Community Liaison Council Meeting Minutes
June 16, 2005, 4:00–6:00 p.m.
Visitor Information Center, Building 45 (Natcher Building)
National Institutes of Health

HANDOUTS

• May 19, 2005 CLC Meeting Minutes
• NIH Master Plan 2003 Update—Perimeter Buffer
• June 2005—NIH News in Health
  

WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

By John T. Burklow, Acting Director, OCL, NIH

Mr. John Burklow informed the Council that draft copies of the May 19, 2005 CLC meeting minutes were distributed and to please send any comments to Ms. Amy Blackburn in the Office of Community Liaison.

Mr. Burklow announced to the Council that Mr. Walter Mitton is leaving the Office of Community Liaison (OCL) to join the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), as a Management Analyst. Mr. Mitton will begin his new position at NIDDK in mid-July. Mr. Burklow thanked Mr. Mitton for his excellent service to the OCL, as did several Council members. Mr. Burklow informed the Council that the recruitment process for the Office of Community Liaison Director is in progress. Mr. Burklow will keep the Council updated on the status of this.

Mr. Burklow discussed with the Council the possibility of bringing the Office of Community Liaison (OCL) under the auspices of the Office of Communications of Public Liaison (OCPL). He outlined some of the potential advantages of such a change, including direct access to the NIH Director and tapping into the existing expertise and resources of OCPL. If this were to happen, the OCL would still be a separate entity within OCPL, with its own Director. Mr. Mitton agreed with Mr. Burklow that by integrating OCL under OCPL, the visibility of the OCL is raised, and OCL will have more access to Dr. Zerhouni and to the resources of the OCPL. Council member Mr. Paul Van Nevel agreed that Mr. Burklow's idea to combine the two offices under one umbrella is best for the OCL. Some Council members expressed concern about having another layer placed between the new Director of OCL and Dr. Zerhouni. It was agreed that the OCL Director should be able to communicate directly with the NIH Director, as needed.

Mr. Burklow informed the Council that he is arranging for Dr. Zerhouni to come meet with the Council in either September or October. Ms. Anita Linde assured the Council that while the OCL is going through its transition, both Ms. Sharon Robinson and Ms. Amy Blackburn will continue to address the community's needs on a day-to-day basis.

Mr. Oberlander observed that the OCL Director position was created by former NIH Director, Dr. Harold Varmus, with the idea that whoever assumed this responsibility would only be tasked with OCL and community issues. Mr. Oberlander questioned whether Mr. Burklow would have too many other issues to deal with the CLC's concerns. Mr. Burklow reiterated that it could be arranged for the new Director to have a direct line of communication to Dr. Zerhouni.

Mr. Steve Sawicki stated that he supports Mr. Burklow's suggestion to bring OCL under OCPL and that the move is a positive step forward. Mr. Sawicki also reiterated that when Dr. Varmus created the OCL, it was for the community to have an opportunity to provide input to NIH leaders, and be a part of its processes, not simply to be told information.

Mr. Burklow stated that, with the Council's permission, he would begin the process of placing the OCL under OCPL. Mr. Burklow also asked the Council to inform him if they feel the new structure is not effective or is impeding their mission. He said if this was the case, he would reassess the situation. A quorum of the Council unanimously agreed to move forward with the proposed change.

Lastly, Mr. Burklow announced that NIH is in the process of launching a national program aimed to increase childhood nutrition and exercise. The program's highlight is its importance to the health of our nation's youth. A local component of this health education program is being launched later this month in Montgomery County.

PRESENTATIONS

Ms. Serras-Fiotes informed the Council that the buffer zone between the NIH campus and its surrounding community was expanded to two hundred and fifty feet, from 200 feet, in the 1995 NIH Campus Master Plan. This zone was created to provide the community with both an acoustical and visual barrier from NIH facilities and activities, and a green, landscaped area around the campus. Currently, the buffer zone is approximately eighty-two acres and 60 percent of that is green land. Thirty-five of the eighty-two acres are located outside of the perimeter security fence, in the southwest section of the campus.

Ms. Serras-Fiotes reiterated to the Council that it was the intent of the Master Plan that no new parking lots or buildings be placed in the buffer zone. However, due to the changes in campus security, the 2003 Campus Master Plan Update proposes the placement of the Commercial Vehicle Inspection Facility and the Gateway Visitors Center with its underground visitor parking garage in the buffer zone. This recommendation was made because these functions have to be located outside of the perimeter security fence.

Mr. Sawicki mentioned the employee parking lot, which runs directly up to the southwest perimeter security fence. The parking lot was placed at the site of the tennis courts as a temporary parking area. When the MLP-9 parking garage is completed later this year, this section of lot 41 will be removed and turned into greenery. Mr. Sawicki requested that the perimeter security fence be pushed back when this transition takes place. Mr. Sawicki asked Ms. Serras-Fiotes for a commitment that once the parking lot was removed, the perimeter security fence would be pushed back. Ms. Serras-Fiotes stated that she cannot make such a commitment at this time.

In the north section of the buffer zone, there is a dense tree canopy. The buildings which are located in that section (The Children's Inn and family quarters) are also located in the buffer zone, and will remain in the zone. The child care center in the west buffer will be removed from the buffer zone and relocated in the future, but not for several years. No activity is to be programmed or encouraged in the buffer zone around the campus. NIH's intent since the creation of the buffer zone has always been that there will be no new construction, parking or buildings placed in that area.

Mr. Sawicki stated that the South Lawn is now shaped like a bowl and is in worse condition than before the refurbishing project. Mr. Sawicki was under the impression that the area was going to be flat and level, and requested an update on the project. The Council asked to have Mr. Tony Clifford present at the July CLC meeting about the South Lawn project.

A Council member inquired about the status of the storm water management facility located in the southern perimeter of the campus. The facility will be located on the southeast corner of the NIH campus at Rockville Pike. The storm water pond will capture all of the storm water run-off from the NIH campus and downtown Bethesda. This storm water facility is not an NIH project, it is a county project and it is on schedule to begin in the near future. A full update on the project was provided at the May CLC meeting.

General Updates
By Stella Serras-Fiotes, Director, Division of Facilities Planning, ORF, OD, NIH

Noise Abatement
Ms. Serras-Fiotes informed the Council that NIH has been working on both the Porter Building and Building 37 simultaneously to abate the noise. The work on the Porter Building has been completed. Noise level tests have been performed. Although the noise level was reduced, it was not decreased as much as anticipated by NIH facilities management. NIH's sound consultants have determined that the noise abatement for Building 37 will be now be completed in October of 2005. NIH has decided to bring in an independent acoustics contractor, who will investigate the campus noise issue from a more global perspective, rather than focus on a single building noise problem. This process will not begin until the current noise abatement work on Building 37 has been completed. At that time, NIH will create a small focus group with members from NIH facilities staff and the CLC to help with this process. Ms. Serras-Fiotes recognized that NIH has not been able to live up to its promise that the noise would be abated by spring, but she reiterated NIH's commitment to continued efforts to remedy this problem.

There were two recent incidents where noise disrupted community members. One of these incidents was the announced testing of the NIH co-generation plant. The other incident came from the power-washing of garage MLP-8, which occurred during the night. Ms. Serras-Fiotes informed the CLC that, in the future, this type of work will not be scheduled during nighttime hours.

Hazardous Waste Disposal Permit
This permit relates to the type and amount of waste allowed to be treated on the NIH campus and what types are to be shipped off campus for treatment. Under this new permit, NIH will have a new chemical oxidation treatment system. This new system will allow NIH to treat some waste (chemical) on campus that is currently shipped out, and the treatment facility will be located in Building 26. The review of the new permit is from June 21st through August 6th.

Share the Health: Post-Event Review
By Walter Mitton, Community Relations Specialist, OCL, NIH

Mr. Walter Mitton shared with the Council the success of OCL's 6th annual Share the Health Exposition. This year, OCL implemented an aggressive marketing campaign that included on-air television and radio interviews. Westfield Shoppingtown Mall management informed Mr. Mitton that their shopping traffic numbers increased by 6,000 on the day of the event.

One of OCL's primary goals with this event was to reduce the overall cost of the fair. For the 2004 event, the overall cost was approximately $100,000, and this year it was reduced to $35,000. Further cost reduction and an attendance increase are the two primary goals for the upcoming 2006 and future Share the Health events.

Several Council members congratulated Mr. Mitton, Ms. Blackburn, and Ms. Robinson on the fair's success. Ms. Eleanor Rice suggested to Mr. Mitton that the event should be held again at a local mall and to possibly extend the expo from a one-day event to a two-day event. If the second day of the fair took place during a week day, middle and high schools could possibly plan a school field trip to the event.

CLC ROUND ROBIN

Ms. Miller suggested that the Council take a vote regarding the OCL joining the OCPL. Ms. Miller put the motion on the table in favor of OCL joining OCPL and Mr. Sawicki seconded the motion. A vote is taken and all are in favor.

Mr. Sawicki would like to have the OCL newsletter reflect items discussed in the monthly CLC meeting. Ms. Debra Liverpool stated that the OCL webpage can be hard to locate off of the NIH website. Mr. Burklow and his office handle the management of the NIH home page. Mr. Burklow will have his office work to make the search and retrieval of the OCL webpage from the NIH main website easier.

Mr. Oberlander stated that members of his neighborhood have inquired about the proposed gas line. Ms. Serras-Fiotes replied that the gas line is a non-issue at this point. NIH consultants in collaboration with Washington Gas reevaluated the situation and decided not to pursue this particular project. If, in the future, NIH needs to update its gas supply, and an alternate gas process is needed, the community will be included in the planning process. Ms. Serras-Fiotes informed the Council that NIH will not need to address upgrading its gas service for a minimum of five to seven years.

Mr. Schools mentioned that both he and the NIH Recreation and Welfare Foundation (R&W) would like to help underprivileged children attend professional baseball games. Mr. Schools would like to get the word out that the NIH R&W does have access to free tickets for qualified families. If Council members know of a child or family in need, Mr. Schools asked that they contact him directly.

ADJOURNMENT

The formal meeting ended at 6:05 p.m.

ACTION ITEMS

• Schedule Mr. Tony Clifford to update the Council on the south lawn project
• Research Ms. Hildebrand's question regarding the tree canopy and its past numbers

JULY MEETING TOPICS

• Perimeter Security Fence
• Safra Lodge (Family Inn)
• OCL Progress Matrix—1996 to present day

CLC Members Present
Amy J. Blackburn, OCL, OD, NIH
John Burklow, Acting Director, OCL, OD, NIH
Nancy Hoos, Sonoma Citizens Association
Darrell Lemke, Bethesda Parkview Citizens Association
Debra Liverpool, YMCA-Bethesda
Ginny Miller, Wyngate Citizens Association
Adda Million, Camelot Mews Citizens Association
Walter Mitton, OCL, OD, NIH
George Oberlander, Huntington Parkway Citizens Association
Lucy Ozarin, M.D., Whitehall Condominium Association
Eleanor Rice, Locust Hill Civic Association
Sharon Robinson, OCL, OD, NIH
Steve Sawicki, Edgewood Glenwood Citizens Association
Randy Schools, Recreation and Welfare Association, NIH
Stella Serras-Fiotes, DFP, ORFDO, OD, NIH
J. Paul Van Nevel, NIH Alumni Association

Guests
Joan Kleinman, Congressman Van Hollen's Office
Anita Linde, OCPL, OD, NIH
Yi Tsien, Community Member
Carol Wharton, ORF, DFP, NIH
Chris Williams, Gazette News

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