Hyattsville
INSIDE: a coMPLeTe gUiDe To HYaTTSViLLe ciTY eLecTion canDiDaTeS — PageS 3 – 9 ciTY ParKS neWS
Problems, plans and upgrades
Life&Times
by Paula Minaert
Vol. 8 No. 4
ParKS MaSTer PLan
Police address gang problem
The master plan for Hyattsville’s parks, which was initiated last year, is now able to move forward, after a nearly six-month delay. The contractor hired by the city to develop the plan, Tony Mulkey, did not deliver the plan on schedule. Mulkey is Hyattsville’s previous director of Recreation and the Arts, who left Hyattsville to take a position in Florida. “Based on the contract, we were anticipating getting the plan in October,” Gardiner said. “Tony didn’t deliver, and still hasn’t delivered the complete plan. It’s been a big disappointment.” In March, the city received what City Administrator Gregory Rose called a significant amount of work from Mulkey. Last year, Mulkey organized and led two sets of public meetings and developed a survey. The purpose was to gather feedback about city residents’ perceptions of the park and recreation facilities and programs, and their ideas for future development. He also provided information about how Hyattsville compared with similar cities.
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ParKS continued on page 16
Hyattsville’s Community Newspaper
by Krystyn Schmerbeck
“In the first hour of the day, teens [today] process more information than we processed in a whole day,” Cpl. Mike Rudinski said at a March 22 gang information meeting for Hyattsville residents. Recognizing this massive cultural shift is critical to understanding teens, he said. Rudinski, a Hyattsville police officer, also serves on the Prince George’s countywide gang task force and is a former president of
the Maryland Association of School Resource Officers. As the school resource officer at Northwestern High School, he sees firsthand the impact of technological advances on teen gang culture. Texting, social networking, e-mail and other communication avenues paved by the Internet are known to be possible means of bullying. Rudinski said that in his experience youth join gangs for protection; add to this the impact of cyberbullying, and the need for protection is dramatically increased.
April 2011
Text messaging is a quick and covert way to communicate to large groups without being overheard – or, in some cases, to alert authorities to potentially dangerous situations. Although texting in school is prohibited, text messages are used to publicize “skipping parties” or other off-campus activities. Moreover, teen truancy can be connected with gang formation or activities. At Northwestern, the nearby county library is a popuGaNGS continued on page 17
P U
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I V O M
peter currie Elevation Burger became the first retail spot to open in Arts District Hyattsville on Tuesday, April 5. The menu features organic, grass-fed beef burgers as well as veggie burgers, fries made with olive oil, malts and shakes.
Included: The April 13, 2011 Issue of The Hyattsville Reporter — See Center Section