Council Agenda: Signs, Ethics and a New Bathhouse

Revisions to the city’s sign ordinance, revisions to the ethics ordinance and approval of two city contracts are on the Rockville City Council’s agenda for Monday.

The Council at . The meeting will be broadcast live on Rockville 11.

Sign ordinance

The Council is scheduled to vote on proposed changes to the city’s sign ordinance that address leasing contact information, signs in windows and logos and colors.

Changes to the ordinance have been in the works since late 2010, when the Rockville Chamber of Commerce raised signs issues with the Council.

The Council held .

The revisions included proposed changes to allow for illuminated signs above rooftops and to set quantity and size limits for off-premises signs. The Council is tentatively scheduled to discuss and vote on those revisions in September after returning from summer recess.

The public record is open for comment on the second set of revisions through Aug. 6. Comments can be sent to mayorcouncil@rockvillemd.gov or to , Office of the City Clerk, 111 Maryland Ave., Rockville, MD 20850.

Ethics ordinance

The Council is scheduled to discuss changes that would bring the city’s ethics ordinance in compliance with a new state law.

The proposed changes include:

• A prohibition on the use of confidential information acquired by virtue of public office.
• A clarification that allows officials to accept unsolicited gifts
• Provisions addressing conflicts of interest regarding entities doing business with the city.
• New financial disclosure requirements for public officials.

Staff is recommending a Sept. 24 public hearing on the proposed changes.

Consent agenda

The consent agenda recommends the award of two contracts:

• A $1 million contract for the renovation of the outdoor bathhouse at the to Gardiner Contracting, LLC. Initial bids on the project came in over budget. The city worked with the architect to revise the scale of the project and rebid the project, which was awarded a $200,000 state bond bill by the General Assembly. City staff is recommending accepting the contractor’s base bid of $999,640 and adding $3,880 for solid polymer bathroom partitions. Staff recommends against $22,000 in possible reductions identified by the architect, including removing plastic benches, an office worktop and storage, bird control netting and a wooden trellis.
• A $101,551 contract to Xerox Corporation of McLean, VA for a 60-month lease of a high-volume multi-purpose copier/printer.

Night Out proclamation

The Council is scheduled to issue a proclamation declaring Aug. 7 as National Night Out in the City of Rockville.