The Gazette OUROPINIONS
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Wednesday, February 5, 2014
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Page A-14
Introspection
It’s tough work for a municipality to make sure residents, groups and businesses are following its laws. But we were surprised — and somewhat flattered — that the city of Gaithersburg relied on a Gazette story and photo to condemn a Woodland Road building. The 192-square-foot structure in Darline Bell-Zuccarelli’s backyard has come to be known as the “tiny house.” Relying on Internet research and a local Home Depot, she and her husband, Gilmar Hernandez, constructed it for about $15,000. Bell-Zuccarelli said she hopes her daughter, who couldn’t afford a place of her own, could stay in the backyard building, which has a living room, a sleeping loft, a bathroom and a kitchenette. However, the building permit Bell-Zuccarelli received from the city is for a shed. We can understand why city officials thinking “lawnmower and bicycles” would be taken aback when they saw a miniIN TWO Based on what RECENT CASES, apartment. they saw in the newspaper GAITHERSBURG’S — and the zoning law, which INSPECTION allows one dwelling unit per PROCESS FALLS lot in that neighborhood — city officials put up a “conSHORT demned” sign. Surely, there was a lack of communication, both ways. Why wasn’t the layout of the “shed” apparent by the time an electrical inspection was done? Or did Bell-Zuccarelli go off on an unpredictable tangent after the city had signed off? Either way, a simple chat along the way — before the condemnation — would have cleared up the discrepancy. A more curious set of inspection circumstances arose after a boy drowned in a pond in the Crown neighborhood last month. Ten-year-old D’Angelo Jayvon McMullen of Rockville was walking on it with two other boys when the ice gave way and they fell in. The other boys survived. The pond was supposed to be surrounded by security fencing, but clearly wasn’t at the time of the accident. City officials said at the time of the drowning that the site previously had passed safety fence requirements. When did that fence go away? It’s hard to say. Inspection records shared at The Gazette’s request show a hodgepodge of information about inspections in the development, but nothing specific about this pond meeting this fence requirement. Yet, the inspection reports clearly have a line marked “safety fence” and a place to check under “approved,” “denied” or “maintain.” That line is blank on each report The Gazette reviewed. A city official told us that we should assume that the lack of a violation indicated on the form must mean it passed inspection. That’s a strange system. There are 20 lines for categories on the inspection form. The city apparently regularly looked at the project’s compliance for certain categories — sometimes five categories, sometimes six, sometimes seven in each inspection, according to the comments and marks on the forms. Safety records like this should be kept and maintained with the public in mind. Conduct inspections and note the results as if the average person is reading them and wants to know what’s right and what’s wrong.
Welcome to the council
Cherri Branson won Valerie Ervin’s seat on the Montgomery County Council last week in a council vote over 17 other candidates. Branson, who has spent more than 24 years as a congressional aide, will represent District 5 at a time when the council has plenty on its plate. For one, the nine members have an upcoming decision on the future of development in Clarksburg. It’s a thorny issue with vocal environmentalists demanding a “no” vote. Although some Clarksburg residents support the environmentalists, many are anxious that no development will be a further delay of the services and amenities they’ve been promised for years. It won’t be an easy vote. Branson also takes over Ervin’s seat on the council’s Education Committee. For the foreseeable future, the committee will be considering the capital budgets of Montgomery County Public Schools and Montgomery College. Here, she’ll be forced to weigh the conflicting interests of parents who want progress on school expansion and modernization against a panoply of needs. County Executive Isiah Leggett is lobbying Annapolis to send more school construction dollars to Montgomery. If the effort falls short, Branson will be at the cutting edge of parent disappointment. While working on the capital budget, the council will take up the operating budget. Again, she’ll have to weigh more conflicting interests: needs and wants versus resources. Also in the mix are Councilman Roger Berliner’s slate of environmental bills and Councilman Philip M. Andrews’ proposal for publicly financed council elections, which on reflection, will probably be the easiest votes of her temporary time on the council.
The Gazette Karen Acton, President/Publisher
LETTERS TOT HE EDITOR
Ultrasounds are not for ‘baby showers’
As a local radiologist with over 30 years of experience in doing obstetric ultrasounds, I am dismayed at your providing free advertising for this service. [“‘It’s a ... ’: Ultrasound company delivers the news,” Jan. 29] Ultrasound is not a recreational tool for “baby showers” and for sex determination. It is a highly sophisticated medical imaging device for detecting not only fetal health and growth but also a study of the maternal pelvis, ovaries and cervix during pregnancy to name a few things. It takes years of training to be able to recognize subtle abnormalities and signs that
could indicate a pregnancy in trouble. I find it unconscionable for entrepreneurs like Ms. Seleshi to take ultrasound equipment on the road for amusement and profit. Although I have no doubts about the qualifications of Ms. Seleshi in her day job, I am concerned that in the setting of a party or shower much could be overlooked. And what about the scenario where she recognizes an abnormality during the event that is, according to one of her clients, “better than the Super Bowl?” Is such an atmosphere appropriate for a discussion that would necessarily have to follow, which is
Birth control no solution to swelling deer populations In “We don’t need hunts to manage deer” [letters, Jan. 15], the author says studies show hunting deer actually causes increases in the population by allowing the vegetation to thrive producing an increased food supply for the deer. Using this logic, I would suggest we need to allow unregulated blue crab fishing and encourage everyone to shoot at giant pandas and bald eagles so we can increase the populations of them, too. At some point some common sense needs to be applied. The deer have adapted to suburban living and are at historic high population numbers. We have not taken the deer habitat, we have created the perfect utopian deer habitat with lush gardens and lawns and few predators. The Nature Conservancy, Wildlife Society and the Sierra Club are all publishing reports showing dire consequences if we don’t do something about the overpopulation of deer and warning of complete destruction of our remaining forests if nothing is done soon. These are all pro-wildlife groups that are seeing the damage as the deer population continues to explode on the East Coast, not a bunch of right-wing gun nuts. ... I am an animal lover and enjoy the forests, and I have devoted a great deal of my time to searching for cost-effective alternatives to deer hunting. The author mentions birth control as a solution. Currently there is no contraceptive that works in an open environment. Many problems exist with contraceptives for deer. There is currently no effective contraceptive that can be given by dart or any other method that does not involve tranquilizing the deer first at significant costs in manpower and dollars. All contraceptives must be administered at least once a year (or more) and the
deer must be tagged so that those administering the contraceptives know which deer have been dosed and also to warn that the meat is no longer fit for human consumption. There are also other unknown consequences to contraceptives for deer. Say the deer is hit by a car or dies from old age. How would you prevent other wildlife from feeding on the drugged meat? Would you allow bald eagles or other endangered species to feed on the carcass? Contraceptives may be a viable solution for a fenced area like NIST in Gaithersburg using massive amounts of federal tax dollars for a handful of deer but it is not feasible in a non-fenced environment. Some animal rights groups have made propaganda announcements saying they would pay for contraceptives or sterilization of the deer. What they are not telling you is they are not covering the cost of tranquilizing, then tracking the animals. The $20 cost of the contraceptive is nothing compared the cost of paying a licensed and certified expert to sit in the woods for six to eight hours per deer to dart and track the deer each year. ... As for the deer somehow being a benefit for the forests, just listen to those who have devoted their lives to protecting it or just do a simple test and plant a tree yourself and see how long it takes for the deer to come and destroy it before it has a chance to mature. Trees do not live forever and unfortunately there are no saplings surviving to replace the aging trees. Nature has a way of adjusting. I’m sure the coyote population will soon be positively impacted by the abundance of deer. I wonder if your readers will consider that more humane than hunting?
Kevin Kommit, Rockville
usually conducted within the privacy and confines of a medical office? The clients of Ms. Seleshi would be better advised to invest the money into their copays and have a physician-prescribed ultrasound in a medical facility with the physician performing the study and overseeing the technologist. I certainly hope she was smart enough to take out malpractice insurance.
Dr. Peter S. Dunner The writer is part of Washington Radiology Associates of Potomac.
Elk River and Ten Mile Creek
The Elk River chemical leak that suddenly left 300,000 West Viriginians without tap water is a reminder that clean, fresh water is scarce and that any degradation of Ten Mile Creek threatens the security of families throughout our region, especially those with pregnant women, children or seniors. Few of us, I suspect, want to have to compete for bottled water at markets or be dependent upon the government to truck in water supplies.
Cheryl Camillo, Rockville
Alternatives to school construction costs Having read The Gazette’s article about pressuring the state for more school construction funding for Montgomery, Prince George’s and Baltimore counties [“Montgomery, allies vie for school construction funds,” Jan. 14], I was struck by the absence of any discussion about including efforts to involve the local, large commercial construction builders in negotiations. By that I mean: a) Obtaining proposals to build schools from the plans provided by the local school board(s); b) Negotiate lease-back agreements of 20-30 years between the builders and the schools; c) Teachers, administrators, maintenance and busing programs, staffs, etc., continue to be provided and paid for by the schools. This would eliminate the huge up-front cost of construction. Does no one think that this could be a way to go? If not, why not?
E.D. Boyd, Gaithersburg
WRITE TO US The Gazette welcomes letters on subjects of local interest. Please limit them to 200 words. Send submissions to: The Gazette, attention Commentary Editor, 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877; fax to 301-670-7183; or email to opinions@gazette.net.
9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877 | Phone: 301-948-3120 | Fax: 301-670-7183 | Email: opinions@gazette.net More letters appear online at www.gazette.net/opinion
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