{"id":4647,"date":"2022-09-06T00:30:03","date_gmt":"2022-09-06T00:30:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/historictakoma.org\/?page_id=4647"},"modified":"2026-02-03T15:57:03","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T15:57:03","slug":"unification","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/historictakoma.org\/?page_id=4647","title":{"rendered":"Unification"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Unification into Montgomery County<\/h1>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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1995 Bumper sticker<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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July 1, 2022, marked the 25th <\/sup>anniversary of the unification of the City of Takoma Park into Montgomery County, ending 107 years of divided jurisdiction between Montgomery and Prince George\u2019s Counties and capping a 17-year effort to become One City \u2013 One County.<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the Beginning – 107 Years Divided<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Takoma Park\u2019s divided jurisdiction began when B.F. Gilbert bought his first parcel of land in 1883, subdivided it into streets, blocks, and lots, and called it \u201cTakoma Park.\u201d\u00a0That initial purchase of 100 acres straddled the B&O Metropolitan Branch railroad line and the District of Columbia-Maryland boundary line. At the time, the portion in Washington was in unincorporated Washington County, DC and the portion in Maryland was in unincorporated Montgomery County. Gilbert continued to purchase land in both Montgomery and Prince George\u2019s Counties. When the State of Maryland chartered the new Town of Takoma Park in 1890, the boundary encompassed lands in both counties.<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The difficulties of managing a town in two counties arose early. Town Council minutes discuss the challenges of working with two counties with different laws for taxation and other matters. For nearly 100 years Takoma Park lived with these problems. Fast forward to the mid-late 1970s when citizen activists began seriously discussing unifying into one county.\u00a0<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Unification?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The argument for unification boiled down to two points: inefficient local governmental services and schools.<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For elected officials and City staff, working in two counties meant tracking and following two sets of county laws for taxes, housing, planning and zoning, licensing and permits, alcohol, animal control, social services, and more. Trash picked up in Montgomery County went to its landfill; trash picked up in Prince George\u2019s County went to its landfill. Takoma Park police carried two sets of ticket books, one for each county, and had to appear in two different courts forty miles apart. City ordinances had to be constructed to comply with both sets of county laws. Everything the City did had to be done twice. <\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And for residents living near the dividing line between the two counties there was persistent confusion and headaches. In some cases, houses were divided, with living rooms and bedrooms in different counties. Police, fire, and other emergency responders were confused about where their jurisdictions began and ended. Cabs and pizza deliverers got lost (or refused to come).<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And finally, when it came to state and county issues, the divided city of Takoma Park had little political clout.<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 17-Year Campaign<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tapping into growing community interest to unify into one county, mayoral candidate Sam Abbott made unification a central part of his successful 1980 campaign. Thus began a nearly two-decade effort by citizen activists and city leaders. Unification required a change in state law to change the boundaries of the two counties. From a practical standpoint, legislative approval required the support of both the Montgomery County and Prince George\u2019s County delegations to the House of Delegates and the State Senate. The Montgomery County delegation was sympathetic and supportive, though none chose to make it a priority. In Prince George\u2019s County the County Executive, the County Council, and the legislative delegation were firmly opposed to redrawing the county line to place all of Takoma Park in Montgomery County. (Unification could have meant moving the Montgomery County portion of Takoma Park into Prince George\u2019s County, but about two-thirds of the city was already in Montgomery County, and citizen activists strongly favored unifying into Montgomery County).<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For several years a bill was introduced annually in the legislature to change the county line. Each year the opposition from Prince George\u2019s County\u2019s elected officials doomed the prospects. The City held advisory straw votes in 1982 and 1985 to demonstrate resident support for unification. <\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Montgomery County, Takoma Park resident Peter Franchot was elected to the House of Delegates in the fall of 1987. In the fall of 1990, Takoma Park Mayor Steve Del Giudice was elected to the Prince George\u2019s County Council and soon persuaded his colleagues on the Council to reverse their long-standing opposition and support unification. <\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This unexpected development\u00a0breathed new life into the unification efforts in the city. Support was also growing among the many small municipalities in Prince George\u2019s County. Citizen activists and city leaders had learned from prior defeats and became more adept at lobbying Prince George\u2019s County leaders. Efforts continued to fail, but support was growing, and the votes in the legislature were narrowing.\u00a0<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 1993 Mayor Ed Sharp and members of the City Council such as Kathy Porter and Bruce Williams (both of whom went on to become mayors of Takoma Park) began working closely with citizen activists. This group included Jan Schwartz, Tom Gagliardo, Norm Gleichman, Marie Ritzo, Sherry and Ed Mahon, and many, many others (nearly all from the Prince George\u2019s side of the city and nearly all principally concerned about school issues) under the banner of One Takoma. City Manager Bev Habada had deep roots in Prince George\u2019s County municipal government and worked her connections.\u00a0<\/mark>It was another unsuccessful year but the campaign continued. The newly elected Mayor and Council began their terms with a renewed effort in November 1993.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The opportunity for legislative success came in 1994. Long-standing unification opponent Prince George\u2019s County Executive Parris Glendenning announced his candidacy for governor of Maryland and subsequently dropped his opposition to unification. Multiple candidates to replace Glendenning campaigned in the Democratic Party primary that spring, all supporting unification. Looking back in 1997, Ed Sharp attributed the ultimate success of the effort to the fact that Del Guidice had moved out of Takoma Park to Hyattsville and thus gained credibility in Prince George\u2019s County as a now non-Takoma Park resident advocating for unification, and to resident Peter Franchot, who \u201cprovided candid and skillful advice on how to get the unification bill passed.\u201d<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bill under consideration by the legislature would not itself unify the city. Rather, it would grant the right of the residents of the city to vote on whether to unify in a binding referendum. Two principal arguments were advanced: the efficiency and complexity of services and the right of the people to choose. While support was generally strong in the House of Delegates, the State Senate was a different matter. <\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Senate President Mike Miller, a Prince George\u2019s County resident, remained opposed and the Prince George\u2019s Senate delegation took their cues from him.\u00a0One Takoma lobbied heavily, making frequent trips to Annapolis to testify and meet with members of both county delegations. <\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The House passed the bill and sent it to the Senate for consideration, with Senate President Miller still opposed. However, as the session was ending, Miller withdrew his opposition, and the Senate passed the bill, giving the green light for a city-wide referendum.\u00a0Governor Schaeffer signed the bill in May 1994 – with Miller covering his face in the signing ceremony picture!<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Approving Unification<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the state\u2019s approval for a binding referendum, it was now up to the residents of Takoma Park to decide if they wanted to unify. The referendum was set for Election Day November 7, 1995, the date of the next city election. Meanwhile, there was a\u00a0new wrinkle: in late 1994 residents of Pinecrest and other nearby neighborhoods, an area roughly bounded by Eastern, Kansas, Gude, and New Hampshire Avenues petitioned to be annexed into the City. This area, part of unincorporated Prince George\u2019s County, pleaded \u201ctake us with you.\u201d <\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just outside the corporate boundaries of Takoma Park, and long ignored and underserved by the county, residents of the area saw annexation into Takoma Park, and then eventual unification into Montgomery County, as an opportunity to improve their neighborhoods, although some in Prince George\u2019s County saw this as a last minute land grab by Montgomery County. But with the City Council\u2019s go-ahead, a vote was held among the residents of the area in August 1995. Their approval came days before the deadline for finalizing the November binding referendum.<\/mark> The map of Takoma Park <\/a>now included the annexed areas – but the city remained in two counties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The final hurdle for unification was looming and the voting strategy was counterintuitive to many. Under the terms of the bill establishing the referendum, residents had to not only agree to unify, but also agree on which county. The phrasing of the ballot required Montgomery County voters to vote \u201cno\u201d to not unify into Prince George\u2019s County; Prince George\u2019s voters had to vote \u201cyes\u201d to unify into Montgomery County. Otherwise the results would have nullified each other and unification would have failed. One City \u2013 One County activists mobilized to support unification into Montgomery County. None of the members of the Takoma Park City Council faced opposition in the 1995 city election. It was all hands on deck to approve unification into one county.\u00a0<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus it was that in November 1995 the voters of Takoma Park overwhelmingly voted in favor of unification into Montgomery County (2,382 in favor, 272 opposed). Now it was just a matter of time. <\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Becoming Unified<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The date for unification was set for July 1, 1997. Now the work shifted from citizen activists and political leaders to City staff. It would take a year and a half\u00a0to implement the complex set of changes needed to accomplish the transition. Under the leadership of city planner (and later city manager) Suzanne Ludlow, a task force of City, Montgomery County, and Prince George\u2019s County officials worked through some eighteen different issues: housing, zoning, social services, business licenses, alcohol licenses for stores, police and fire services, emergency services (911), recreation, and more.<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the most difficult issues to resolve was schools. The Montgomery County school system faced the challenge\u00a0of absorbing hundreds of students moving from Prince George\u2019s County schools, and some from private schools. The schools in Prince George\u2019s County all lay outside the boundaries of Takoma Park, requiring all the students to be accommodated in existing Montgomery County Schools. Fully incorporating these students into local Takoma Park schools would take another few years.\u00a0<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Becoming unified also required actions by residents. City staff and volunteers prepared and hand delivered welcome packages to the residents on the Prince George\u2019s side of the city, with detailed \u201cto do\u201d lists on topics including changing voter registration, changing drivers\u2019 licenses and auto registration, notifying insurance and mortgage companies, and more.<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unification:  One County, One Community, One Voice<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On July 1, 1997, all Takoma Park residents were united in Montgomery County.<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result of Unification:<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n