Hyattsville City Council Meeting: Strategic Plan, Budget, and Committee Actions (March 23, 2026)

The Hyattsville City Council held a regular virtual meeting on March 23, 2026. Key actions included the adoption of the 2026-2031 Strategic Plan 'Stepping Forward,' the creation of the Common Ownership Community Advisory Committee and the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Committee, and the approval of consent items supporting stormwater resiliency and opioid remediation. Public testimony was heavily focused on a proposed emergency relief fund for immigrant families, with several speakers urging support and one speaker opposing the measure. The Council also received a presentation on a city data analytics project and held a work session discussion on the FY27 budget, which highlighted a projected deficit and explored potential tax classification changes.

Consent Calendar

• The Council approved the Consent Agenda unanimously.
• Item 10.a: Authorized an expenditure not to exceed $103,100 to the Low Impact Development Center (LIDC) for continuing coordination and project management of the Lower Ward 1 Resiliency Projects.
• Item 10.b: Amended the FY26 Special Revenues Funds Budget to appropriate $33,975.64 in National Opioid Settlement Funds for opioid remediation.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Robert Oerter (Ward 1): Expressed strong support for creating a $100,000 emergency grant fund for immigrant families, highlighting that a third of the community is foreign-born and that the city can afford to support them.
• Stephanie DeLorenzo (Ward 1): Founder of Route One Mutual Aid, spoke in favor of the emergency relief fund. She described her grassroots organization feeding 80 to 100 families weekly and stated they were "exhausted and broke," urging the council to pass the funding to show that local government is willing to protect residents.
• Ninfa Amador Hernandez (We Are Casa): Urged the Council to support the fund, citing that over 4,000 individuals were arrested by ICE in Maryland in 2025, an over 300% increase from 2024.
• Eleanor Banks: Spoke in favor of using tax dollars to help immigrants in the community.
• Bette Dickerson (Ward 2): Spoke in favor of expanding senior programming.
• Mr. Marshall (Ward 4): Expressed total opposition to city funding being set aside for those affected by ICE enforcement. He argued the city has a budget crisis and should not spend taxpayer dollars on this issue, stating that if funding is allocated, it should be administered by a neutral organization, specifically opposing We Are Casa as the distributor.

Presentations & Reports

City Administrator Update City Administrator Tracey Douglas provided updates on city events and welcomed Debi Sandlin back to the city's economic development team. Hal Metzler provided an update on the Lower Ward 1 Stormwater Project, a grant-funded initiative totaling just over $1 million, noting construction is anticipated to begin after May and be completed by November 2026. Reginald Bagley reported that the Maryland State Highway Administration is expected to provide preliminary approval for the Canvas apartments parking garage signalization plan by the end of April 2026.

Dewberry Data Analytics Project Presentation Amanda Byrd and Claire Kolman of Dewberry presented findings from a 10-month project evaluating the city's data collection and analysis capabilities, requested by the Race and Equity Committee. Key recommendations included creating a centralized software licensing tracker, expanding GIS data collection for departments like Public Works, standardizing data storage to reduce silos, expanding the IT committee's focus to data analytics, and providing ongoing staff training on Microsoft tools.

Action Items

2026-2031 Strategic Plan "Stepping Forward" The Council unanimously adopted the 2026-2031 Strategic Plan. Staff noted the plan received over 300 inputs from community feedback. Discussion focused on the plan as a living document supported by a public-facing implementation dashboard to track progress and inform annual budget priorities.

Creation of Hyattsville Common Ownership Community Advisory Committee The Council voted 10-0-1 to create the committee (Councilmember Waszczak abstained). Waszczak expressed concern about creating a permanent committee based on housing type. Council Vice President Redmond and Council President Solomon argued that the unique ongoing needs of HOA and condo communities justified a standing committee rather than a temporary task force.

Creation of the CERT Committee The Council unanimously approved making the Hyattsville Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) an official city committee. Reginald Bagley stated the official designation is needed to access advanced FEMA trainings and qualify for additional funding, which will be requested in the FY27 budget.

Discussion Items

FY27 Budget Discussion Treasurer Ron Brooks and Deputy Budget Director Ben Bosch led a work session on the FY27 budget. The current services expenditure baseline is $36.97 million against a general fund revenue baseline of $32.9 million, leaving a gap of approximately $4 million.

• Gap Reduction Goal: Staff set a goal to reduce the gap to under $3 million through a combination of tax increases and expenditure reductions or delays.
• Tax Scenarios: Bosch presented three scenarios for tax classification changes targeting multifamily (apartment), commercial, and industrial properties while keeping single-family and townhouse residential rates unchanged, aiming to generate between $500,000 and $1.5 million in additional revenue.
• Constraints: Brooks highlighted legal hurdles in creating new subclassifications (e.g., for vacant properties or condos) within the current budget cycle. If not resolved, the fallback is either a broad-based rate increase or deeper spending cuts.
• Council Feedback: Councilmembers requested a five-year lookback on year-end balances and detailed projections of new expenses. Councilmember Waszczak raised equity concerns about focusing tax increases solely on multifamily and industrial properties. Councilmember Schaible expressed interest in a vacancy tax surcharge.

Key Outcomes

• Strategic Plan Adopted: The 2026-2031 "Stepping Forward" Strategic Plan was unanimously approved.
• New Committees Created: The Common Ownership Community Advisory Committee (passed 10-0-1) and the CERT Committee (passed unanimously) were officially established.
• Consent Items Approved: $103,100 authorized for Lower Ward 1 Resiliency Projects; $33,975.64 in Opioid Settlement Funds appropriated.
• Proclamations and Appointments: Proclamations for Autism Awareness Day (April 2) and National Public Health Week (April 6-12) were adopted. Danielle Sykes was appointed to the Education Advisory Committee.
• FY27 Budget Path Forward: The Council reviewed a $4M budget gap. Staff aim to introduce a proposed budget on April 8, 2026, with potential tax increases targeting commercial, industrial, and multifamily properties. A public hearing is scheduled for May 11, 2026, if tax rate changes are pursued.
• Public Testimony on Emergency Fund: Multiple residents spoke on a proposed $100,000 emergency relief fund for immigrant families, which remains an outstanding item for a future vote.