Greenbelt news review., October 07, 1954, Image 1

About Greenbelt news review. (Greenbelt, Md.) 1954-current

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Vol. 19, No. 9 Greenbelt, Maryland, Thursday, October 9, 1954 10 Cents
Citizens Group Sponsors Reception
For Teachers; Discusses Problems
By Bernard Krug
In its first meeting of the new season at the Center school, the
Greenbelt Citizens Association Monday night voted to assume
sponsorship of a city-wide reception for all teachers in Greenbelt.
This annual affair, handled in the past by the Community Church,
will be coordinated by GCA with the three Parent-Teacher Asso
ciations in town providing refreshments and taking care of other
arrangement details. No exact date for the reception was set. It
Will be the prime responsibility of GCA’s Community Committee,
Whose chairman is Bruce Bowman.
Bus Survey
Bus Committee Chairman Matt
Amberg announced results of the
recent bus survey, undertaken by
GCA to determine how many
Greenbelt residents would use bus
service to Washington on the new
Parkway if it were provided. He
said that 900 local people com
mute to Washington regularly
and that between 300 and 900, or
an estimated 600 would use the
bus service. The new super-high
way was scheduled to open on Oc
tober 16, although it now appears
that it will be delayed until the
end of the month by minor con
struction on approaches and un
derpasses.
Thumbs Down By C.T.C.
No bus company has yet re
quested permission to use the road
on a through basis, Amberg stat
ed, but it was felt companies are
waiting for official opening of the
road before applying for a fran
chise. Meanwhile, officials of the
Capital Transit Company informed
Amberg that their company was
interested” in providing
Crocnbclt Washing "
lowing their recent on-the-spot ap
praisal of the situation. Another
possibility held forth by the Com
mittee is the fact that the City of
Greenbelt also is considering of
fering service to and from Wash
ington.
Sale of Land
Rather heated discussion follow
ed a resolution offered by Leonard
Baron, chairman of the Develop
ment Committee. The measure
S a i! ed „ for GCA to support Green
belt Consumer Services as pur
chaser of the commercial land in
the Center “because GCS would
better protect the interests of
Greenbelt residents.” The resolu
tion failed of passage by one vote.
Sad Shack
The meeung voted to inform
e Interior Department of its on
position to erection of a “shack”
ston r Rn e a int Y SeCti ° n ° f Edmon
ton Road and Greenbelt Road, di-
Hteh fr ° m the Juni °r
tS'7T f:nt * ' TOu!d defi ™te*v "de
traot from tte beauty of the area.
Street Planting
c °~ alS ° "' porte ' 1 that the
bett Veteran 6 ' the Gr«>n
had mpH Rousing Corporation
51,500 to th V Um ° f
P'an to enhance H, in l r 'graterl
At S . eauty of the
footed toward' more Street plant'
Z chr' ally 0,5
Band To Sell Boooks?
beft rlZu C ° P i eS ° f the Gr ce»-
Telephone Directory are still
ava table at the same price „f “
cents per copy, at the Tobacco
Store, Bruce Bowman announced.
Plans for tthe Greenbelt Band to
sell the directories house-to-house
for a specified fee per copy were
also discussed.
GCA head Walter Volckhausen
announced that the next meeting
of the association was tentatively
slated for Monday, October 25,
and .that future meetings would be
-held on the fourth Monday of each
■month.
Greeenbelt News Review
Published Every Thursday By The Greenbelt Cooperative Publishing Association, Inc., 9 Parkway, Greenbelt, Maryland
High Point PTA
Meets To Organize
Parents of students attending
High Point high school have been
invited to attend a meeting to or
ganize a Parent-Teachers Associa
tion on Tuesday, October 12, at 8
p.m. in the cafeteria of the high
school.
On the agenda will be considera
tion of the by-laws and election of
a nominating committee for per
manent officers. Parents may reg
ister as charter members and. to
become eligible to vote under the
proposed by-laws. Dues will be
collected from members.
Special guests of the evening will
be William S. Schmidt, Superin
tendent of Schools, and members
of the Prince Georges County
school board. They will participate
in an open house following the
meeting. Parking space for cars
will be available by the gymnasium
at the south of the building.
t-ocal Community Chest Drive
’One-Niqhter” Affair This Year
The Annual Community Chest Drive for the city of Greenbelt
Will be held for “one-night” only Monday, October 18, from 7
to 8 o clock in the evening. This is a new venture in collecting
for this organization and it is urgent that everyone give his fair
share during this one night campaign, according to an announce
ment from Mrs. James Flynn who is serving as general chairman
for the drive in Greenbelt.
Mayor Frank Lastner has been
selected Honorary Chairman. Also
assisting Mrs. Flynn will be Mrs.
Oscar Zoellner who , will have
charge of business and commer
cial contacts for the campaign.
Captains assisting in the “one
night” drive are here listed with
their telephone numbers. Volun
teers are needed and are urged to
contact Mrs. Flynn at 3921 or any
of the captains.
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INTRODUCING THE “RED FEATHER MARCH” Ralph
Williams, acting chairman of the Prince Georges Community
Chest, “runs over” the new march with Leoma Naughton’s
(she } s “Miss Football of 1951\”) newly organized Red Feather
ettes. The girls, all Maryland U. students, have volunteered
to assist with the current PG Community Chest Campaign.
From left to right, Ralph Williams, Barbara Wilkins, Bobbie
Lee Carlson, Joan Gaddy, Nancy Mularkey, Mary Jane Morley
and Leoma Naught on.
AN INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER
What Goes On?
Friday, October 8 - GVHC
Board of Directors meeting
at Hamilton Place, 8:15 p.m.
Saturday, October 9 - Navy
Wives Club dance at Green
belt Athletic Club from 10
p.m. to 1 a.m.
Sunday, October 10 - Annual
Communion breakfast of Holy
Name Society of St. Hugh’s at
8:30 a.m. at Center school.
Tuesday, October 12 - Registra
tion for High Point High
School PTA at high school
cafeteria at 8 p.m.
Wednesday, October 13 - Reg
istration for square dancing
lessons at North End School
at 8 p.m.
Monday, October 18 - Annual
Community Chest drive
throughout the city.
Adult Girl Scouts
Meet On Wednesday
The adult Girl Scouts of District
I will hold their next meeting in
the Home Economics room at the
Center school on Wednesday night,
October 13, at 8:30 p.m. Mrs.
Lorna Ott, who attended Camp
Macy this summer will show film
strips of her experiences there.
All Brownie, Girl Scout Leaders
and troop committee members are
urged to attend. Mrs. Pearl El
lerin, president of District I hopes
to have a 100% troop representa
tion at the meeting.
Captains: Mrs. Robert Bregman,
7671; Mrs. Hugh Burns, 8466; Mrs.
John DeCoste, 5716; Mrs. O. F.
Hancock, 5317; Mrs. Joseph Has
linger, 5459; Mrs. Lawrence Levine,
5328; Mrs. A1 Long, 7088; Mrs.
Henry Moore, 5041; Mrs. Ben Perl
sweig, 2596; Mrs. Leroy Root, 2814;
Mrs. Robert Varney, 7104; Mrs.
Ralph Webster, 2986; Mrs. Alex
Radko 3287.
Council Postpones Pay Raise
As City Budget Battle Looms
By I. J. Parker
First sounds of the coming “battle of the budget” were heard
at the city council meeting last Monday night when the proposed
5-percent salary increase for municipal employees was tabled
until December, and a SI4OO appropriation for fire- and theft
proof safes was denied. Only a SISOO expenditure for landscap
ing of the Southway entrance to Greenbelt managed to squeeze
through.
Spearheading the economy wave
was councilman Tom Canning,
who asked that further considera
tion of the salary boost be given
in light of its effect on the tax
rate. After several Iprefliminalry
moves by the council to include
part-time employees in the in
crease, Canning declared: “I want
it definitely understood I am not
opposed to a salary increase; I’d
like one myself, and didn t get it.
I don’t want to stand in the way
of others getting a salary increase.”
He then cited Federal Housing
Administration’s decision last week
to disapprove Johnson-Crooks re
quest to build homes in Greenbelt
on the basis of the high tax rate
in this city, as proof that the city
must work hard to lower the tax
rate.
Urges Delay
Canning asserted that future de
velopment in Greenbelt depends on
the tax rate, and any move by the
council to increase the budget
should be given careful colisidera
tion. He urged the council to de
lay the salary increase until the
next year’s budget can be studied
in order to determine more accu- v
rately how the expenditure of $7500
(cost of increase) would affect the
tax rate. Whether increased as
sessments on business property or
industrial land wold brighten the
budget picture in Greenbelt, Can
ning added, is not clear at this
time. HiS motion to table the
matter lacked a second.
Mayor Frank Lastner, strong
proponent of the increase, stated
that the FHA refusal to Johnson-
Crooks was based on the housing
groups’ desire to build too many
homes, and a sales price higher
than the average income group in
the Greenbelt area can afford; not
on the high tax rate. The city
employees’ pay rates are 15 per
cent lower than the national av
erage for similar municipal em
ployees. Lastner pointed out.
However, when Lastner asked city
manager Charles McDonald whe
ther he would recommend an in
crease, McDonald declared he
Boys Club Beats
Takoma Park 7-6
By E. Donßullian
The Boys Club 120-lb. football
team squeezed out a win over Ta
koma Park by a score of 7-6 in a
rather listless game last Saturday.
The boys seemed to lack coordina
tion and all of Coach “Chuck”
COOP FOUR
Link’s efforts could not get them
to play together as a team. At
the beginning of the second half,
right after the Coach had. spoken
to them, they seemed to remember
their assignments and put one play
together. It started off as a
plunge thru the right side, but
wound up with Matson going be
tween LT Markowitz and LG Me-
Glothin, who had opened up a hole
big enough for a truck. After
brushing one opponent and swing
ing his hips away from another,
Matson found a clear field in front
of him with the exception of one
last defender whom he outran to
score the touchdown. It was a
beautiful, well executed play which
covered 40 yards. Matson follow
ed it up by plunging for the extra
point that won the game.
would not, adding the increase
would raise the tax rate 15 cents.
At this point councilman James
Wolfe moved to table the matter
until the December budget consid
erations. Seconded by Canning
the motion passed. In quick suc
cession two other motions were
tabled; the first to increase- the
city manager’s salary, and the
other, to request the state legisla
ture to amend the city charter in
order to provide for increased sal
aries for councilmen and the
mayor.
Safes Safe?
The manager’s request to trans
fer funds within the same depart
ment to provide for the purchase'
of SI4OO worth of safes was de
nied. One councilman asked, whe
ther theft of office records was
possible with the police depart
ment in the same office. As for the'
fire hazards it was disclosed that
the building is considered fire
proof. However, McDonald de
clared that the biggest fire hazard
in the city was “right below us”.
(Variety store.)
GVHC Problem?
Although the SISOO appropriation
for landscaping was approved it
met considerable opposition on
the grounds of raising the tax rate.
The sum represents half the
amount needed, with Greenbelt
Veteran Housing Corporation sup
plying the rest of the funds.
Councilman Ben Goldfaden oppos
ed the move, calling the problem
strictly a GVHC affair and. prop
erly their expense. He said he
noted GVHCs financial statement
showed a surplus and declared
that they could well afford the ex
pense. City manager McDonald
informed the council that he had
been asked to pay a retainer fee
to the landscape architect that
drew up plans for the project. The
council instructed. McDonald not
to include any such payment from
city funds. The appropriation
passed by a 3-2 vote.
Tax Moratorium?
Before the budget skirmishes
ended for the evening, the coun
cil heard an appeal from Gold
faden to place on the agenda of
the next meeting a proposal to ex- 1
tend a one-year moratorium on
taxes to the owners of newly-built
homes in Greenbelt. He declared
that the high tax rate in Green
belt made it a hardship for resi
dents to build new homes in the
city and the moratorium would re
lieve this burden and make future
development in Greenbelt a great
er possibility. He asked the city
manager to determine trash col
lection costs so that at least pay
ment for this service could be
made. (Goldfaden is president of
a housing group building homes
on ’akeside property.)
The moratorium may start a
“dangerous precedent,” Canning
replied, and asked that such a
move be approached with cau
tion. “You do it for one group
and all the other groups will ex
pect the same thing,” Canning said.
Canning then asked to correct a
statement in last weeks News Re
view which quoted him as saying
the council “did not deserve a sal
ary raise.” He did not mean to
imply that the council was not do
ing a good job, Canning asserted,
but that such a raise was not war
ranted at this time because of the
tax rate.