Washington Times: "Some residents also think they are being bullied into
leaving. They say Olson staffer Wanda Brooks, the acting president of the West
Lanham Hills Citizens' Association, canvasses the neighborhood looking for such
violations as cracked sidewalks and uncut grass, then prepares suggested
warrants for police and other county agencies.
"I'm very concerned," said a resident who asked to remain anonymous for fear
Miss Brooks also will target her. "She called the neighborhood a slum. She
works for Olson; she becomes the association president. All of the bricks are
falling into place to the possibility of eminent domain...
Suddenly, the community began getting notices of violations with hefty fines of
$150," Mrs. Tsubata said. "Virtually every citizen in the neighborhood got a
notice. ... In 21 years of us living here, nothing like this ever happened."
>From the University City Review, April 11, "Clean Sweeps in UC, or Not?"
(Deputy Streets Commissioner Carlton Williams) "Williams said that the streets
department and the University City District (UCD) work together to communicate
programs and policies to the community.
'We have a working relationship,' Williams said...
Wendell said that when the UCD was aware that property owners weren't receiving
violation notices in a timely manner, the UCD tried to encourage facilitation
to send the notices out earlier. If they receive complaints about certain
properties, UCD officials may also share that information with Sweep officers."
Many neighbors communicated with me about the revelations from this UC Revierw
article and their own experiences. At the time, it was overshadowed by the
revelation of UCD's violation of federal law, the subsequent stonewalling,
cover-up.and lies about an investigation. After the UCD cover-up, you may
remember that Fenton was the scapegoat and UCD proceeded as usual after
sweeping their treachery under the rug.
Neighbors, I'm being sued for $962 by the streets department for three of the
"premises must be clean and litter free" tickets. I am guilty until proven
innocent and have no chance to prove my innocence. I am being compelled to
court and have not been told the slightest detail of my crime. Every aspect of
a procedure stated by Deputy Commissioner Carlton Williams in this UC Review
article is completely false. All the evidence in my case, points to UCD
intimidation not trash.
The Sweeps/UCD officer cannot cite a violation at my house because no trash
crime ever occured. Further, the evidence which I have accumulated suggests
that no UCD/Sweep officer ever visits my house but that many of these tickets
are simply generated from the creepy old UCD headquarters as can be interpreted
from Wendell's typical evasive BULLSHIT response to the reporter. A few years
ago, I saw the same UCD intimidation used against a leader in the Neighbors
against McPenntrification.
Like embedding UCD staff in civic associations (to monitor the loyalty of the
three candidates selected to fight to represent the association's "community"),
the message of punishing me is an example meant for all of you. Like the fear
from the woman in the DC community, all of you are to be intimidated by the
power of UCD and "educated" about disobedience or disloyalty to the UCD and
Penn's vision. You already know that you will be banned as an uncivil ranter
if you attempt to voice your opinion about these problems on Penn's UC Neighbor
list.
When I saw the Neighbors against McPenntrification leader targeted with trash
tickets, I knew my days in the district were numbered. About the time the last
two tickets were issued for my house in late 2006 and early 2007, I was cut-off
from the UCD propaganda mailing list. I no longer receive the Quest, etc. In
2007, the only thing I received from UCD was a list of my properties with the
amount they planned to tax each when they get their BID passed.
I am incredibly intimidated and stressed by these developments. Those of you
who've studied the transition to totalitarian systems will understand the
significance of my situation and understand how advanced the transition has
gotten.
Sincerely,
Glenn
In a message dated 7/27/07 6:49:04 PM, kcassidy at asc.upenn.edu writes:
> the cool thing about this software is that i can pre-ban glenn!
>
>
This will be heaven. But, I hope he doesn't know where you live.
Melani
----- Original Message -----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To: [email protected]
Sent: Tuesday, January 01, 2008 8:14 AM
Subject: [UC] Sound vaguely familiar? From the Washington Times -- 11/18/07
For ye of little faith:
http://washingtontimes.com/article/20071118/METRO/111180046/1004/Metro
Al Krigman
(Happy New year to all)
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Fear of eminent domain grips PG hamlet
November 18, 2007
By Arlo Wagner - Residents of a working-class neighborhood near the New
Carrollton Metro station say Prince George's County is trying to bring the area
into a sweeping redevelopment project that could replace their homes with
high-end condos, shopping and restaurants.
County officials are considering a zoning change to West Lanham Hills to
include the neighborhood in an 18-year-old project known as the Transit
District Overlay Zone, created by the Maryland-National Capital Park and
Planning Commission to develop roughly 71 wooded acres around the busy Metro
Orange Line station.
The nine-member County Council unanimously agreed Oct. 30 to have the
commission present a plan to expand the zone into the neighborhood, which
residents say has caught them by surprise and has included bullying tactics.
"They're calling our neighborhood deteriorating and blighted," said Kate
Tsubata, a West Lanham Hills resident and former president of the citizens
association.
The 66-year-old neighborhood has no mayor or council, and the association is
the closest thing it has to a government.
West Lanham Hills resident Bob Nelson, 43, said he fears the next step will
be the county trying to take property through eminent domain.
"I'm always skeptical any time somebody tells me the neighborhood should look
like this or that," said Mr. Nelson, who in his youth was the neighborhood
paperboy. "We're ripe for the picking."
County Council member Eric Olson, a Democrat who co-introduced the proposal,
did not return a phone call Thursday on whether the county would seek to use
eminent domain. However, he said last week that no final plans have been made
and that public hearings are starting Dec. 5.
"This is the beginning of a public process," he said. "It is very important
that the citizens are involved."
Mr. Olson also said that the hearings could continue for a year before a
final zoning plan is approved, and that other Annapolis Road communities —
including Hansen Oaks and Landover Hills — are part of the plan.
Mrs. Tsubata said the commission has a clear-cut plan, despite what Mr. Olson
and others say.
"They've gone from wanting to put 2,400 luxury condos, offices and retail
units in a 71-acre parcel to now wanting to put 8,000 units in a 640-acre area,
wiping out stable and environmentally low-impact, single-family houses," she
said.
Mrs. Tsubata said she has walked the 256-home neighborhood and collected 150
signatures against the zoning change.
Residents acknowledge the region is a potential target for development. In
addition to being near the Metro station, which also is an Amtrak stop, West
Lanham Hills is surrounded by major highways, including the Capitol Beltway and
U.S. Route 50. Also nearby are the new Internal Revenue Service and Computer
Sciences Corp. buildings, built as part of the original overlay zone and
serving thousands of employees.
Ted Booth, a West Lanham Hills homeowner for 13 years, also said the
situation concerns him.
"I've worked hard to have something of my own," he said. "The zone concerns
me, and eminent domain concerns me. After that, you have no choice."
Some residents also think they are being bullied into leaving. They say Olson
staffer Wanda Brooks, the acting president of the West Lanham Hills Citizens'
Association, canvasses the neighborhood looking for such violations as cracked
sidewalks and uncut grass, then prepares suggested warrants for police and
other county agencies.
"I'm very concerned," said a resident who asked to remain anonymous for fear
Miss Brooks also will target her. "She called the neighborhood a slum. She
works for Olson; she becomes the association president. All of the bricks are
falling into place to the possibility of eminent domain."
Reached by telephone last week and asked about the accusations, Miss Brooks
directed a reporter to write the questions in an e-mail. She did not respond to
an e-mail sent to the address she specified.
"Suddenly, the community began getting notices of violations with hefty fines
of $150," Mrs. Tsubata said. "Virtually every citizen in the neighborhood got a
notice. ... In 21 years of us living here, nothing like this ever happened."
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