Politics & Government

Council Agenda Includes Looney's Pub Liquor License, Residents' Desired Businesses, and More

A summary of work session agenda items for Wednesday.

Tonight's Mayor and Council work session is jam-packed. Below is a summary of several agenda items.

The meeting will take place at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in the council chambers of , 4500 Knox Road. (Note the early time.) The meeting is open to the public.

Election Board Payment
The city’s Election Board Supervisors might no longer be paid in non-election years if a proposed motion passes. They would continue receiving $360 in years of elections or special elections. The motion, if passed, would not impact the payment frequency for the Chief of Election Supervisors, who currently receives $480 a year whether there is an election or not.

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Shuttle-UM Service
The council will discuss whether or not to spend $10,000 so that city residents can ride University of Maryland shuttles on any route, or $6,000 so that city residents can use the shuttle service only on U.S. Route 1 from the University of Maryland to the New Carrollton Metro Station. Data show that the Shuttle-UM program has been greatly underutilized by College Park residents since the program was initiated three years ago.

Looney's Pub Liquor License
Council will consider a request by Looney’s Pub, located at The Varsity student housing, 8150 Baltimore Ave., a for a beer and wine liquor license. The applicant, William A. Larney Jr. has already agreed to a 50/50 alcohol-to-food ratio. The request is set to go before the county’s Board of License Commissioners on Aug. 23.

Find out what's happening in College Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

State Revitalization Funds
Since applying for state revitalization funds through the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development in July 2001, the city has received $1.3 million in grants and loans for projects along U.S. Route 1. The city must now re-apply and meet some new state requirements to qualify for more funds. City staff members want to discuss with the Mayor and Council the possibility of using the funding at locations other than U.S. Route 1, like at the College Park Metro Station.

Businesses Residents Want
Council and staff will discuss survey findings of resident demand for new businesses in College Park. There were 525 residents who responded to the survey, primarily online, though not all responded to every question. The 10 businesses that residents requested most were Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Borders, Barnes and Noble, Wegmans, Walmart, Chick-Fil-A, Panera, the College Perk and Harris Teeter.

Census Data
Staff will discuss fluctuations in census data between the years 2000 and 2010. Among the changes, the percent of non-vacant houses in College Park occupied by renters went from 42.8 percent to 54.3 percent over 10 years. The percent of non-vacant houses occupied by owners fell from 57.2 percent to 45.7 percent.


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