As the dirty dishes were carried away, county council member Valerie Ervin (D) gave Penguin editor Jennifer Deseo a sage piece of advice: If you don’t build it, they’ll still come.
Q. So what’s next on Silver Spring’s menu?
A. There’s a lot more to be done in Silver Spring. Just because we have AFI and Discovery doesn’t mean we’re finished. Now’s when you ratchet it up.
Q. Some say the neighborhood’s had enough development.
A. We’re a victim of our own success. Our tax base is healthy, but that’s a good thing. If we don’t have that base, we can’t do the things we’re doing. If our tax base shrinks, people will find somewhere else to go.
Q. Like Prince George’s County?
A. People don’t wanna go there. They have crime issues. The workforce has children, and they don’t wanna put them in the county schools.
They have different kinds of rules on development, which would make it easier for people to move over there. But they’re not going to.
Q. What about National Public Radio? I’ve heard that we’re high on their list of potentials for a new headquarters site.
A. They have a younger workforce and they wanna live near Metro. They came to Silver Spring on their own. Nobody went out and got them.
As long as the county seems economically healthy, people will come. We’re becoming a destination. They found us without us going to them.
Q. No worries about putting a strain on Silver Spring’s infrastructure and residents?
A. It’s a delicate balance. I’m not a real crazy, pro-development, build-anything-you-want kind of person.
On the other hand, I understand the connection between a vibrant economy and homeownership, a great school system and transit. You can’t do one without the other.
Special thanks to Carroll Garden’s very own Ben Stutz. Brooklyn in the hizzouse!
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