Frederick City Council Workshop: East Street Rising Annual Update - September 25, 2024
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Frederick City Council Workshop: East Street Rising Annual Update - September 25, 2024
The Mayor and Board of Aldermen held a workshop on September 25, 2024, at 3:00 PM. The primary agenda item was an annual update presentation from East Frederick Rising (EFR), a community development organization. The consent calendar was approved unanimously (4-0) with Alderman McSheen absent. No public comments were given.
Consent Calendar
- Release of Surety: Approved the release of a $32,759.65 Hartford Casualty Insurance Company bond posted by Canterbury Station Development, Inc. for improvements to the Canterbury Station – East Street @ 16th Street project.
- Grants: Accepted a Maryland Department of Transportation Highway Safety Grant.
- Special Ordinances: Approved a special ordinance to amend the FY2025 budget to include revenue and expenditures for the MDOT Highway Safety Grant.
- Request to Serve Alcohol on Public Property: Approved a request for alcohol service during a Maryland Economic Development hosted Main Street Conference kick-off event on October 7, 2024, from 4:30 PM to 8:30 PM within a designated area.
Discussion Items
- Presentation of East Street Rising Annual Update:
- Heather Goddard (President, EFR) and Vicky Understein (Vice President) presented the organization's progress over the past 18 months. EFR was founded in 2010 and covers 2,200 acres in East Frederick. The board has 13 directors representing five neighborhoods, major employers (First United Bank, Frederick County Public Schools, Dairy Maid, Frederick Magazine), and diverse professional backgrounds. The organization has no paid staff except a part-time communications and outreach coordinator.
- Key accomplishments included: updating bylaws, purchasing insurance, expanding the board by nine members since May 2023, building a social media presence with over 900 followers, raising $1,050 from non-board sources, and hosting a community meet-and-greet (May 2024) that attracted strong interest. EFR spent down a prior banked balance from about $40,000 to roughly $11,000. They are currently unfunded by the city but seek a future multi-year memorandum of understanding (MOU) without requesting financial assistance at this time.
- EFR's advocacy efforts included: submitting public comments on development projects (e.g., Brickworks school site, parkland location), writing letters in support of the downtown hotel, flood control funding, and the Arts Council grant; assisting with street naming; and initiating communication with Frederick County Public Schools regarding school capacity. They track over 4,000 residential units in the pipeline.
- Aldermen expressed strong appreciation for the presentation and the organization's revitalization. Questions addressed: the lack of current city funding (EFR confirmed they are unfunded), the financial history, future vision (e.g., gateway project at the Circle, pedestrian bridge, linear park, site J and K, connectivity), and the status of the form-based code initiative (EFR reports regular updates from city planning liaisons). Aldermen noted the importance of connectivity to Lucas Village and encouraged continued engagement.
- EFR moved its board meetings to the fourth Thursday of the month to allow aldermen to attend. An alderman (sustainable monocussy and airport commission) indicated a desire to attend future meetings.
Key Outcomes
- The consent calendar items were approved unanimously (4-0).
- No formal vote was taken on the EFR presentation, but the board expressed support for the organization's direction and encouraged continued partnership.
- EFR will provide financial documents to the city upon request.
- The organization will continue to advocate for East Frederick initiatives, including form-based code, Rails with Trails, school capacity, and connectivity projects.
- An alderman committed to attempting to attend EFR board meetings.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon. Welcome to our September twenty-fifth workshop. We'll begin with the Pledge of Allegiance. So move. Second. We have first and second. All in favor. That's four zero. Automan McSheen was here earlier, but he had a dad duty to attend to. I think we can just move forward, and if I have anything else, I'll just email. So all items included under the business meeting are considered to be routinely by the mayor and board of aldermen and are being heard at the workshop pursuant to the rules of procedure of the Board of Alderman. They will be approved in one motion without separate discussion of each item unless each any person present requests an item or items be removed from the agenda. Any item removed from the agenda will be considered separately. The remove item may be considered at the end of the business meeting or at a regular public meeting. And if you would like any of the items below to be considered separately, please see so when I announce each category, release assurities. Second. First and second, all in favor. That is 4-0. Grants. Move for approval. Second. First and second, all in favor. Special ordinances. Move for approval. Second. Second. First and second. All in favor. Four zero. Special. Request to serve out call and public property. Move for approval. Second. We have a first and a second. All in favor. That's four zero. Okay. Our item for our workshop today is a presentation of East Street Rising and an annual update provided. I think kicking us off is economic development director Richard Griffin. Good afternoon, members of the board. Thank you very much for having me today. She's seated behind me. They have been working hard, and I do want to point out that there are a number of liaisons from the city who attend their meetings, including myself, Brandon Mark, and David Edmondson with the city. Update their bylaws and onboarding materials, updating their paperwork and their processes, building a social media presence, which I think you'll see has been pretty robust and uh very exciting, I think. Um and not the least of which is to raise money to support their activities. They are seeking eventually to enter into a multi-year more memorandum of understanding with the city, and I'm sure they'll bring that up. Um, but they're not asking for financial assistance at this time. And finally, just to make sure that the public knows those that are listening out there that neighborhood uh advisory councils seven and twelve are in the area that is covered by East Frederick Rising. Uh they do very much want to be an inclusive community, and so they certainly are trying very hard to meet the equity impact um you know goals of the city. With that, I think I'll turn it over to the president, Heather Um Goddard, and many of you know her because she wears another hat.
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