Rock Creek Palisades and surrounding neighborhoods

September 2008 Newsletter

Sep 14, 2008

RCPCA
ROCK CREEK PALISADES CITIZENS ASSOCIATION

NEWSLETTER
September 2008
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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
It is hard to believe that a year has passed since I took on the role of president. In this relatively short time, we?’ve addressed a number of important issues, invited special guest speakers to present at our membership meetings, and have shared important information through our newsletter and listserv to increase community awareness. This job would not be possible without the help of so many others who take on an issue of interest or who work on committees to improve our community for all of us to enjoy. Many hands make the work lighter, and we are always looking for more people to become involved!
I hope in the coming year we can encourage more people to get involved in making the Rock Creek Palisades Citizens Association (RCPCA), a great civic association to belong to. There are many of you that can organize neighborhood block parties and fun events and since the boundaries of our association are so large, we need more people to help us reach everyone in our Association?’s neighborhoods and ask them to join and get involved.
I have had the privilege of meeting so many of you who volunteer in our community, from schools to beautifying the neighborhood, to keeping an eye on issues that are important to all of us to just caring for where we live! ?“Thank you?”
In our upcoming meeting, we will have a speaker from PEPCO, on the subject of ?“Energy Conservation?” and ?“the rising cost of energy?”. This presentation will be at the beginning of the meeting and I hope you will be able to attend. After the presentation, we will take care of regular business including a few changes to our current bylaws (to vote on), the neighborhood sign update, membership and beautification updates.
I?’d like to thank all of you for making this year a great success. I look forward to continuing to work with all of you to provide a community perspective on important local issues and to continue to strengthen our community. Please bring your ideas for how you think our association can bring our community closer and better serve our neighborhoods.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at fayenabavian@yahoo.com. I look forward to seeing you at our September 25 meeting!
Best regards,

Faye

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Voter Registration 
With the November 2008 Presidential election nearing, remember to register in time to vote! If you have any questions about whether you can vote, where, when, or how to vote, contact the Montgomery County Board of Elections at 1-(240) 777-VOTE. (Web Site: www.777vote.org)
*****Here are some general guidelines from the Board of Elections website*****
All residents of Montgomery County may register to vote, if they are:
?• A County resident
?• A United States citizen
?• At least 18 years of age on or before the next General Election
?• Have not been convicted of a felony, or if you have, you have completed serving a court-ordered sentence of imprisonment, including any term of parole or probation for the conviction.
?• Are not under guardianship for mental disability
Here are some common public locations where you can pick up a Voter Registration Application in Montgomery County:
?• Montgomery County Post Offices
?• Montgomery County Public Libraries
?• Montgomery County Public Schools
?• Montgomery County MVA Offices
?• Or call 1-(240) 777-VOTE
If you moved from another Maryland county or you have changed your residence within Montgomery County, contact the Montgomery County Board of Elections immediately to find out how to update your voter registration. NOTE: THE CHANGES TO YOUR VOTER REGISTRATION ARE NOT EFFECTIVE UNTIL YOU RECEIVE A NEW VOTER NOTIFICATION CARD.
Once you are registered, you should receive a voter information packet from the Montgomery County Board of Elections in advance of every election. This packet will include the location of your polling place, the times the polls are open, and other important voting information. If you do not receive a packet prior to the elections, call 1-(240) 777-VOTE to find out the location of your polling place.

US Presidential Election Dates
Tuesday, October 14, 2008:
Voter Registration Deadline
Tuesday, October 28, 2008:
Receipt of Absentee Ballot Deadline
Tuesday, November 4, 2008:
2008 Presidential General Election
QUESTIONS? CALL 1-(240) 777-VOTE

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Proposed Changes to RCPCA Bylaws 

At the upcoming meeting the RCPCA membership will be asked to vote on a few changes to the association bylaws. The purpose of the proposed changes is to update the bylaws to give the Association more flexibility, to reflect the current practices of how the Association operates, and to address issues that the current bylaws do not address. For example, the current bylaws require that officers serve a term of one year. However, many of the key issues that the Association members have an active interest in, e.g., county plans for development in Wheaton and Kensington ?– are long-term projects. Having officers serve for two-year terms would provide more continuity of leadership. So we propose that the bylaws be changed so that officers serve a term of two years. The current bylaws only allow only one vote per household. This has been changed so that adults residing in one household who each pay dues may each have a vote, up to two voting members per household. However, a household may still elect to pay one set of dues and designate one voting member. The current bylaws also require practices that the Association has rarely followed or are no longer needed. For example, it appears that the Association has not issued ?“certificates of membership?” to its members for many years, and we therefore propose to delete this requirement. The current bylaws do not specify the amount of funds that the Board of Directors or the membership may authorize. The new proposed bylaws provide that the Board may authorize funds up to $500 and that an expenditure of more than $500 must be authorized by a majority of a quorum of the membership at a general or special meeting. These and other proposed changes are described below.

The page numbers below refer to the proposed bylaws dated September 9, 2008, and to the Current bylaws adopted May 23, 1993.

Page 1, Article I: Changes the title of this article to ?“General?” from ?“Offices.?”
Other proposed changes are:
 Section 1, Offices: Changes the principal Association office to the residence of whomever is the current President of the Association, without specifying a particular address. Deletes the reference to the Association?’s principal office as 11205 Woodson Avenue, which was the residence of the Association?’s 1993 President.
 Section 2: This new section describes the territorial boundaries of Rock Creek Palisades. This language was formerly included in Article II, Membership.
 Section 3: This new section states that the Association shall be nonprofit, nonpartisan and nonsectarian. It also states that the Association shall not endorse or support any candidate for elected office. This new section is consistent with the Association?’s Articles of Incorporation.
 Section 4: This new section states that the purpose of the Association shall be to stimulate interest in issues that affect the residents of Rock Creek Palisades and to promote the general welfare of that community. The current bylaws do not state the purpose of the Association.

Pages 2-3 of Proposed bylaws and page 2 of Current bylaws: Article II: Membership: Sections 2, 3, and 4:
 Deletes the requirement in sections 2 and 4 that members of the Association be issued a ?“certificate of membership.?” It appears that the practice of issuing these certificates has not been observed for some time.
 Section 2 is also changed to provide for the payment of dues either on an individual basis or by household, as described in Section 3.
 Section 3 is changed to give households with more than one adult member a choice in the payment of dues and in voting privileges. The two choices are:
o (1) Each member of a household may pay dues and be a voting member, up to two voting members per household, or
o (2) A household may pay single dues (currently $15 per year) and shall designate one voting member. The first option recognizes that spouses or other adults residing in household may wish to vote differently. The current bylaws allow only one vote per household, while the proposed bylaws provide that this is an option which households may choose.
 Section 4 is changed to delete the requirement that each household must designate one voting member, but retains the provisions regarding proxy and absentee ballots

Pages 2-3: Article IV: Meetings:
 Section 1: Provides that there shall be one annual meeting of members (instead of four meetings). With one exception, it appears that the Association has not had four meetings per year since 1993. The practice has been to have three meetings a year ?– a general membership meeting and two other meetings. This proposed change will provide more flexibility to schedule meetings depending on the interest of the membership and new issues that may need to be addressed.
 Section 5: Changes title of this section to ?“Conduct of Business,?” instead of the former title of ?“Order of Business.?” Deletes the former order of business, which the Association has rarely followed at its meetings. Provides that the Association meetings shall generally follow Robert?’s Rules of Order, but that the Association President may follow any order of business that he or she believes is appropriate for the presentation of speakers, topics, and other Association business.

Page 4: Article V: Election of Directors and Officers, section 2: Provides that officers shall hold office for two-year terms (rather than the current one-year term). Many of the key issues that the Association members are interested in ?– e.g., county plans for development in Wheaton and Kensington ?– are long-term projects. Having officers serve for two-year terms provides more continuity of leadership.

Pages 4: Article VII, Duties of Officers, section 4, Treasurer: Deletes last sentence in the current bylaws, which was incomplete and unintelligible. This last sentence read as follows: ?“He or accounts without a second signature of a board member.?”

Page 5: Article VIII: Duties and Powers of Board of Directors, section 4, Expenditure of funds: The current bylaws do not specify the amount of funds the Board of Directors or the membership can authorize. The proposed new bylaw provides that the Board of Directors may authorize an expenditure of funds not to exceed $500. It further provides that for expenditures in excess of $500, the Board of Directors must obtain a majority of a quorum of members at an annual or special meeting. Finally, the proposed new bylaw also provides that the membership may approve an expenditure of funds in excess of $500 for a specific project or projects and may also authorize the Board of Directors to use its discretion in how funds are spent for the project.

Page 6: Article XI: Finance, section 1: Deletes the requirement that checks, drafts, and orders for the payment of money, notes and other evidence of indebtedness be signed by another officer besides the treasurer but adds the requirements that these checks, drafts and other instruments must be authorized by the Board of Directors. Adds language that the Treasurer may open accounts and engage in any other banking activities if those activities are authorized by the Board of Directors. This new requirements will provide adequate oversight of the expenditure of funds without requiring that two officers sign checks.

Page 6 of Proposed bylaws and Pages 6-7 of Current bylaws: Article XII: Sundry Provisions, section 3: Deletes section 3 of the current bylaws, entitled ?“Bonds,?” which requires the Treasurer to give the Association a bond with sureties. A surety bond is a type of insurance policy that would reimburse the Association if the treasurer improperly performed his or her duties. There was a note in the current bylaws which stated that this section was to be deleted. The remaining sections of this article were renumbered.
---------RCPCA MEMBERSHIP MEETING ANNOUNCEMENT
Date: Thursday, September 25, 2008,
7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Place: Rock View Elementary School
3901 Denfeld Avenue
Kensington, MD

Guest: A PEPCO representative will be joining us to talk about our area. PEPCO is the major power supplier to Montgomery County. Please join the Board in welcoming PEPCO to our neighborhood meeting.
Come One Come All ?– Join us on September 25 and invite your neighbors!!!
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September 20, 2007 Multipurpose Room
Rock View Elementary School, 3901 Denfeld Ave.



AGENDA
7:00 -7:15 Social period 8:00-8:30 Bylaws discussion &
Vote on changes
7:15-7:35 PEPCO Guest speaker 8:30-8:45 Old business/Discussions
7:35-8:00 Treasurer?’s Report
Secretary Report
Committee Reports 8:45-9:00 New business/discussions

9:00 Adjourn

Become a Member!



Dear Neighbors:

Did you know that the Rock Creek Palisades Citizens Association covers an area of over 1,200 homes? My goal in membership is to reach out to every one of these homes to increase our overall membership and involvement in this wonderful part of Kensington we live in.

I am reaching out to you to ask that you help by telling your friends and neighbors about RCPCA and asking them to please join! Membership dues are nominal ?– a mere $15.00 per year or just $1.25 per month. Bringing in new members will increase our voice to the County and State legislators about matters that concern all of us. Our dues go to making improvements in the neighborhood such as landscaping on common public grounds and purchasing professionally designed neighborhood entrance signs. At a minimum, our dues pay for this quarterly newsletter!

There really is much more that we could do when we increase our membership. How about plant more trees? How about improve the walking trails in Rock Creek Park? A foot bridge over the creek?

What are your ideas? Let?’s find creative ways to make a difference together!

Everyone?’s involvement and commitment to our community will help us all enhance our quality of life and improve the value of our homes in this fantastic area where we live!

Here is specifically what we need:

1. Become a current member by filling out our membership form and writing a check for $15 to RCPCA.
2. Make sure your membership is current.
3. Spread the news of our association to friends and family within the RCPCA area and encourage them to join!
4. Join us and get involved! Share with us your ideas on how to enhance the quality of living in the Rock Creek Palisades Area.


Thank you,

Theo Harding
Membership





How to Join!


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Rock Creek Palisades Citizen?’s Association
Membership Enrollment Form

Name____________________________________________________Title_________________


Address____________________________________________________ZIP________________

Phone number________________________Email____________________________________

Annual dues are $15.00 and checks are payable to ?“RCPCA?”. Please mail the membership form and your dues to RCPCA Treasurer: Joan Browne: 11123 Woodson Ave. Kensington, MD 20895
You can also sign up at the membership meeting.

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Send your comments and ideas for the newsletter to:
Rock Creek Palisades Citizens Association
11328 Mitscher Street
Kensington, MD 20895