Commissioners of Poolesville Vote on PES Grant and Alcohol Permit

There were winners and losers on Monday's town hall meeting, but that is the business of politics.

The most pressing issue in Monday's town hall was Poolesville Elementary School's (PES) grant request. An excited and anxious group of residents and children representing PES were present during the meeting. One PES representative made his case to the panel, asking for grant money, but no specific amount. He attributed the need for funds to the fact that the school had little to no funds because school had not yet started and parents have not yet paid their PTA fees.

As important of an issue the grant money for PES was, the delegation came to a quick decision. They unanimously voted in favor of the motion, granting PES $800 for the school's 50-year anniversary celebration.

Whether or not to give Landscape Projects, Inc. an alcohol permit for their 20-year anniversary picnic was the most divisive issue of the night.

The company came to the commissioners because they plan on holding their alcohol-friendly picnic at Halmos Park. The company likes this location for its "amenities" and "ideal layout," but the city restricts alcohol use in public parks.

Commissioner Brown said a representative of the landscaping company had been at the town hall meetings the past couple of weeks working on a safe and responsible plan for alcohol consumption. Brown praised the company for being open-minded and cooperative with the city and wanted to grant them a one-time permit. However, three commissioners did not share Brown's sentiment.

Commissioner Klobukowski said that granting a permit "sets a bad precedent.” He cited his no vote to the idea that there could be uninvited guests and fights at the picnic. He said that he experienced troublemakers with a former company he worked for during similar get-togethers. He also said the police would not have the authority to restrict unwanted guests.

Commissioner Paul Kuhlman, II shared a similar view on the issue stating the he could not vote for this permit because "it goes against the rules." He said he voted against permits like this in the past. Monday night would not be any different.

The motion failed, but before the town hall meeting, representatives of Landscape Projects, Inc. said they would still have a good time at their celebration regardless of the commissioners' votes.

Ordinance 185 and a close-out of fiscal year 2011 were the last topics of the night.

The ordinance explains who is to pay the burden of rehabilitating a damaged area when a person parks on the sides of the city's roads, damaging grass and dragging mud tracks onto the streets. The commissioners voted unanimously in favor of changing the wording in the ordinance to make the "actor" or "violator" responsible for the violation of the ordinance instead of the "property owner."

As the night winded down, Town Manager Wade Yost went over the city's revenues and expenditures, citing that the city's expenditures were reduced by about $400,000 between fiscal years 2010 and 2011. 

For fiscal year 2011, the city's revenue was approximately $269,000 which was above the budget for the year, but still around $150,000 short of the fiscal year 2010 budget.

The next meeting will be held Aug. 22 and will discuss the city's infrastructural projects and the appointment of a new Planning Commission member.