HL&T’s new team by HL&T Writers
S
arah Nemeth, a newcomer to Hyattsville, will assume the roles of outgoing publisher Stephen Clements and will also serve in an editorial capacity alongside current managing editor Michael Martucci. Nemeth was most recently a beat reporter with the Gazette newspapers in Hyattsville and Fort Washington. Before that she
Vol. 4 No. 7
Hyattsville’s Community Newspaper
Doggie DaVincis paint it pretty at Dogs for the Arts
July 2007
Development brings questions, concerns by Carrie Wells
R
esidents are concerned that a multi-family housing development planned for Toledo Terrace paired with the cumulative effect of other Hyattsville development, could cause problems with traffic, pollution and the overcrowding of schools.
Sarah Nemeth
worked as a reporter for daily newspapers in Niagara County, NY and as a researcher and clerk for reporters on Capitol Hill. She is a graduate of Canisius College in Buffalo, Ny. Changes were made July 1 and Nemeth is expecting a gamut of challenges chock full of opportunities to increase the readership and appeal of the HL&T. “This is a super chance to work with great people, with a product that is already very quality,” she said. “Readers will see some immediate changes that we hope they will like. Down the pike we hope readers will see an even better community newspaper with even more proverbial resident fingerprints all over it.” Please see accompanying “Changing of guard” story on page 4.
To view a color districting map, please go to: http://www.mncppc.org/ pgco/planning/pdf/05-10-7/ DSP-99048-01maps.pdf
Photos: Ashby Henderson
by Carrie Wells
C
hris Condayan lifts his threeyear-old boxer’s paw and dips it into yellow tempera paint, then smears it along a piece of construction paper. Some ants get mixed in with the artwork. “Olive likes mixed media,” he said. “She’s very avante garde.” This is the annual Dogs for the Arts event held June 16th at Magruder Park in Hyattsville. Dogs are invited to make paw paintings, and there are several contests, in-
cluding dog tricks, owner dog lookalike and doggy dress up. About 20 dogs and many more owners showed up to the free community event. This was the Dogs for the Arts’ 10th year running, said Gloria FelixThompson, one of the organizers. “The neighborhood is filled with dogs,” said Jeanne Benas of Hyattsville, a first-timer at the event. “I know so many people with dogs.” She brought her two basset hounds, Holly and Berry, for the doggy dress up. They wore purple scarves around their necks.
“Hyattsville is the land of dogs,” said Marialis Zmuda, the founder of the Lively Arts in Hyattsville, the organization sponsoring the event. “It was a natural leap.” The Lively Arts, which sponsors performances and art-related activities in Hyattsville, first thought up the idea for Dogs for the Arts as a fundraising event, but it quickly turned into something that brought the community together, said Zmuda. Donations are still accepted,
DOGGIE DAVINCIS ontinues on page 17
A development team for the Landy property—a 35-acre lot located between Belcrest Road and Northwest Drive— on June 19 offered residents an opportunity to offer feedback on the proposed project which is likely to boast 1,216 apartments. “I want to see them address infrastructure impacts, not the
DEVELOPMENT continues on page 12
Hyattsville Life & Times PO Box 132 Hyattsville, MD 20781
Cafritz property discussions ongoing
n Route 1 property could see supermarket, housing developed by Ronald F. Docksai, Jr.
B
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit # 43 Easton, MD 21601
ookstores, hiker-biker trails, senior housing and a Whole Foods supermarket are all possible construction goals for a vacant property next to the postal facility on U.S. Route One in Riverdale Park. But some residents are not sure the site needs any new buildings at all. Property owners Calvin and Jane Cafritz held a series of community meetings last month to cull public input for the 35.8-acre site they own next to a postal facility on the heavily traveled road just north of U.S. Route 410. We want to develop something that will be
of great appeal, and of great credit, to the community,” said Calvin Cafritz in a speech to a packed auditorium whose audience also included members of the College Park City Council and State Sen. Paul Pinsky. Not all residents welcome the change. “I’m quite content with it as it is,” said Harriet Komisar, a Riverdale Park resident during a June 14 meeting at the Riverdale Park Elementary School. She expressed concern that the introduction of the new housing complexes and shops might increase traffic at the crossing of the roads. “That intersection is already a very congested intersection,” she said.
“That’s clearly something they need to deal with.” Posters along the meeting room walls illustrated suggestions residents made in earlier sessions. Included were scenes of playgrounds, café tables, bikers on bike paths and people of all ages strolling through verdant park space. “We are asking the citizens what they’re interested in, and we’ll take it from there,” Jane Cafritz said. “After we’ve reached some goals everyone agrees upon, we’ll make a draft of the plan.”What we’ve done here is we’ve taken the community’s comments and represented them.” Opportunities for development of the property include book stores,
art shops, music stores, bakeries and farmers’ markets, and senior and student housing, said Matthew Bell, an architect from Ehrenkrantz, Eckstut & Kuhn Architect who is working on the site design. Ideas for retail opportunities also include a Whole Foods supermarket. “They are interested,” Bell said of the supermarket chain, adding that the Cafritz family has spoken with
CAFRITZ continues on page 17
Included: The July 11, 2007 Issue of The Hyattsville Reporter—See Center Section