The National Institutes of Health. Office of Community Liaison.
Home > Meeting Minutes

Community Liaison Council Meeting Minutes
May 19, 2005, 4:00–6:00 p.m.
Visitor Information Center, Building 45 (Natcher Building)
National Institutes of Health

HANDOUTS

  • Department of Environmental Protection—Montgomery County, Maryland
  • NIH Urban Forest Conservation Plan—Part of the NIH Bethesda Campus 20 Year Master Plan—May 2005

WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Mr. John Burklow thanked Ms. Amy Blackburn and Mr. Walter Mitton for their work with the Office of Community Liaison (OCL) and for managing its recent annual health and fitness event, Share the Health. Mr. Mitton stated that the turnout for the fair was very good, and that the mall management has offered to host our event again in 2006. Mr. Mitton informed the committee that he will prepare a slide presentation of the 2005 Share the Health fair for the June CLC meeting, complete with photos.

Mr. Burklow updated the Council on the status of hiring a new OCL Director. He informed the Council that he is in the process of updating the position description for the OCL Director and he requested input from the CLC. Mr. Burklow asked Council members to submit to him a list of qualifications that they would want the new OCL Director to possess. The Council informed Mr. Burklow that it is their preference for the Office of Community Liaison to remain a separate entity from the Office of Communications and Public Liaison.

PRESENTATIONS

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

Ms. Serras-Fiotes updated the Council on the status of the effort to abate the noise associated with Building 35's (Porter Building) and Building 37's mechanical equipment. The installation of the stack covers has been completed for the Porter Building, and the sound insulation material has been delivered. The Porter Building is on schedule and the next step is for the sound insulation material to be installed. This process is expected to be completed in a few weeks.

While installing the stack covers for Building 37, project engineers discovered that the covers interfered with the HVAC system and general air flow within the building. Consequently, project engineers are investigating other avenues to mitigate the Building 37 noise. It is estimated that the noise from Building 37 will not be completely mitigated until the fall. Ms. Lesley Hildebrand stated that, at this time, the noise situation at her house has not improved. Ms. Serras-Fiotes replied that once the sound insulation material is installed, and the project is completed, she believes the noise will be reduced.

NIH Security

Ms. Serras-Fiotes mentioned that the mid-July date for activating the perimeter security fence has been changed. Last week, Ms. Sharon Robinson of the OCL sent out an e-mail to the Council which contained information about the upcoming testing of the perimeter security fence, which will be performed during off-peak hours and on weekends. It is expected that the perimeter security fence will become operational in the late-summer or early-fall.

Mr. Schofer inquired about the status of the temporary West Visitor's Entrance. Ms. Serras-Fiotes responded that we are still in the process of installing the visitor check-in structure.

Mr. Tony Clifford informed the Council about a hole in the middle of the NIH South Lawn. Mr. Clifford stated that the hole is actually a temporary storm water retention pond, and part of the construction phase of the project. The pond will not remain on the South Lawn and will be removed after the project is complete. In addition, the fence surrounding the South Lawn area will be removed as soon as the sod grows in and the area is safe for general use. Mr. Clifford anticipates this will take place in the near future.

Mr. Clifford announced to the council that on Monday, May 23, 2005, between the hours of 4:00 pm and 6:00 pm, there may be an increase in noise from the NIH cogeneration facility. The noise will emanate from the power plant. NIH engineers need to test the thermo-crystal portion of the system by allowing the facility to ventilate steam for a period of thirty consecutive minutes. It is believed the damage that occurred to the turbine when it went down was related to the heat build-up and the friction of its blades. Engineers have decided to test the new turbine before it is installed to see how hot the blades get during operation. This test will only occur once, and will not exceed one-half hour in duration.

NIH Bethesda Campus Forest Conservation Plan
By Ed Pfister, Environmental Compliance Officer, DEP, ORF, NIH

Mr. Ed Pfister informed the Council that NIH continues to abide by its "no net-loss" tree policy, which requires NIH to replace any trees removed from the campus due to construction or natural causes on a one-for-one basis. Based on the period from 1991 to today, NIH is over the number of trees lost by more than 2,000. One Council member asked if there is a requirement that replacement trees be of a particular size. Mr. Pfister replied that there is no requirement dictating the size of replacement trees.

The NIH campus has a diverse collection of trees. There are 152 different tree species, with 92 species native to our geographical area. One of NIH's primary focuses is to expand the open space in the perimeter buffer, where possible, by removing surface parking and replacing it with natural cover. The amount of perimeter buffer zone area has increased in size since the first Bethesda Master Plan.

In response to a CLC member's question regarding the presence of several dead White Eastern Pine trees along the pedestrian path on the southwest side of the campus, Mr. Mueller noted NIH has decided to plant new seedlings in the area to replace the dead greenery. NIH is planning to replace the trees with a type of evergreen, but other than this, he has no specifics as to the exact species that will be planted, except that it will be native to the Washington, D.C., area. Mr. Mueller informed the Council that if there are dead trees on campus in an area where they do not pose a safety problem, NIH will leave them erect as a natural habitat for campus wildlife. These dead trees are known as snags and are located all across the NIH campus. NIH staff monitor these trees to ensure that they do not fall and/or harm individuals or structures.

NIH is active in bird monitoring, and has been documenting the growth of the campus bird population since 1991. Since that time, there have been over sixty bird and bat houses installed on the campus and it has been determined that eight of these houses are occupied by blue-bird nests. It has also been noted that the campus is home to several chickadees, red robins, bats, and swallows.

Mr. Pfister stated that another objective in the proposed NIH Forest Conservation Plan is the reestablishment of the forest floor, known as the duff layer. Wood chips and leaves have been used to reestablish the forest floor and aid in regeneration. These forest areas are located across the NIH campus.

Mr. Mueller noted that the area outside of the fence, near Wisconsin Avenue (Rt. 355) and North Drive, is now comprised of grass and greenery. Approximately two years ago, this was a parking lot for NIH employees. This green area helps NIH satisfy its storm water management requirements. Last spring, NIH lost a lot of seedlings to the cicadas, but the ones that did survive seem to be much stronger. In addition, due to embankment reinforcement and stream restoration efforts, the creek that runs through the NIH campus is now "daylighted" for over 2,000 feet.

Another goal of the NIH Forest Conservation Plan is to reach and maintain a 20-percent campus-wide urban forest canopy. NIH's forest canopy is currently in the fifteen percent range. Ms. Hildebrand inquired if NIH uses satellite imagery to obtain this count. Mr. Pfister replied that NIH does not use satellite imagery, but instead uses geographic information system technology and on-site surveys to count the campus tree population. Ms. Hildebrand asked what our canopy was 20 years ago and ten years ago compared to where we were are today. The Council is concerned that there are not more trees on the NIH campus, even though NIH is above county required numbers.

Dr. Lucy Ozarin inquired as to whether or not NIH has plans to plant trees in the area in back of the Whitehall Condominium property. Mr. Tony Clifford replied that location is a part of the South Lawn area and we cannot place trees on the lawn, but NIH will look in to planting them around the lawn.

County Regional Stormwater Management Facility
By John Hollister, Engineer, Montgomery County

Mr. John Hollister, an engineer with Montgomery County Department of Public Works and Transportation, presented the planned Stony Creek Pond Project. This project is designed to restore water quality and stream habitat in the lower Rock Creek area. The Bethesda downtown area drains through the NIH campus.

The stormwater management pond will be approximately six-feet deep and there will be a temporary construction fence surrounding the area for safety reasons. This construction safety fence will be located outside of the NIH perimeter security fence. The storm water management project is in the planning phase at this time and in the fall there will be advertising for the request for proposal (RFP). Pedestrian access to the footpath along the perimeter security fence will be maintained. Engineers with Montgomery County have determined that contrary to public belief, there is a low probability of mosquitoes collecting in and around the pond due to predatory insects.

Ms. Ginny Miller asked to be provided with a vision of how the facility will appear upon completion. Ms. Miller inquired about who would have access to the pond. Mr. Hollister responded that the Montgomery County Park and Planning Commission has over 900 stormwater management ponds located across the county, and currently does not fence these ponds. If someone contacts the County indicating that a safety problem exists at one of its ponds, the County will consider the suggestion to add safety measures to the pond.

Ms. Miller inquired who would be responsible for the maintenance of the pond when it is completed. Mr. Hollister replied that Montgomery County would be maintaining the pond area. Mr. Hollister stated that the County would respond as soon as possible to all maintenance requests.

ADJOURNMENT

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

ACTION ITEMS

  • Ms. Stella Serras-Fiotes will make a presentation on the Campus Buffer Zone
  • Mr. Walter Mitton will make a presentation on the 2005 Share the Health Exposition

Future suggested topics for the CLC

  • Joint stroke program between Suburban Hospital and the NIH
  • "Meet and Greet" with NIH Director, Dr. Elias Zerhouni
  • Update on the new Edmond J. Safra Family Lodge
  • Future traffic in the Bethesda area due to pending Department of Defense base closure action affecting the National Naval Medical Center

CLC Members Present
Amy J. Blackburn, OCL, OD, NIH
John Burklow, Acting Director, OCL, OD, NIH
Jeanne Goldstein, Montgomery County Civic Federation
Lesley Hildebrand, Huntington Terrace Citizens Association
Nancy Hoos, Sonoma Citizens Association
Marilyn Mazuzan, Town of Oakmont
Debbie Michaels, Glenbrook Village Homeowners Association
Ginny Miller, Wyngate Citizens Association
Adda Million, Camelot Mews Citizens Association
Walter Mitton, OCL, OD, NIH
Lucy Ozarin, M.D., Whitehall Condominium Association
Ralph Schofer, Maplewood Citizens Association
Randy Schools, Recreation and Welfare Association, NIH
Stella Serras-Fiotes, DFP, ORF, OD, NIH
Deborah Snead, Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center

Guests
Anthony Clifford, ORF, NIH
Daniel Harper, Montgomery County
Howard Hochman, ORF, OD, NIH
John Hollister, Montgomery County
Brian Kim, ORS, DEP, NIH
Anita Linde, OCPL, OD, NIH
Brad Moss, ORS, OD, NIH
Lynn Mueller, DPP, ORF, NIH
Ed Pfister, DEP, ORF, NIH
Stu Robinson, Consultant Engineer, A. Morton, Thomas, and Associates
Chris Williams, Gazette News
Ronald Wilson, DFP, ORF, OD, NIH

back to top