On Friday, July 26, 2019, Mayor Michael O’Connor held his monthly Q&A session on the Golden Mile at Sabor Casero Bakery. It was a great opportunity for citizens to come out, express their concerns or ask questions of the Mayor.
Elizabeth Chung (Asian American Center) and Mayor O’Connor
Mayor O’Connor, Sandra Wastler (GMA) and some of his younger constituents.
Mayor O’Connor surrounded by the great Sabor Casero team.
The City of Frederick plans to extend Himes Avenue passed Butterfly Lane into the Westside Regional Park property. It will join up with Contender Way which begins in front of Butterfly Ridge Elementary School, and continue from there to Route 180.
This new road is expected to open up the Westside Regional Park property for use as a park, the city says. . The first amenity will be Sophie and Madigan’s Playground, which is named in honor of two little girls who perished in a house fire in Myersville in January, 2013.
Plans are to end Butterfly Lane at Acropolis Way and close that intersection at Route 180.
Also part of the project are installation of a water main, sanitary sewer, paths, landscaping, the installation of street and parking lot lights and forest conservation planting. The parking lot will be located north of Contender Way, city officials say.
The project is expected to be completed by November, 2020.
By Jeremy Bauerwolf, Frederick News Post
Tuesday, November 22, 2016
The public will learn in January which Frederick neighborhoods might attend a new elementary school being built in the western end of the city.
Frederick County Public Schools intends to unveil at least three choices of attendance boundaries for Butterfly Ridge Elementary School, Ray Barnes, the district’s chief operating officer, said on Monday.
The school system plans to open Butterfly Ridge by 2018 to alleviate significant overcrowding in other city schools, namely Hillcrest, Waverley and Orchard Grove elementary schools.
Though the district will accept feedback on all of the options, only one will be presented to the Frederick County Board of Education as the superintendent’s recommendation. The district hopes the board would approve a plan by June 2017 to allow a full year for bus routes and more to be developed, Barnes said.
The redistricting process can be arduous. Families often feel deep loyalty to their home schools and have many questions, Barnes said in an interview.
To that end, the school system has held a number of meetings at the schools primarily affected by the boundary changes, including one on Monday night at Tuscarora Elementary School that was sparsely attended. Fewer than 10 people braved the chill to hear a presentation on Butterfly Ridge.
Earlier meetings were more crowded, with up to 30 people, Barnes said.
At the recent round of meetings, parents and the community were presented with large maps of the city and the surrounding area on which they could create their own school attendance boundaries.
This is the first time the district has tried an interactive activity, Barnes said. It has yielded mostly written comments, but a few have delved into the nitty-gritty of shifting students around, he said.
Parents are concerned with issues such as which middle or high school their children will attend. The district first needs to establish the elementary school boundaries before seeing how they will influence the middle and high schools, he said.
At a previous meeting in late September, parents were worried that minority and low-income students, primarily at Hillcrest and Waverley, would be excluded from the new school.
Butterfly Ridge, which will accommodate 725 students, will be on Butterfly Lane opposite McCain Drive, in the current Orchard Grove attendance area.
The system has said it will seek to avoid creating pockets of poverty in the community while also following Frederick County Board of Education policy.
By Ryan Marshall, Frederick News Post
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
Frederick officials hope a new tunnel that will let bicyclists and pedestrians travel beneath U.S. 15 on Rosemont Avenue will help connect the west side of the city to downtown.
The tunnel under the southbound ramps onto U.S. 15 opens on one side to a black asphalt path leading up to the sidewalk on Rosemont Avenue. It opens on the other side to a bridge across Rock Creek.
The spot has long been identified as an important gateway between the Golden Mile and other parts of west Frederick to the downtown area, said Tim Davis of the city’s planning department.
“This was the connection” needed to bring the two areas together, he said.
The city will hold a ceremony at 5 p.m. Oct. 4 to celebrate the official completion of the $1.7 million project.
Most of the money came from the city, although the state’s Department of Transportation contributed about $330,000, Davis said.
The tunnel connects about 5 miles of shared-use trails that didn’t have an easy connection before, he said.
It will also likely be an economic benefit by allowing people who work in downtown shops or restaurants to ride their bikes to work.
“This isn’t just a recreation facility that we put in,” Davis said.
Lots of people would much rather bike to work than sit in traffic, said Justin Kiska, president of the Golden Mile Alliance, which seeks to foster growth and development in west Frederick.
“It just makes things easier for people now,” he said.
One of the alliance’s main goals has been working on connectivity issues between west Frederick and other parts of the city, Kiska said.
He said anything that can get bikers off main routes is a good thing.
Some members of one Frederick neighborhood would like to see the shared-use path connected to one of their local streets.
The end of Meadowdale Lane in the Rock Creek Estates neighborhood sits only a few dozen yards from the completed trail along the creek.
Residents assumed that a makeshift path used by construction vehicles during the project’s construction would be paved at the end of the process to connect Meadowdale to the shared-use path, said Katie Nash, who lives in the neighborhood.
Today, part of the path is covered with stone, while the rest has green netting over the grass. Nash said she and her neighbors would like some basic asphalt or cement to provide a route down to the shared-use path.
They don’t want to seem like they’re not grateful for the project, but the stones on the makeshift path make it hard for senior citizens, parents with strollers or children on bicycles to get down to the creek, Nash said.
Nash is preparing to speak with the city’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, which is scheduled to meet Oct. 4.
Davis said a connection from Meadowdale was not in the original plan to develop the shared-use path, but the city will discuss amendments to the plan next week for connections to 10 to 12 neighborhoods and activity centers.
The Golden Mile Alliance is currently seeking individuals interested in serving on the organization’s Board of Directors.
The GMA’s Board of Directors is made up of five business representatives from the Golden Mile Corridor, five residents, and five property owners and/or representatives. The Board of Directors is charged with directing the business of The Golden Mile Alliance as set forth by the organization’s By-Laws.
Frederick County Public Schools are inviting parents and community members to learn about the redistricting process to determine who will attend the new Butterfly Ridge Elementary School in Frederick. Construction for Butterfly Ridge will start in the spring of 2017 with a scheduled opening in August 2018.
Tuesday, September 27th at 6:30 p.m.Waverly Elementary School
201 Waverly Drive | Frederick, MD
Thursday, September 29th at 6:30 p.m.
Hilcrest Elementary School
1285 Hilcrest Drive | Frederick, MD
By Nancy Lavin, Frederick News-Post
Saturday, April 16, 2016
The small scoops of overturned dirt outside the Frederick Towne Mall were barely noticeable to passersby.
But to the mix of elected officials, community leaders and developers who donned hard hats and picked up shovels on Saturday, the groundbreaking represented the first tangible sign of progress toward reviving the long-vacant site.
The project to demolish the former mall at 1301 W. Patrick St. and redevelop the space as a four-building shopping center complete with a 155,000-square-foot Wal-Mart has been in the works for several years. Until Saturday, though, the outward appearance has remained unchanged, fueling public perception that the redevelopment was stalled or had fallen through entirely.
“Until recently, they really hadn’t had anything to see,” said Justin Kiska, president of the Golden Mile Alliance. “I think this proves that things are really happening now on the Golden Mile and at the Frederick Towne Mall.”
Kiska was one of several local leaders who spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony before a crowd of roughly two dozen people. Others, including Frederick Mayor Randy McClement and representatives from the project developer DLC Management Corp. and property owner Rockwood Capital, shared similar words of praise for the significance of the event.
Richard Griffin, city economic development director, pointed to the additional 500,000 square feet of retail development the project will bring — on top of the 1,600,000 square feet existing on the Golden Mile — as evidence of the continued success of the area’s redevelopment.
“Out here on the Golden Mile, it’s a really amazing retail story,” Griffin said.
The new Wal-Mart and additional 16 retail shops planned as part of the four-building Frederick Towne Center project will create additional incentive for businesses and customers to come to west Frederick, McClement added.
The project has faced several delays since receiving the go-ahead from the city Planning Commission in 2014. The proposal required a series of state approvals and permits, as well as modifications to the complex heating and cooling system to ensure that Boscov’s, which will become part of the new development, can remain open during the demolition and new construction.
Dave Severn, an attorney representing Rockwood Capital, acknowledged that the road to approval had been long and arduous, paved with “an extraordinary series of obstacles.”
A few remaining state permits, most notably from the Maryland State Highway Administration, are still pending, but Severn said he hoped to receive final approval within the next month.
The timeline for demolition and new construction will be largely dependent on when those final details are ironed out. Severn said work on the HVAC system would start “fairly soon,” followed by demolition within the next six months.
The demolition and new construction will take about 12 to 16 months, with the 16 retail pad sites slated to open by December 2017, Severn said.
As of Saturday, the 40,000-square-foot shopping center that is part of the project had no confirmed tenants, according to Adam Greenberg, the mid-Atlantic director of leasing for DLC Management Corp. However, Greenberg said the company was in negotiations based on letters of intent with at least 10 potential tenants.
He said he anticipated finalizing leases within the next few months.
The project also includes two smaller buildings anticipated to become restaurant sites. Greenberg could not comment on the status of those buildings because his company is not handling those leases.
The project will also include a mixed-use path and park space along Rock Creek on the site’s northern edge, according to site plans approved by the city. Other improvements include walking paths, a sheltered bus stop, landscaping and connections to adjacent roads and sidewalks.
Frederick City Department of Economic Development
Tuesday, March 10, 2016
In collaboration with The City of Frederick, Golden Mile Alliance, and Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), three businesses along the Golden Mile received facade improvement grants to enhance the image and improve the economic vitality of the corridor.
The City of Frederick received $100,000 from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development to support an expanded facade improvement program along the Patrick Street corridor. The corridor encompasses businesses within the Golden Mile, Downtown Frederick, and East Frederick.
The Golden Mile Alliance Design Committee approved facade improvement grants for Casa Rico, Petersen’s Carpet & Flooring and Vista Shops at Golden Mile.
The facade improvement program will continue in 2016 as The City of Frederick was recently awarded funding for FY2016 by DHCD.Additional communication, including a call for applications will be provided once funding is made available.
CASA RICO
Repair included a new sign, fresh paint for exterior including the roof and gutter replacement.
PETERSEN’S CARPET & FLOORING
Improvements included new stairs and railings, lighting, planter boxes, window casings and a vestibule entrance.
VISTA SHOPS
Improvements included fresh paint,graffiti removal, and new paint color.
In conjunction with National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, the Golden Mile Alliance will be collecting food along the mile the entire month of November. National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week is held each year the week before Thanksgiving. This is a time for us all to start to think about what we are thankful for, a perfect time to share our compassion with our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness, and work toward a world where no one has to experience Hunger and Homelessness. All donations will go to the City of Frederick Maryland Food Bank.
Please visit the following Golden Mile businesses to drop off your donations of non-perishable food items.
My Bank First United Bank & Trust, 102 Baughmans Lane
Wolf Furniture, 1215 West Patrick Street
Way Off Broadway, 5 Willowdale Drive
Thrift Angel, 1507 West Patrick Street
Spartan Tactical & Police Supply, 1517 West Patrick Street
M & T Bank, 1304 West Patrick Street
Modern Asia Restaurant, 1306 West Patrick Street
Starbucks Coffee, 1046 West Patrick Street
Petersen’s Carpet & Flooring, 1060 West Patrick Street
The Golden Mile Alliance wishes to thank these businesses for their participation. Please join us in Giving Thanks by donating at one or more of these locations the entire month of November.
The Frederick Police Department is conducting an online survey and is asking the Frederick Community for their participation. This is an opportunity for you to voice your opinions about crime and police response in your neighborhood and will allow the Police Department to better serve the City of Frederick. The survey link can be found on the City’s homepage at www.cityoffrederick.com.
