RELIGIOUS SYMBOL OR MEMORIAL? Peace Cross in Bladensburg center of dispute. PAGE 6
Street fixes on agenda — again by Susie Currie
Three infrastructure improvements that have been languishing for years, if not decades, were back on the agenda at the Hyattsville City Council’s November 5 meeting. Mayor Marc Tartaro presented a detailed spreadsheet of timelines for them, showing how each could be completed by either December 2013 or May 2014. The projects, all in the southern end of the city, address problems ranging from stormwater management to handicapped accessibility to crumbling roads and broken sidewalks. One area, the notoriously flood-prone “Soggy Bottom” neighborhood, needs all of these fixes. It’s a cul-de-square bordered by 40th Avenue and Crittenden, Banner and Buchanan streets. Many homes overlook the Northwest Branch bike trail or the woods by Magruder Park. Drainage problems began in 1993, when the city’s Department of Public Works raised sidewalks to accommodate tree roots. But the new sidewalks were higher than residents’ yards, trapping rainwater that should have flowed onto the street – and trapping some residents who couldn’t open their front gates.
DeMatha Soccer, led by Coach Dafydd Evans, won 62 games in a row. PAGE 7
Police and firefighters face off in 2nd annual Hyattsville Heroes’ Bowl. PAGE 3
Hyattsville Life&Times
Vol. 9 No. 11
Hyattsville’s Community Newspaper
Hyattsville Life & Times PO Box 132 Hyattsville, MD 20781
November 2012
Burglary arrests ease fears by Gabrielle Kratsas
Police recently arrested four men trying to sell stolen televisions in West Hyattsville, and detectives are trying to determine if these suspects are linked to the recent rash of area thefts. On Oct. 31, officers were responding to yet another residential burglary of TVs, electronics and jewelry when they received a tip that
some men were attempting to sell televisions to a barbershop in the 3000 block of Hamilton Street. Officers and investigators went to the scene and arrested Clarence Jord Kirksey-Walcott of Lanham, Md. and Markeet Tyrone Johnson Jr. of Washington, D.C. for first-degree burglary, while Willie Randolph III of Washington, D.C. and Jerome Anton Jones of Hyattsville were arrested for felony theft.
It was welcome news for residents on edge after the city saw 22 burglaries and one attempted burglary between September 2 and October 20. In Ward 5, residential burglaries are up 33 percent this year, and Ward 4 has seen an increase of 21 percent. Nearby towns have seen an increase in property crimes, as well. In University Park, police
DEMOCRACY ILLUSTRATED
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit # 43 Easton, MD 21601
MELROSE continued on page 12
STAG SOCCER
BRAVEST VS. FINEST
SUSIE CURRIE Hyattsville citizens braved long lines — such as this one at Nicholas Orem Middle School -— to vote in the 2012 election. Hyattsville precincts voted overwhelmingly to re-elect President Obama and other incumbents.
BURGLARIES continued on page 13
City council plows through snow removal suggestions by Susie Currie and Paula Minaert
Even before Hurricane Sandy was a gleam in a meteorologist’s eye, some Hyattsville residents were worried about the coming of this winter’s snowy weather. In September, the Code Enforcement Advisory Committee and the Aging in Place group met together to talk about the city’s policy on snow removal, and the difficulties it presented in Snowmageddon, the February 2010 blizzard that ultimately dropped more than 54 inches of snow on the D.C. area. This month, the city council has taken up the issue, which is of particular concern for seniors. Many of them have a problem with the city’s custom of plowing the streets curb-to-curb whenever possible. That meant, in 2010, that cars parked on the street were often encased in snow, while sidewalks cleared by residents were refilled with snow SNOW continued on page 10
Included: The November 12, 2012 Issue of The Hyattsville Reporter — See Center Section