Brooklyn Park Residents Voice Concerns at Town Hall

Safety, development and county services were among the topics addressed Wednesday night at the Greater Brooklyn Park Council Town Hall.

More than 220 residents joined elected officials, county representatives, public safety officers and educators at Brooklyn Park Middle School to receive updates on their neighborhood and voice their concerns.

“The object was to bring all the different factions together and share information with everyone,” said Mark Hranicka, who organized the event. “A lot of these folks are more informed about something [after attending the town hall].”

Hranicka, who is a Brooklyn Heights resident, said that while the entire community has gathered in the past to address a specific issue such as crime or development, Wednesday’s event was the first time there was “something for everyone.”

State and county politicians, representatives from planning and zoning and the library, area educators and public safety officials were on hand to share information and answer questions.

Mae Mosteller, a member of the Cedar and Morris Hill Improvement Association, said she was interested in learning as much as she could. 

“I’m interested in being knowledgeable in everything that’s going on in the community … I took lots of notes,” she said after the town hall. “I liked hearing that crime has gone down and that police are so diligent.”

Anne Arundel County Police Maj. Tom Wilson urged the community to work with officers and establish a partnership.

“We can’t do this job without you. You’re probably the most important part,” he said to the residents in attendance. “If you see something, say something.”

That sentiment was something Mosteller said she took to heart.

“It reminded us all that the responsibility belongs to all of us,” she said.

But Mosteller said the thing she was most excited to learn was that the county budget didn’t significantly cut the library budget.

“So many of us utilize the library and I’m a voracious reader,” she said. “So now I don’t have to wonder if the library budget passed.”

Hranicka said he hopes to be able to organize a similar town hall meeting in the fall and hold them twice a year from now on. He said many times people keep their concerns to themselves and the town halls give them an open forum to voice their opinions.

“I hope to bring the community together,” Hranicka said. “And then we’ll see an improvement in the community.”