Forum attempts to forge a vision for county
By Aruna Jain Published
April 16, 2004 www.gazette.net
Crime, followed closely by poor schools, is the major hindrance to Prince George's County's growth, said a group of civic leaders, politicians and business owners who gathered at Greenbelt Municipal Center April 8 to discuss the county's future.
The meeting was the first of several community forums aimed at uniting the business community with lawmakers and civic groups to create what organizers call a "shared vision" for Prince George's.
The event was hosted by the Greater Prince George's Business Roundtable, a nonprofit group of business leaders headed by Gary S. Murray Sr., chairman of the Maryland Economic Development Commission, and former county councilman M.H. "Jim" Estepp.
About 25 people, including Jason Groves of Verizon, Gary Michael of The Michael Cos. in Lanham and Patricia Hayes-Parker of the Prince George's Economic Development Corp. sat in a conference room as Estepp moderated the forum.
Most of the evening was spent coming up with what Estepp called a "vision framework," and getting ideas about what attributes they want to see in Prince George's County future.
"Prince George's County should be a highly desirable place to live, work and raise a family," said David Merkowitz, executive director of the Prince George's Business-Education Alliance.
Education should be the county's main focus, one speaker said. It is one of the first things business owners examine when they consider moving to the county. Others said better schools can only be supported with tax revenue from more businesses moving to the county.
I"It becomes a chicken-and-egg situation," Estepp said.
Others said that accessibility to good medical care is a priority.
Michael, CEO of The Michael Cos., said the lack of jobs in Prince George's County makes traffic issues and long commutes a daily affair.
"You can't have much of a quality of life that way," he said.
Jose R. Morales, a member of the Prince George's County Board of Education, and M. Charlina Watson, a Bladensburg town council member, said there is a shameful lack of outreach to Hispanic residents.
"Communication is a challenge," Watson said. "But we don't communicate enough. We need to do a lot more for our Hispanic communities. It seems as if no one wants to look at their issues."
She added that Inner Beltway communities are often neglected by lawmakers and the rest of the county.
Others said the county has failed to take advantage of its resources, such as the University of Maryland, College Park; Beltsville Agricultural Research Center; and NASA-Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt.
"We haven't marketed the county well," one speaker said.
Nearly everyone said that crime, or at least the perception of crime, is a problem. "I've brought many executive friends to the county who are surprised when they see Mitchellville, Bowie or Upper Marlboro," Groves said. "There are areas where crime exists, but the perception appears to be [there is crime] throughout the county."
Throughout the meeting, Business Roundtable spokeswoman Anne Harter kept track of all of the issues presented; she said they will be posted on the group's Web site -- www.bizroundtable.org -- in an ongoing effort to create the "vision framework."
By the end of the forum, Estepp agreed with others that more than the four forums originally intended need to be held around the county. He suggested six be held.
"There was a lot of pent-up frustration ... as a first session this will be a template we use," Estepp said. "One thing we heard loud and clear is, 'We want more.'"
E-mail Aruna Jain at ajain@gazette.net.
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