Ervin Wants Outside Opinion on Silver Spring Transit Center

In an attempt to get the Silver Spring Transit Center on track, Montgomery County Councilwomen Valerie Ervin (D-Dist 5), who represents Silver Spring, and Nancy Floreen, (D-At Large), asked that the county retain an independent industry expert to advise during the remediation of the facility. 

An independent inspection report completed by KCE Engineering revealed that the $112 million transit hub, years behind schedule and over-budget, was rife with inadequacies that left the building unsafe and unusable without major repairs. There is no current timeline for the completion. 

Ervin and Floreen voted Tuesday, along with the rest of the council, to plunk an additional $7.5 million into the center's budget, mainly going to retroactively pay bills. In a letter to Council President Nancy Navarro (D-Dist 4), the councilmembers wrote that they had "serious concerns about the ongoing budget impact of the continuing delays and cost overruns associated with this project." 

“The complexity and scale of this project requires an independent evaluation of the information we are being provided,” Ervin said in a statement.

“None of us are structural engineers or construction experts, and Councilmembers need to ensure that the remediation proposals we receive from the County Executive will achieve a safe, functional transit center for residents in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible,” the letter reads. 

Navarro and Councilman Roger Berliner, (D-Dist 1), who leads the Transportation, Infrastructure, Energy and Environment Committee, sent a memo to County Executive Isiah Leggett Monday requesting regular updates on the progress of the Transit Center. 

"While we appreciate the series of regular updates you requested from the County Executive and his team on this project, we would also like an independent evaluation of the information that has been and will be provided to the Council," the councilmembers wrote to Navarro.