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OP here. Yes, the quality of life in the county has declined especially for many who reside inside the beltway and are in unincorporated parts of the county, where we have no municipal government to seek for help. We are completely dependent on the county.
Waste management services have continued to decline. I and others do not understand how the current company continues to receive the county contract for recycling and trash pick-up. They drop trash and glass in the street and make no effort to pick it up. They leave trash in the bottom of the can where it will sit and stink for another week because we are now down to 1 pick-up a week. They throw the bins around and break them and thrust them into parked cars. We've embraced composting now. The problem is the same company picks up composting - or not. Missed collections abound weekly for compost, trash and/or recycling. That compost will now sit until the collection next week - unless they miss that one too.
When Alsobrooks took office she promised that she was going to get more inspectors to address all the issues in our communities with regard to code enforcement and property standards. It did not happen. Quality of life was already diminished because of the few number of inspectors. Her budget did not provide for more inspectors. There were 7 for the entire county and it stayed that way throughout her term. Only now I hear that the budget now includes more inspector positions.
DPIE is just about "useless". There is limited code enforcement of property standards. We've got violations that are not addressed and service requests to 311 are closed without action and without explanation as to what conclusion was drawn in order to close it out. We've got citizens submitting the same requests over many years because absolutely nothing is done to address them. We've got people constructing additions to homes with no permits. We've got people tearing up their yards/lawns, and putting concrete across the front of their houses, of course no permit. We've got swimming pools filled with stagnate water - for years - attracting mosquitoes and frogs who croak through the night.
We've got very overcrowded houses with so much trash that the bin cannot be closed, every week. Birds pick at the plastic bags not in the can and garbage and trash is strewn across yards and streets. We've got people entertaining in the yards as if they have no neighbors and the loud music and other noise is of no consequence to anyone. We cannot get the noise ordinance enforced. The police department "just got" 8 noise meters at a cost of $126 per meter and has given ONE meter to each of the EIGHT police districts.
We've got single-family homes being used as multi-family homes and boarding houses with transitory residents. We've got 10-15 cars of tenants in these illegal multi-family homes - that are at most 4-bedroom single-family homes - that take up all the street parking so homeowners compete for parking near the homes they own. We've got folks piled into basements that are "not habitable" per standards for ventilation, cooking, light and egress.
We've got cars blocking driveways. We've got people running car repair businesses out of their homes and parking their customers cars on the street waiting to be serviced. We've got people selling food on the sidewalk. We've got people selling food out of their homes without any license to do so. We've got residential properties with tall grass, weeds, abandoned cars, furniture in the yard, chickens, goats, old rusted appliances. We've got tractor trailers parked on residential streets.
When she was running for re-election for county executive, she did not speak on these issues. I asked her campaign several times what she would do to address these concerns. Never heard a word.
So yes, the quality of life is in serious decline and I have been here 40 years and can tell the difference. Maybe this is why the county is losing citizens to Charles County which is now the wealthiest Black county in the country. For high taxes what are we getting?
Meh. It's a huge county. Aside from all the construction going on with the Purple line and Rt. 1 here in the northern part of the county, I wouldn't necessarily believe that the quality of life in the entire county has declined. At least from my window, things aren't getting worse. If not better. But each person can perceive different things.
I could be sheltered in my little nook of the county though. I know the Northwest Branch and Trolly trail connection is being constructed. The ANacostia is cleaner. I like to bike out there. Homes in my neighborhood are being purchased and renovated increasing value. We still feel relatively safe as we move about.
Meh. It's a huge county. Aside from all the construction going on with the Purple line and Rt. 1 here in the northern part of the county, I wouldn't necessarily believe that the quality of life in the entire county has declined. At least from my window, things aren't getting worse. If not better. But each person can perceive different things.
I could be sheltered in my little nook of the county though. I know the Northwest Branch and Trolly trail connection is being constructed. The ANacostia is cleaner. I like to bike out there. Homes in my neighborhood are being purchased and renovated increasing value. We still feel relatively safe as we move about.
This differences between North and South County are night and day. Anything under Central Ave (really 50) seems to be getting more and more neglected.
OP here. Yes, the quality of life in the county has declined especially for many who reside inside the beltway and are in unincorporated parts of the county, where we have no municipal government to seek for help. We are completely dependent on the county.
Waste management services have continued to decline. I and others do not understand how the current company continues to receive the county contract for recycling and trash pick-up. They drop trash and glass in the street and make no effort to pick it up. They leave trash in the bottom of the can where it will sit and stink for another week because we are now down to 1 pick-up a week. They throw the bins around and break them and thrust them into parked cars. We've embraced composting now. The problem is the same company picks up composting - or not. Missed collections abound weekly for compost, trash and/or recycling. That compost will now sit until the collection next week - unless they miss that one too.
When Alsobrooks took office she promised that she was going to get more inspectors to address all the issues in our communities with regard to code enforcement and property standards. It did not happen. Quality of life was already diminished because of the few number of inspectors. Her budget did not provide for more inspectors. There were 7 for the entire county and it stayed that way throughout her term. Only now I hear that the budget now includes more inspector positions.
DPIE is just about "useless". There is limited code enforcement of property standards. We've got violations that are not addressed and service requests to 311 are closed without action and without explanation as to what conclusion was drawn in order to close it out. We've got citizens submitting the same requests over many years because absolutely nothing is done to address them. We've got people constructing additions to homes with no permits. We've got people tearing up their yards/lawns, and putting concrete across the front of their houses, of course no permit. We've got swimming pools filled with stagnate water - for years - attracting mosquitoes and frogs who croak through the night.
We've got very overcrowded houses with so much trash that the bin cannot be closed, every week. Birds pick at the plastic bags not in the can and garbage and trash is strewn across yards and streets. We've got people entertaining in the yards as if they have no neighbors and the loud music and other noise is of no consequence to anyone. We cannot get the noise ordinance enforced. The police department "just got" 8 noise meters at a cost of $126 per meter and has given ONE meter to each of the EIGHT police districts.
We've got single-family homes being used as multi-family homes and boarding houses with transitory residents. We've got 10-15 cars of tenants in these illegal multi-family homes - that are at most 4-bedroom single-family homes - that take up all the street parking so homeowners compete for parking near the homes they own. We've got folks piled into basements that are "not habitable" per standards for ventilation, cooking, light and egress.
We've got cars blocking driveways. We've got people running car repair businesses out of their homes and parking their customers cars on the street waiting to be serviced. We've got people selling food on the sidewalk. We've got people selling food out of their homes without any license to do so. We've got residential properties with tall grass, weeds, abandoned cars, furniture in the yard, chickens, goats, old rusted appliances. We've got tractor trailers parked on residential streets.
When she was running for re-election for county executive, she did not speak on these issues. I asked her campaign several times what she would do to address these concerns. Never heard a word.
So yes, the quality of life is in serious decline and I have been here 40 years and can tell the difference. Maybe this is why the county is losing citizens to Charles County which is now the wealthiest Black county in the country. For high taxes what are we getting?
Most of this as it didn't affect me when i lived in PG ( i moved back to DC). Trash collection is an issue however, you're right. But particularly the bold did not affect me at all where I live so I cannot agree that the QOL got worse since Alsobrooks came on.
I think the biggest reasons for those moving to Charles are mostly families looking for better schools and more house for their $$$.
Most of this as it didn't affect me when i lived in PG ( i moved back to DC). Trash collection is an issue however, you're right. But particularly the bold did not affect me at all where I live so I cannot agree that the QOL got worse since Alsobrooks came on.
I think the biggest reasons for those moving to Charles are mostly families looking for better schools and more house for their $$$.
Which would be the reason most people move. They want value for their money. Economics is always number one, followed by schools, and then quality of life.
A lot of people have options now that remote work is more acceptable. Why stay in a house or an area where you are struggling when you can move further out or south and get more house and a lower payment? That's a very compelling choice.
I do understand the issue with multiple families living in one home. I think the person picked the most extreme examples. We have the same situation in our neighborhood. But I've never had trouble finding a parking place. There are no restaurants or mechanics working out of their homes in our neighborhood.
OP here. Yes, the quality of life in the county has declined especially for many who reside inside the beltway and are in unincorporated parts of the county, where we have no municipal government to seek for help. We are completely dependent on the county.
Waste management services have continued to decline. I and others do not understand how the current company continues to receive the county contract for recycling and trash pick-up. They drop trash and glass in the street and make no effort to pick it up. They leave trash in the bottom of the can where it will sit and stink for another week because we are now down to 1 pick-up a week. They throw the bins around and break them and thrust them into parked cars. We've embraced composting now. The problem is the same company picks up composting - or not. Missed collections abound weekly for compost, trash and/or recycling. That compost will now sit until the collection next week - unless they miss that one too.
When Alsobrooks took office she promised that she was going to get more inspectors to address all the issues in our communities with regard to code enforcement and property standards. It did not happen. Quality of life was already diminished because of the few number of inspectors. Her budget did not provide for more inspectors. There were 7 for the entire county and it stayed that way throughout her term. Only now I hear that the budget now includes more inspector positions.
DPIE is just about "useless". There is limited code enforcement of property standards. We've got violations that are not addressed and service requests to 311 are closed without action and without explanation as to what conclusion was drawn in order to close it out. We've got citizens submitting the same requests over many years because absolutely nothing is done to address them. We've got people constructing additions to homes with no permits. We've got people tearing up their yards/lawns, and putting concrete across the front of their houses, of course no permit. We've got swimming pools filled with stagnate water - for years - attracting mosquitoes and frogs who croak through the night.
We've got very overcrowded houses with so much trash that the bin cannot be closed, every week. Birds pick at the plastic bags not in the can and garbage and trash is strewn across yards and streets. We've got people entertaining in the yards as if they have no neighbors and the loud music and other noise is of no consequence to anyone. We cannot get the noise ordinance enforced. The police department "just got" 8 noise meters at a cost of $126 per meter and has given ONE meter to each of the EIGHT police districts.
We've got single-family homes being used as multi-family homes and boarding houses with transitory residents. We've got 10-15 cars of tenants in these illegal multi-family homes - that are at most 4-bedroom single-family homes - that take up all the street parking so homeowners compete for parking near the homes they own. We've got folks piled into basements that are "not habitable" per standards for ventilation, cooking, light and egress.
We've got cars blocking driveways. We've got people running car repair businesses out of their homes and parking their customers cars on the street waiting to be serviced. We've got people selling food on the sidewalk. We've got people selling food out of their homes without any license to do so. We've got residential properties with tall grass, weeds, abandoned cars, furniture in the yard, chickens, goats, old rusted appliances. We've got tractor trailers parked on residential streets.
When she was running for re-election for county executive, she did not speak on these issues. I asked her campaign several times what she would do to address these concerns. Never heard a word.
So yes, the quality of life is in serious decline and I have been here 40 years and can tell the difference. Maybe this is why the county is losing citizens to Charles County which is now the wealthiest Black county in the country. For high taxes what are we getting?
If there are laws that address your concerns, then the county can't ignore it. Any fire hazards or safety issues would be addressed by a quick inspection. Landlords have laws they have to follow. You can't run a business in a neighborhood with out the proper zoning. In our neighborhood, you can't park work trucks on the street.
If this is happening in your neighborhood and it has gotten this bad, then apparently your neighbors are ambivalent to it and it doesn't affect them that much. But if at the community meetings, this is a major concern, I'm sure your political representative would have addressed it by now.
There is always recourse. I'm not sure blaming the County Executive for something happening on your street is an effective strategy. No more than we can blame the POTUS for it.
If you feel that a law needs to introduced, you're more than welcome to lobby.
I feel multi-family residences in single-family homes has been an issue way before Alsobrooks took office. Again, it depends on how strongly your neighbors feel about it. Start a grassroots campaign. Run for office. It is why some people go into politics. They want to change something they feel is broken in their community.
If there are laws that address your concerns, then the county can't ignore it. Any fire hazards or safety issues would be addressed by a quick inspection. Landlords have laws they have to follow. You can't run a business in a neighborhood with out the proper zoning. In our neighborhood, you can't park work trucks on the street.
If this is happening in your neighborhood and it has gotten this bad, then apparently your neighbors are ambivalent to it and it doesn't affect them that much. But if at the community meetings, this is a major concern, I'm sure your political representative would have addressed it by now.
There is always recourse. I'm not sure blaming the County Executive for something happening on your street is an effective strategy. No more than we can blame the POTUS for it.
If you feel that a law needs to introduced, you're more than welcome to lobby.
I feel multi-family residences in single-family homes has been an issue way before Alsobrooks took office. Again, it depends on how strongly your neighbors feel about it. Start a grassroots campaign. Run for office. It is why some people go into politics. They want to change something they feel is broken in their community.
The neighbors are quite adamant about the lack of recognition of our issues and the lack of reinforcement of laws. That's exactly the problem. We've just about been ignored until it's election time. The county can ignore the ordinances and does so repeatedly. They've been called on ignoring the law to no avail.
There are landlords who do not have rental permits. County seems unable to do anything about the illegal rental units. Heck, they haven't even done inspections. There are many properties being rented without permits and these are often the ones that are much overcrowded. You can alert DPIE to the illegal apartments in basements that are fire hazards. Nothing happens. Alert the fire department. Nothing. When one of these overcrowded houses with people piled in a basement catches fire and there is only one way out of the basement, maybe then someone in this government will pay attention.
The best illustration I can give is to direct anyone to PGC311.com and go to "status of request". Then you can scroll through all of the service requests. Pay special attention to "private property concerns." You'll see the businesses run out of homes, the overcrowded homes, the unlicensed multi-family homes, unlicensed rental homes, abandoned swimming pools, the abandoned cars, the chickens, the infestations, the food being sold on the street, cars parked on the lawn, overgrown lawns and weeds, violations of the noise ordinance, etc. I've been here 40 years and this is a very different county. I reiterate, the quality of life here continues to decline because laws on the books are not enforced.
DPIE admits that the noise ordinance has not been enforced. They had no sound meters - even though you can put a sound meter app on a smartphone. So now the police department has 8 sound meters ($126 each), one for each District. Let me repeat that. One for each of the 8 police Districts in the county. So the noise ordinance is now going to be enforced. Doubt it. Not enough meters for the population.
Political representatives come to citizen association meetings regularly, including council members and their staff. Nothing changes. They won't get my vote but other areas vote them back in it seems, enough to carry a district. We don't need new laws/ordinances. We need the ordinances on the books to be enforced. And that's not happening in some communities. It's great that your neighborhood is benefiting from enforcement of county ordinances. It's just not that way county-wide.
So PG County Executive Alsobrooks is campaigning for US Senator from Maryland to fill the seat currently held by Ben Cardin who will not seek another term. I am a many-decades Prince George's County resident and frankly I don't think she has done enough for the county - especially communities inside the beltway - to be elected a US senator from MD. On her watch the quality of life in this county has seriously declined. Yes, she can point to shiny things that give her "high visibility" but many in the county - IMO - have not been served well during her administration. In my opinion there are current US representatives from MD more worthy to be senator than Alsobrooks. Can you say Jamie Raskin? No comparison! What say you? Is she worthy to be Maryland's next US senator?
OP here. Yes, the quality of life in the county has declined especially for many who reside inside the beltway and are in unincorporated parts of the county, where we have no municipal government to seek for help. We are completely dependent on the county.
Waste management services have continued to decline. I and others do not understand how the current company continues to receive the county contract for recycling and trash pick-up. They drop trash and glass in the street and make no effort to pick it up. They leave trash in the bottom of the can where it will sit and stink for another week because we are now down to 1 pick-up a week. They throw the bins around and break them and thrust them into parked cars. We've embraced composting now. The problem is the same company picks up composting - or not. Missed collections abound weekly for compost, trash and/or recycling. That compost will now sit until the collection next week - unless they miss that one too.
When Alsobrooks took office she promised that she was going to get more inspectors to address all the issues in our communities with regard to code enforcement and property standards. It did not happen. Quality of life was already diminished because of the few number of inspectors. Her budget did not provide for more inspectors. There were 7 for the entire county and it stayed that way throughout her term. Only now I hear that the budget now includes more inspector positions.
DPIE is just about "useless". There is limited code enforcement of property standards. We've got violations that are not addressed and service requests to 311 are closed without action and without explanation as to what conclusion was drawn in order to close it out. We've got citizens submitting the same requests over many years because absolutely nothing is done to address them. We've got people constructing additions to homes with no permits. We've got people tearing up their yards/lawns, and putting concrete across the front of their houses, of course no permit. We've got swimming pools filled with stagnate water - for years - attracting mosquitoes and frogs who croak through the night.
We've got very overcrowded houses with so much trash that the bin cannot be closed, every week. Birds pick at the plastic bags not in the can and garbage and trash is strewn across yards and streets. We've got people entertaining in the yards as if they have no neighbors and the loud music and other noise is of no consequence to anyone. We cannot get the noise ordinance enforced. The police department "just got" 8 noise meters at a cost of $126 per meter and has given ONE meter to each of the EIGHT police districts.
We've got single-family homes being used as multi-family homes and boarding houses with transitory residents. We've got 10-15 cars of tenants in these illegal multi-family homes - that are at most 4-bedroom single-family homes - that take up all the street parking so homeowners compete for parking near the homes they own. We've got folks piled into basements that are "not habitable" per standards for ventilation, cooking, light and egress.
We've got cars blocking driveways. We've got people running car repair businesses out of their homes and parking their customers cars on the street waiting to be serviced. We've got people selling food on the sidewalk. We've got people selling food out of their homes without any license to do so. We've got residential properties with tall grass, weeds, abandoned cars, furniture in the yard, chickens, goats, old rusted appliances. We've got tractor trailers parked on residential streets.
When she was running for re-election for county executive, she did not speak on these issues. I asked her campaign several times what she would do to address these concerns. Never heard a word.
So yes, the quality of life is in serious decline and I have been here 40 years and can tell the difference. Maybe this is why the county is losing citizens to Charles County which is now the wealthiest Black county in the country. For high taxes what are we getting?
Raskin announced he's not running for Senate seat.
Still no Republican candidates?
Why should any Repubs waste their time?
MD is a HEAVY dem state.
And hasn't changed.
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