Northwood News ♦ June 2018

President’s Message

By Sharon Canavan

Wow!  The forum that NFCCA hosted in April for candidates running for District 19 Delegate was a huge success.  [See story in this issue.]  The auditorium at Forest Knolls was crammed.  Attendees seemed to enjoy the speed-dating format where nine candidates had 10 minutes with each group to talk and answer questions about why you should vote for them before the candidates moved on to the next group.  Yes, a little chaotic and certainly noisy, but we hope it gave you a better opportunity to get to know them instead of listening to stump speeches.  There are multiple candidates vying for all of the elected positions in Montgomery County and Maryland.  This election year we have to pay more attention to pick the best candidates, because the field is so crowded.  Your first opportunity to make these choices is the Maryland primary on June 26th.

At the next general membership meeting on Wednesday, June 13th, we will hear from several speakers.  The Montgomery County Green Bank is just getting beginning to develop its energy saving programs for residential property owners.  This publicly chartered nonprofit corporation has a mission to accelerate affordable energy efficiency and clean energy investment in Montgomery County.  The speaker will describe their efforts and is looking for feedback on the products that are under development to make sure they will be workable for homeowners.

A PEPCO speaker will discuss the electrical infrastructure in our community, the response to recent power failures, and PEPCO’s plans to ensure that electrical transformers in the neighborhood are safe, as well as whether equipment upgrades are necessary.  Recent power failures, including an incident when an electric power transformer exploded and caught fire, alarmed many residents here.

Also, staff from the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation will be discussing the timing of when Discovery Channel is leaving Silver Spring, the impact of this step on local businesses, and current efforts underway to seek another tenant or tenants for the office building.  The Discovery Channel’s exodus could potentially affect the economic health of the surrounding community, unless steps are taken to fill the void left by the exit of this major employer in Silver Spring.

This may be too abrupt a segue, but speaking of filling empty slots:  the elections of officers and board members at the NFCCA general membership meeting in October may seem a long way away, but it is not too early to begin thinking about who could bring new energy and ideas to our association.  The NFCCA election offers an opportunity to get involved and help guide the direction of our neighborhood organization.  What does it take for someone to serve?  The board meets five evenings during the year and, as you know, there are an equal number of general membership meetings annually.  Otherwise, individual board members or officers choose to volunteer to help with activities, such as planning National Night Out, or writing articles for the newsletter, or attending important community hearings about issues that affect our community.  Sure, getting involved takes time out of busy lives, but your contribution can be a rewarding experience and this is a manageable lift!

We want to hear from you!  This is your chance to nominate someone else or offer to run yourself for one of the elected positions for the 2017-2018 NFCCA slate of officers and board members.

Before we take a break for the summer from NFCCA meetings, mark your calendars for our National Night Out community get-together on Tuesday, August 7th (see back page).  There will be the usual delicious potluck food, sno-cones, and drinks.  The band will be playing and the police motorcade will stop by.  Come and join the fun at the Forest Knolls pool.   ■