Kensington Town Council meeting, from l to r: Mayor Peter Fosselman, Council members Sean McMullen and Lydia Sullivan
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“The scale [of the plan] has the giant hand of the developer on it.” – Kensington Town Council member Lydia Sullivan
“Post-vote fabrication,” “hogwash,” “distasteful,” “disservice to the entire community,” “not correct,” “misrepresenting the position,” “categorically false,” “complete hogwash.” These were among the accusations leveled against Kensington Town Council member Lydia Sullivan by her colleagues at a Feb. 27 meeting.
“That’s nothing,” said Sullivan, who’s faced the threat of censure from her fellow council members. “This is what people who are fighting monied interests have to endure,” she told TheFightBack directly following the contentious meeting.
Sullivan has raised concerns over the massive upbuild proposed in the Kensington Sector Plan, which is scheduled to go before the Montgomery County Council for a straw vote Tuesday. “Developers hold a lot of sway right now in a county that is cash poor,” said Sullivan, who sees the vote on the Kensington Sector Plan as a harbinger of things to come in Montgomery County. “Because we’re one of the first sector plans, what happens here has implications countywide,” particularly downcounty, said Sullivan.
At meetings of the four-member Kensington Town Council, the mayor serves as chair, but only votes in the case of a tie. At the Feb. 27 meeting, Mayor Peter Fosselman held back from attacking Sullivan, despite the fact that he may have the most to lose if the Kensington Sector Plan isn’t approved in its present form.
The Washington Post noted: “[Fosselman] has championed a years-long effort to revitalize the town, writing open letters of support for the proposal and touting its benefits to residents. But even as he has urged the transformation of the town’s quaint commercial center, Fosselman has invested in three properties that would probably increase in value once redevelopment begins.”
“It’s not a conflict of interest, and it’s perfectly legal, and I’m not hiding anything,” Fosselman told the Post.
“I think it’s always of concern to citizens when the primary advocate for an increase in development is also one of the primary [beneficiaries] of that development,” Sullivan said.
In addition to serving as mayor, Fosselman recently became Maryland’s deputy secretary of state. Before that, Fosselman co-owned two Kensington businesses with his partner, including a gym called Sweat Shop (an apparent riff on the name given to workplaces that offer inhumane working conditions).
Sullivan, an activist-turned-politician, is pushing forward despite the attacks, and she has strong community support. Sullivan started a website, KensingtonDevelopment.info, and some of her comments on the proposed changes can also be found on her blog, Snoburbia.
“We are a small town. We all know each other… This plan, as proposed, will… double the amount of residents in our town,” said Sullivan. “While we would welcome apartments, we need some, it’s a radical change and an urbanization with tall buildings that will really change the character of the community.”
The scale and speed of the unprecedented development under way throughout the D.C. metro area is noteworthy. On project after project, citizens’ concerns are pushed to the side, while cheerleaders, be they developers, politicians or the media, take center stage. In such an environment, a local grassroots movement may offer the only hope for a countervailing force, and one may already be taking shape.
Sullivan said that, despite a lack of media coverage, the Kensington effort has touched a nerve in other parts of Montgomery and has “snowballed into a movement.”
Related sites:
SaveKensington.com