is now in the public domain.] Councilman Wiggers noted that the proposed amendments to the budget did not contain any increase in Town taxes, which Attorney Ticer's letter indicated were not legal based on a precedent in the State of Rhode Island. Councilmen Atkinson, Ross, Spires, Stoner and Wiggers voted in favor of adopting the budget, and Mayor Beck abstained, indicating she and the town residents had not been included in putting the budget amendment together.

Councilman Wiggers introduced the resolution that would formally appoint the Town Clerk, Bonita Anderson, as the acting Treasurer until the September Town meeting. Mayor Beck and Councilman Spires objected to a section in the resolution which would require the former Town Treasurer, Pearman, Bobo, Fulse, LLC, to be retained as a consultant to provide a transition for the new Treasurer. The resolution was amended to remove that requirement before being approved by the Council.

Council Meeting Meltdown July 22, 2005 The July 22, 2005 meeting was called to amend the Town budget. However, when Councilman Wiggers moved to add some items to the agenda, Mayor Beck recessed the meeting while the Town Clerk went to prepare and reproduce an amended agenda, and during the recess she consulted with the Town Attorney, Wilmer Ticer, who was attending the meeting. After the recess, Mayor Beck made several statements: (1) adoption of rules of order will not be discussed but will be referred to the rules committee, (2) the request to reinstate the June 24, 2005 budget will not be discussed because it was not voted on and was forwarded to the State of Maryland on the evening of June 30, 2005 [editors note: we requested the name of the State agency to which the June 30, 2005 budget was sent and the Town Clerk could not provide that information. We also contacted the Maryland Department of Legislative Services where Town audits are sent, and the Maryland Municipal League, and were told that there was no requirement for municipalities to submit their budgets to the State], and (3) the discussion on the proposed resolution regarding the Town Treasurer and Chief of Police would also not be discussed becaue the Council was suing the Town. Mayor Beck then when on to discuss the poor performance of Dennis Bobo as the Treasurer and stated that she fired him.

Mayor Beck then requested Councilman Wiggers to turn off his tape recorder, but Councilman Ross objected noting that the Open Meetings Act allows anyone to record a public meeting.

Mayor Beck then turned the meeting over to the citizens who were attending. The first citizen raised an issue about a publication that Mayor Beck had circulated to the Town residents in which she defended her instructions to the police in the matter of making arrests. In the letter, which is available here in modified form in PDF format, Mayor Beck accuses a citizen of a lie [editor's note: names and addresses have been omitted from the letter because it is the policy of this on-line newspaper not to print negative or defamatory information about private Forest Heights citizens]. The citizens affected by the letter were irate and threatened to sue the Town.

The meeting ended when a quorum of the Council left the room.

Council Re-Passes Same FY2006 Budget June 30, 2005 At a special meeting of the Town Council called by Mayor Beck, the Council again passed the same budget it passed on June 24, 2005. The meeting had standing room only for Town citizens and was attended by TV and print news media. The meeting was chaired by Mayor Beck, and Council persons Alice Hoskins and George Wiggers (Ward I), Clifton Atkinson and Myles Spires (Ward II), and Worthington Ross and Larry Stoner (Ward III) were present.

Mayor Beck said had requested the Council vote on the budget because she said it was not passed in compliance with the Open Meetings Act as required by the State of Maryland. Councilman Stoner made a motion to pass the same budget that was passed by the Council on June 24, 2005, and was seconded by Councilman Ross. Councilman Spires said he disagreed with a number of items in the budget, and he gave as an example that fact that the budget included an amount of $15,000 for revision of the Town's Charter and Ordinances. Councilman Wiggers raised several points (1) he believed the budget passed by the Council on June 24, 2005 was a valid budget, (2) the issue of the whether the Council's action on June 24, 2005 was moot because the Open Meetings Act itself exempts from court challenge any actions that appropriate funds, and finally that the Mayor's action in refusing to allow signs to be posted were the cause of any deficiencies of the Council's good faith efforts to hold a proper open meeting on June 24, 2005. Notwithstanding those issues Councilman Wiggers moved to amend Councilman Stoner's motion to substitutes for the Resolution that the Mayor had placed in the Council's folders with the resolution, as signed by the four Councilmen on June 24, 2005. That motion, was seconded by Councilman Ross. Mayor Beck expressed concern that the original resolution passed on June 24, 2005 included language that mandated that funds for Council members attending conventions could not be impounded. After further discussion, including comments from citizens attending the meeting, the motion to amend was voted on, with Councilman Spires the casting the sole dissenting vote. Finally, the amended main motion was voted on by the Council with Councilman Spires again casting the sole dissenting vote. The attending citizens gave a great sigh of relief that the budget was finally passed.

Council Passes FY 2006 Budget June 25, 2005 At a special meeting of the Town Council on June 24, 2005, the Forest Heights Town Council voted to pass a budget for the fiscal year beginning on July 1, 2005 on a 4-0 vote. In attendance at the meeting were Council President Larry Stoner (Ward III) and Councilmen Clifton Atkinson (Ward II), Worthington Ross (Ward III) and George Wiggers (Ward I).

Councilman Ross introduced the budget resolution, which was seconded by Councilman Wiggers. In the debate that followed, and with further input from the citizens present at the meeting, the proposed budget was amended on the floor by a motion from Councilman Wiggers to increase the salaries of all members of the Police Department, including the civilian clerk, by seven percent over their current salaries. All other Town employees were to receive a four percent increase in pay. Salaries of elected official must be set by ordinance, so they were not affected by the raises given to the Town's civil service. The increase in pay for the Police Department was deducted from the amount allocated for street repair.

The budget generally followed the proposed budget submitted to the Council by Mayor Beck with the exception that revenues were increased by about $34,000 because of information received by the Council from the Maryland Comptrollers office on the amounts of income tax revenues to be received by the Town in FY 2005. Other changes included an allocation of overtime and court pay for the Police Department, and overtime pay for the Clerk's office and the Public Works Department. Also, the Council increased the allocation for training and conventions for members of the Town Council and for dues conferences and meetings for the Police Department. Finally, the amount originally proposed by the Mayor for street repair was reduced by $100,000 and a new item for a CDBG street project of $100,000 was added, but made contingent upon the approval of such a grant by Prince George's County.

The budget resolution can be viewed by clicking here (PDF Format).

Council to Meet on FY 2006 Budget June 23, 2005 The Town Council will meet tonight, Friday, June 24, 2005 at 7:30 p.m. at the Municipal Building to consider the Mayor's proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2006. The Council is expected to pass a budget at the meeting. Mayor Beck announced at the June 22, 2005 public hearing on the budget that she had a prior commitment and would not be able to attend. It is anticipated that Council President Larry Stoner will chair the meeting in her absence.

Mayor Beck issued a note to the Council and Town employees, with a copy to the Town residents advising that in the absence of a budget it is "likely that all administrative, public safety and environmental services will be suspended effective July 1, 2005 and until Forest Heights Town Council has adopted a Fiscal Year 2006 Town Budget." Click here for the complete text of the Mayor's Memorandum (PDF Format).

Public Hearing on Budget June 6, 2005 A public hearing on the FY2006 Budget has been scheduled for June 22, 2005. Mayor Beck's proposed budget can be found

Mayor to Present FY2006 Budget May 28, 2005 The Mayor and Town Council will meet at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 31, 2005. It is anticipated that Mayor Beck will submit her proposed FY2006 budget to the Council at this meeting. Under section 33-45 of the Town Charter, before adopting the budget the Council is required to hold a public hearing thereon after providing a two weeks notice. At this time, we have not been informed of the date of the public hearing.

Meeting of the Mayor and Council May 23, 2005 Addendum Mayor Beck chaired her first meeting of the Town Council as Mayor. The primary focus of the meeting was to discuss the Town budget for FY2006, but a number of other items were also included on the agenda (PDF Format) (HTML Format). In attendance were Mayor Beck, and Council Members Alice Hoskins, Myles Spires, George Wiggers and Larry Stoner (arrived late). At the beginning of the meeting, Mayor Beck emphasized that the meeting was not being conducted as a public hearing on the Town budget as had been previously announced but would be conducted as a workshop meeting.

Town Treasurer Dennis Bobo briefed the Council and other attendees on a draft proposed budget for FY2006 (PDF Format) that was distributed to Council members and the attending citizens. Mayor Beck again emphasized that the numbers included in the proposed budget distributed at the meeting were not likely to appear when she formally submitted a budget to the Council.

Mayor Beck announced that there is a problem with respect to the work ongoing at the Municipal Building to make it handicapped accessible. The problem is that the terms of the grant was limited to making the building handicapped assessable, and did not include moving the Police Department from its current location to what had been the Room 2 area. If an agreement cannot be reached with the Prince George's County Department of Housing and Community Development, the Town may have to absorb the cost of the project related to relocating the Police Department within the Municipal Building.

Mayor Beck said that she was not able to reach an agreement with Councilman Spires regarding withdrawal of his lawsuit against the Town. Councilman Myles Spires blasted Councilman Wiggers regarding his alleged role in the circulation of defamatory information during the recent election campaign.

Mayor Beck proposed to hire former Maintenance Supervisor Bill Clarke as the part-time Director of Public Works. Mr. Clarke's appointment was approved by a voice vote of the Council. Mayor Beck then submitted Acting Chief Eubank to be appointed as the permanent Police Chief. Upon an affirmative vote of the Town Council, Michael Eubank was appointed the Chief of the Forest Heights Police Department. Finally, Mayor Beck proposed hiring Wilmer Ticer, Esq. a former attorney for the Town of Forest Heights as the Town Attorney to replace Kevin Best, Esq. who resigned after the election. With one abstention, Mr. Ticer was approved as the Town Attorney.

Meeting of the Mayor and Council May 23, 2005 The Town Clerk, Bonita Anderson, has announced that the public hearing on the Town's budget for FY2006, originally scheduled for May 23, 2005 will not be held on that date. No new date for the budget hearing has been announced. Instead Ms. Anderson said that the Mayor and Town Council will meet at 6:30 p.m. on May 23 to discuss the budget. No other information is available at this time regarding the budget. An example given later was that the proposed budget contained an amount of $64 thousand on page 5 for a Town Administrator. Mayor Beck announced that she intended not to hire an administrator to replace Cynthia Farrar who resigned on May 11, 2005.

Mayor Beck announced that she would keep office hours in the evening after her full-time job with the County, and that she intended to keep Bonita Anderson as the Town Clerk. She also said that she would keep an assistant to help Ms. Anderson in the office. Mayor Beck also urged citizens to become familiar with the General Powers of the Council under section 33-20 of the Town Charter (PDF Format).

Joyce Beck Sworn in as Mayor May 18, 2005 Ward II Councilwoman, Joyce Beck, was sworn in as Mayor of Forest Heights by State Senator Gloria Lawlah. Also sworn in were newly elected Council Members Alice E. Hoskins of Ward I and Myles Spires of Ward II, and re-elected Councilman Worthington Ross of Ward III. Outgoing Ward I Councilwoman and Council President Lynn Smith-Barnes acted as the presiding officer for the meeting.

The swearing-in ceremony was well attended with a standing room only attendance of citizens and dignitaries from Prince George's County and the State of Maryland. Among others in attendance were former County Council Member Sue V. Mills, former State Senator Frank J. Komenda, Maryland State Delegates Obie Patterson and Veronica Turner, Former Forest Heights Mayor Kemp Cook, and former Forest Heights Council Members Anne Reifsneider and Jerome Corrigan. Former Mayor Warren Adams was unable to attend, but sent a letter of congratulations to Mayor Beck. The meet began with the singing of the National Anthem by Town Citizen Precious Hatchett and a prayer by the Reverend Wesley A. Toepper.

Town Council Special Meeting May 16, 2005 The Town Council met on May 16, 2005. Councilwoman and Mayor-elect Joyce Beck chaired the meeting and was also attended by Council members George Wiggers, Cliff Atkinson, and Larry Stoner. Council President Lynn Smith-Barnes arrived about mid-way into the meeting. A number of citizens also attended the meeting. Councilman Worthington Ross was unable to attend because of illness.

In response to a comment by Councilman Wiggers, Mayor-elect Beck said that she did not campaign on a platform of reducing taxes, but indicated she would be open on that matter. She reiterated her campaign promise to negotiate with Councilman-elect Myles Spires regarding the withdrawal of his court suit requesting the court, among other matters, roll back the tax increase approved last year. In the ensuing discussion several citizens indicated they would support a tax increase provided they receive services from the Town. In addition to the need to repair the Town's streets, citizens also voiced concern over a need for improved police protection.

Founder's Day and Yard Sale Canceled May 17, 2005 The Founder's Day celebration and Yard Sale scheduled for May 21, 2005 has been canceled.

Town Attorney Resigns May 16, 2005 Mr. Kevin J. Best, Esq., Town Attorney has tendered his resignation.

Maintenance Supervisor Retires May 17, 2005 Bill Clarke, the Town's maintenance supervisor, a fixture in the Town Maintenance Department for 23 years, has retired. A Forest Heights resident, Mr. Clarke and his wife Katie Clarke, have generously volunteered their time to the betterment of the Town. They have continued to participate in Town civic activities after Mr. Clarke's retirement. The Forest Heights News Report congratulates Mr. Clarke on his long career in service to the Town and wishes Bill and Katie the best in their retirement.

Special Meeting of the Town Council May 16, 2005 The Town Council will meet at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, May 16, 2005 at the Municipal Building.

Mayor Noble's Father Dies May 13, 2005 William "Bo" Noble, father of Mayor Paula Noble, passed away on Friday, May 13, 2005. The notice in the Washington Post can be found at the following link. We extend our sincerest condolences to Mayor Noble and her family on the loss of her father.

Administrator Resigns May 12, 2005 We have been informed by the Town Clerk that Cynthia Farrar, the Town Administrator, resigned her position effective May 11, 2005.

Election Results May 11, 2005 The results of the Town election are as follows:

For Mayor
*Joyce A. Beck - 219 (includes 4 absentee votes)
Paula Noble - 151 (includes 2 absentee votes)

Council Seats:
Ward I
C. Lynn Smith-Barnes - 42
*Alice E. Hoskins - 63 (includes 2 absentee votes)
Ward II
Tommy Lee Davis - 49 (includes 3 absentee votes)
*Myles Spires - 82
Ward III
*Worthington Ross - 97 (includes 1 absentee vote)

* indicates election winner

A total of 370 votes were cast for Mayor, and 333 votes were cast for Ward Council seats.

Addendum: May 12, 2005 We were informed by the Town Clerk that there were several write-in candidates recorded on the voting machines, but that no votes were cast for these candidates. It was explained to us that the machines have the capability for a voter writing in names on the ballot, but the voter is able to not cast a vote or a vote for another candidate before leaving the voting machine (only one vote each is permitted for Mayor and Council member for the ward of the voter). The write in names for Mayor were MYLESSPIRESROSSROSS, MCGINNIS'SUE, QUINCY-HINES. There were no write-in names for Wards I and II, but the following names were written in for Ward III: DAVIS, DONALD DUCK, BILL CLARKE and TAUNYA-HINES. Again, the machines reported no votes being cast for the write-in candidates.

Budget Hearing Scheduled for May 23 May 9,2005 The May 2005 Special Edition of the Forest Heights News announced that there will be a public hearing on the Town's proposed FY2006 budget.

Town Council Information Session May 2,2005 Steve Proctor of G.S. Proctor & Associates (GSP&A) briefed the Town Council on the results of his lobbying efforts this year on behalf of the Town of Forest Heights. As reported earlier in this Newspaper, Proctor & Associates were hired in October 2004 to assist the Town in obtaining grants and other funding for the Town. On April 4, 2005 we also reported on a letter from State Senator Gloria Lawlah announcing a $175,000 grant (Bond Bill) to the Town by the Maryland General Assembly. The grant terms can be found in House Bill 340 (PDF Format) , which states in section ZA02 Local Senate Initiatives Subsection BF "(BF) Forest Heights Road Improvements. Provide a grant of $175,000 to the Mayor and Town Council of the Town of Forest Heights for the repair and reconstruction of roads, including Marlboro Pike, in Forest Heights (Prince George's County)." According to Mr. Proctor, this is now money due to the Town of Forest Heights, and the Town Council has only to pass a resolution accepting the funds.

Mr. Proctor's briefing went beyond the bond bill initiative, and he provided a May 2, 2005 letter (PDF Format) to the Mayor describing other GSP&A accomplishments. Significant items in the letter include an agreement with the Lt.. Governor that the State Highway Administration will perform $2 million in work on Indian Head Highway from the D.C. line to the Beltway, an agreement with the Metro system to install bus shelters at the stops in Forest Heights, and an opportunity for the Town to participate in a one-time share of $20.64 million earmarked in Conference Committee's Report on House Bill 150 (PDF Format) for any municipality authorized by law to maintain roads or streets.

International Recognition May 1, 2005 Mayor Noble was featured in an article in the second issue of Faces of Power, a new magazine published by the Jahs Publishing Group of Riverdale Maryland. The cover features Mayor Noble along with other Notables from around the world, such as former President Clinton, Rep Shiela Jackson Lee, and Liberian Presidential candidate Dr. Woah Tee, Sr. are also featured in this issue. The article on Mayor Noble portrays her as an advocate for youth and interested in bringng the community together.

January through April 2005

Candidates for Office April 14, 2005 The following town residents have filed for office in the upcoming May 11, 2005 town election.

Mayor: Paula Noble (incumbent), Joyce A. Beck.
Council Members:
   Ward I: C. Lynn Smith-Barnes (incumbent), Alice E. Hoskins.
   Ward II: Tommy Lee Davis, Myles Spires.
   Ward III: Worthington S. Ross (incumbent).
    Note: Above links are to the candidates statements (PDF Format) filed for publication in the Forest Heights News.

Deadline for Voter Registration April 14, 2005 Section 33-23 of the Town Charter says that a person who resides in Forest Heights can vote in the Town election if they are registered to vote with the Prince George's County Board of Election Supervisors. According to the County's website, residents can register year-round except 21 days prior to any election and 11 days after any election. Persons may either register in person (see the County's website for locations) or by downloading a registration form (PDF Format) and mailing it to: Prince George's County Board of Elections, 14741 Gov. Oden Bowie Drive, Suite 205, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772-3070. Please note, if you recently moved into the Town from elsewhere in Prince George's County, or moved from one Ward in Forest Heights to another Ward, you must provide the new address information to the County Board of Election Supervisors 21 days prior to the May 11, 2005 Town election in order to ensure eligibility to vote in that election.

Bond Issue for Road Repair April 14, 2005 Mayor Noble, in the April edition (PDF Format) of the Forest Heights News, announced that a lawsuit filed by Town resident Myles Spires has adversely affected the Town's ability to secure financing for the bond issue that was intended to help the Town finance needed repairs to the Town's streets and installation of sidewalks. She noted that an engineer, Oscar Baca, hired by the Town had found that of the 32 Town streets, 15 were in bad condition and 10 were fair to bad. A summary of Mr. Baca's report in PDF Format can be downloaded by clicking here. Mr. Baca estimated it would take $2.33 million to repair the Town's street and sidewalk infrastructure over a seven year period.

State Grant for Town Roads April 4, 2005 In a letter (PDF Format) to Mayor Noble, State Senator Gloria Lawlah announced today that the Town will receive a grant of $175,000 for the repair and reconstruction of roads in Forest Heights. The award of this grant culminates extensive work by the the Town's lobbyist, G.S. Proctor & Associates (contract in PDF Format). The Town Council approved that work on a 6 to 1 vote at the September 15, 2004 Town meeting (minutes PDF Format, HTML Format).

Deadline for Candidate Nominations March 31, 2005 April 1, 2005 is the deadline for submitting the Certificate of Nomination form (PDF Format) to the Town Clerk for the May 2005 election. Candidates for office should also submit a candidate's statement for publication in the Forest Heights News by April 1, 2005. See the March Forest Heights News insert (PDF Format) (HTML Format). (See also the Voting and Elections page of this website for more information on Forest Heights elections.)

New Forest Heights Newspaper March 31, 2005 Mr. Myles Spires, a resident of Forest Heights is editing a newspaper, the Forest Heights Herald Examiner. With his permission, we have provided the following link to the first edition of this newspaper (PDF Format). [Editor's Note: The Forest Heights News Report does not endorse news, opinions or other information contained in the Herald Examiner, but we are providing this link in the interest of promoting discussion and exchange of information in the Forest Heights community.]

Financial Reporting March 17, 2005 Councilman George Wiggers introduced a resolution at the March 16, 2005 Town meeting that would require the Town Treasurer to provide quarterly financial reporting (PDF Format) (HTML Format) to the Town Council. Councilman Clifton Atkinson provided a second to the motion, and Council President Lynn Smith Barnes made a motion to amend the resolution, which was adopted by voice vote of the Council, with Councilwoman Joyce Beck indicating that she was abstaining from the vote on the amendment. Councilman Wiggers then moved that the final vote on the resolution be delayed until the next meeting, which was agreed to by the chair.

Reschedule of the March Workshop/Informational Council Meeting February 11, 2005 The Town Clerk has announced that the Council Workshop meeting that would normally be held on Monday, March 7, 2005, will be held instead on Monday, February 28, 2005. That meeting was rescheduled to avoid a conflict with Annapolis Night for District 26, which will be held on March 7, 2005.

Forest Heights Baptist Church February 11, 2005 The Forest Heights Baptist Church will host an event for children ages 7-12 years on March 25, 2005. Click the Events & Activities link in the index on the left to obtain more information on this event.

Public Hearing and Council Workshop Meeting February 7, 2005 The Council heard comments from citizens during the public hearing regarding the proposed resolution to participate in the local government infrastructure program. Concerns were expressed about the repayment of the loan and priorities for resurfacing the streets. No one who spoke opposed the Town submitting the bond issue application.

In the workshop session, the Mayor and Town Council discussed a timeline for completing the application and other financial matters prior to the end of the current fiscal year, a list of potential Livable Community Projects to be submitted to the County, conduct of Council meetings, rewriting the Town's Code of Ordinances and the need for a quarterly financial report.

Special Town Meeting January 27, 2005 The Town Council approved a resolution adopting a strategic plan for the Town of Forest Heights as introduced by the Administration Committee. The Council also approved a resolution submitted by the Ways and Means Committee authorizing the Town to submit an application to participate in the Local Government Infrastructure Financing Program for a bond issue in an amount not to exceed $2.0 million payable over 20 years for the purpose of repairing the Town streets. We will post the resolutions when the signed copies become available. The final version of the Strategic Plan can be viewed here in PDF (this is a large 1.9MB file) or HTML format.

Forest Heights Strategic Plan January 25, 2005 The Town Council will consider the adoption of a strategic plan for the Town at the Special Town Meeting on January 27, 2005. The plan will address long range plans for the Town in the areas of economic growth, community revitalization, business development, infrastructure, services, legislation and administration. A copy of the plan can be viewed here in PDF (this is a large 1.9MB file) or HTML format.

Proposed Bond Issue Resolution January 25, 2005 The draft resolution that the Town Council will consider at the February 7, 2005 public hearing can be downloaded by clicking here for PDF or HTML Format.

Forest Heights Ordinance Code Update January 25, 2005 The Forest Heights Code of Ordinances, found on the Town Documents page of this website has been updated to reflect the revised Article 14, Town Ethics Ordinance, which was approved by the Town Council on December 15, 2004, and became effective on January 14, 2005.

Special Town Meeting January 24, 2005 The Town Council will hold a special Town meeting on Thursday, January 27, 2005 at 6:30 P.M. to make up for the canceled meeting originally scheduled for January 19, 2005.

Public Hearing January 24, 2005 The Town Council will hold a public hearing to consider a resolution on the proposed issuance of bonds authorizing an amount not to exceed $2,000,000 of public debt. Click here for a copy of the Notice of Public Hearing in PDF, HTML Format.

Meeting Canceled January 19, 2005 3:00 p.m. Mayor Nobel announced today that the Town Meeting scheduled for this evening as been canceled because of the snow and very cold weather. We will post a rescheduled time and date as soon as we are informed of the new date.
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