Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Legislation proposed by the council member would offer incentives for transit oriented development.
In a move to increase transit oriented development in Prince George’s County, County Council Member Eric Olson (Dist. 3) is pushing three pieces of legislation that would simplify the development process and reduce fees for developers. “We talk a lot about the need for transit oriented development and these three pieces of legislation can help us to focus that development right at Metro stations,” Olson said. The first piece of legislation proposed by Olson (CB-6-2013) is intended to encourage development projects in Transportation District Overlay Zones (TDOZ), or within a quarter mile of a Metro station by condensing the Prince George’s County Planning Board process. “We hear from the development community that we have a long and …
Monday, February 4, 2013
The District 3 councilmember addressed several key development topics Monday at Plato's Diner.
East Campus, transit-oriented metro development, and the Cafritz project were all hot topics at Monday morning's coffee chat with Prince George's County Councilmember Eric Olson’s (District 3), held at Plato’s Diner in College Park. East Campus The construction of the development know as East Campus—a 39-acre parcel of land located at Paint Branch Parkway and Route 1—has once again been put on hold. The site was conceived to be a town center for students, including graduate student housing and a grocery store. The University of Maryland’s first shot at developing the property fell through in 2009, and recent efforts to build the property out in two phases have been delayed. “For the time being, they are pulling back,” said Olson, who …
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
One county councilman was surprised by the vote, after he believed he had enough support for the job.
Council Member Andrea Harrison (District 5) was reelected as chair of the Prince George’s County Council Tuesday morning by her peers, although Council Member Eric Olson (District 3) thought he had enough votes to be elected to the position. “Until late yesterday, at least six colleagues on our nine-member body had committed their support to me. Today, however, I received four votes. I want to thank Council Members Mary Lehman, Ingrid Turner, and Obie Patterson for their unwavering support,” wrote Olson in an email to constituents. Had Olson been elected, it would have been the first time in 20 years that the county council was chaired by the representative from District 3. Harrison expressed her gratitude to the county council for …
Thursday, March 29, 2012
The event will run Thursday from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Parkdale High School.
District 3 County Councilmember Eric Olson is set to hold a town hall for constituents Thursday evening at Parkdale High School. The event will run from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the school's auditorium (6001 Good Luck Road, Riverdale, MD). County Executive Rushern Baker is also scheduled to speak at the event at 7:00 p.m. The 3rd councilmanic district includes part of College Park, University Park, Riverdale Park, Riverdale Heights, and Riverdale Hills, among other areas.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Residents and local leaders packed the Council Chambers to honor the 26-year College Park city councilman.
The city gathered Tuesday evening to honor Councilman John E. "Jack" Perry for his service to College Park. After his 26-year tenure as a city councilman in District 2, Perry chose not to run again for council this fall. Flip through the photos and captions in the gallery to learn what some of the local leaders had to say about Perry, a man known for his dedication to the public works of College Park, and his willingness to vote against the majority opinion. Perry served the city in many other capacities, including president of the Berwyn Civic Association and of the Girls and Boys Club. He also served on the U.S. Coast Guard. If you're a resident, colleague or family member of Councilman Jack Perry, and you'd like to share your stories …
Friday, November 4, 2011
$7 million will be divvied from a county reserve to eligible applicants every year.
Prince George’s County businesses looking to expand could have a new resource for financial assistance by early next year, with the county council’s unanimous vote this week to establish a $50 million economic development reserve. The economic incentive development fund, proposed by County Executive Rushern Baker, would provide grants and loans to public and private sector businesses to spur economic development, job and business growth around developed areas of the county and near transit lines, Laurel Patch reported. “It could be a national company who wants to move their headquarters to Prince George’s. It could be a small restaurant who wants to expand their business,” said County Councilman Eric Olson (Dist. 3). The fund would be …
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Mini-bites of news to start your morning.
1. Breast Exams October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Let Patch know if you know of some events going on in College Park to celebrate the cause, or if you'd like to recommend a place for a free breast exam. Email Shannon.Hoffman@Patch.com or leave a comment below. 2. Slots in P.G. County While talks have intensified to bring slots to Rosecroft Raceway in Fort Washington, County Councilman Eric Olson (D-Dist. 3) is pushing to ban slots in Prince George's County. 3. Council Race Have you seen whom are (and are not) running for College Park Mayor and Council? Also check out the district map, which shows the new boundaries of the voting district. 4. Development The city has a new economic development coordinator. Patch sat down and …
Friday, August 12, 2011
College Park could form a unified voice, but at the cost of one County Council representative.
College Park might no longer be divided. Currently our city is split into two Prince George's County districts, represented by two county council members, but there’s a chance our municipality will be united, depending on where the new district lines are drawn. As is, much of north College Park belongs to District 1 while the rest of our city belongs to District 3. There are arguments for and against all of College Park being grouped into one district, and personally, I haven’t decided where I fall on the debate. But if you have a strong opinion, you’ll want to make sure to share your thoughts at Saturday’s Redistricting Commission Public Hearing. This will be the last public hearing by the Prince George's County Redistricting Commission …
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Incumbents Campos and Olson take majority of votes, Lehman takes District 1 and District 4 will go to a November election.
The Prince George's County Council races didn't see any major upsets this year, despite a crush of candidates running in the nine districts. Most of the early voting and precinct ballots were tallied by early Wednesday morning and there were no surprises. In District 2, with 82 percent of precincts reporting, incumbent Will Campos of Hyattsville was at 79 percent over challenger Dottie McNeill's 15 percent. "It's a really humbling experience to win my third election and second re-election," he said. "We worked all summer, all year, and I'm excited to finish and do my final term." Campos hits his term limit in 2014, but he said he has big plans for the next four years. "We've been hit by the market just like everyone else, and I want to …
R. J.
8:30 am on Friday, February 8, 2013
Eric Olson is the biggest impediment to these development projects. That's why the projects keep getting "stalled" and "pulled back." You need less of an environmentalist and more of an economic development mindset in your representative. more ›