Berwyn Heights, Maryland

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Berwyn Heights, Maryland
Town
Town of Berwyn Heights
Official seal of Berwyn Heights, Maryland
Seal
Motto: "A Tree City, U.S.A."
Location of Berwyn Heights, Maryland
Location of Berwyn Heights, Maryland
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Country  United States of America
State  Maryland
County Prince George's
Area[1]
 • Total 0.69 sq mi (1.79 km2)
 • Land 0.69 sq mi (1.79 km2)
 • Water 0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation 112 ft (34 m)
Population (2010)[2]
 • Total 3,123
 • Estimate (2012[3]) 3,181
 • Density 4,526.1/sq mi (1,747.5/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 20740
Area code(s) 301
FIPS code 24-06925
GNIS feature ID 0597078

Berwyn Heights (after the Berwyn mountain range in north-east Wales), officially the Town of Berwyn Heights, is a town in Prince George's County, Maryland.[4] The population was 3,123 at the 2010 United States Census.[5] It is bordered by College Park to the west, Greenbelt to the northeast, East Riverdale to the southwest, and Riverdale Park to the south.

History

Beginning in the 1870s, the area northeast of Washington, D.C. was the scene of active and continuous development as the population of the city increased and railroad suburbs such as Berwyn Heights, originally Charlton Heights, gradually grew and expanded around it. The O'Dea House, a home listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is one of the houses that was erected by the Charlton Heights Improvement Company to spur development of its new community.

2008 police incident with mayor

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In July 2008, a package containing 32 pounds (15 kg) of marijuana was shipped by FedEx from Arizona to Trinity Calvo, the wife of town mayor, Cheye Calvo. A drug-sniffing dog detected the marijuana in the package, and the Prince George's County Police Department intercepted the package. The police department called for help from the Prince George's County Sheriff's Office SOD team, but did not contact the Berwyn Heights Police Department.

On July 29, 2008, a deputy from the sheriff's office took the package to the house and knocked on the door, pretending to be a delivery person. After the package was retrieved and taken inside, the SOD team entered the house without knocking. The SOD team shot both of the mayor's dogs, one of which while it was running away.[6] While the package sat unopened in the house, the mayor and his mother-in-law were both handcuffed and questioned.

The police soon determined that the mayor's family was likely the victim of a drug trafficking scheme. Two other individuals were later arrested, accused of shipping drugs to innocent people and intercepting the packages before the packages are taken in to the houses.

The Washington Post reported that, while the team had a warrant to enter the house, the warrant did not allow entry without knocking. In this case, police would only be allowed to enter without knocking if specific circumstances cause police to believe that evidence would be destroyed or police would be harmed; otherwise entering without knocking would be a violation of Maryland law. According to PG County Police, they entered the dwelling without knocking due to their security being in danger, they were spotted by someone inside the home, as they were surrounding the house.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the police raid.[7][8][9][10][11]

Historic sites

The following is a list of historic sites in Berwyn Heights identified by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission:[12]

Site Name Image Location M-NCPPC Inventory Number Comment
1 Berwyn Heights Schoolhouse 5814 Ruatan Street 67-022-07
2 Cissel House 8911 57th Avenue 67-022-18
3 Cross House 5805 Ruatan Street 67-022-13
4 Kleiner House 5603 Ruatan Street 67-022-17
5 O’Dea House ODea House Dec 08.JPG 5804 Ruatan Street 67-022-11 Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, 1987-06-04
6 Pickett House 8616 57th Avenue 67-022-16
7 Sportland 5933 Natasha Drive 67-005
8 Elwood J. Taylor House 8516 58th Avenue 67-022-21
9 Wetherald House 8411 58th Avenue 67-022-10
10 Wolfe House 5617 Ruatan Street 67-022-15

Geography

Berwyn Heights is located at Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (38.993810, -76.912344).[13]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.69 square miles (1.79 km2), all of it land.[1]

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1930 228
1940 453 98.7%
1950 674 48.8%
1960 2,376 252.5%
1970 3,934 65.6%
1980 3,135 −20.3%
1990 2,952 −5.8%
2000 2,942 −0.3%
2010 3,123 6.2%
Est. 2014 3,262 [14] 4.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[15]

2010 census

As of the census[2] of 2010, there were 3,123 people, 1,002 households, and 681 families residing in the town. The population density was 4,526.1 inhabitants per square mile (1,747.5/km2). There were 1,051 housing units at an average density of 1,523.2 per square mile (588.1/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 56.0% White, 15.1% African American, 0.8% Native American, 8.4% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 14.4% from other races, and 5.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 27.1% of the population.

There were 1,002 households of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.1% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 32.0% were non-families. 20.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.10 and the average family size was 3.42.

The median age in the town was 34.9 years. 21.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 12.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 31.1% were from 25 to 44; 24.3% were from 45 to 64; and 10.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 52.4% male and 47.6% female.

2000 census

As of the census[16] of 2000, there were 2,942 people, 1,022 households, and 713 families residing in the town. The population density was 4,552.9 people per square mile (1,747.6/km²). There were 1,047 housing units at an average density of 1,620.3 per square mile (621.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 71.79% White, 12.00% African American, 0.54% Native American, 8.57% Asian, 8.23% Hispanic or Latino, 4.38% from other races, and 2.72% from two or more races of the population.

There were 1,022 households out of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% were non-families. 19.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.86 and the average family size was 3.19.

In the town the population was spread out with 20.9% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 103.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $65,744, and the median income for a family was $69,013. Males had a median income of $42,525 versus $34,831 for females. The per capita income for the town was $25,793. About 0.9% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 0.5% of those under age 18 and 1.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Berwyn Heights is served by Prince George's County Public Schools. Berwyn Heights Elementary School is located in Berwyn Heights. Berwyn Heights is served by Berwyn Heights Elementary, Greenbelt Middle School (Greenbelt), and Parkdale High School (Riverdale Park).

Government

The current mayor of Berwyn Heights, first elected in 2004, is Cheye M. Calvo. Current council members are Jodie Kulpa-Eddie, Patricia Dennison, Christoper Rasmussen, and Anthony Schreiber. The town administrator is Edward J. Murphy.

The town has a police department,[17] with Patrick Murphy as the Officer in Charge; a public works department, directed by Joseph Coleman; and a code enforcement department, directed by Sonjia Solomon. In 2005, the town became the first municipality in Maryland to establish a Public Safety Taxing District, which was authorized that year by the General Assembly. The district imposes a special tax on businesses to fund the cost of one full-time officer and brought the authorized strength of the department to eight officers. Over the past several years, the town has struggled to maintain its full strength due to increased competition for police officers in the region, and due to qualified police officers leaving the department to seek more reasonable positions. The Town has responded in recent years by increasing salaries and is considering joining the Maryland state pension system. At 48.6 cents per $100 per assessed value, Berwyn Heights retains one of the lowest real property tax rates in Prince George's County. The town also benefits from numerous town committees and organizations. The town as of October 2008, has joined a State Retirement Pension, for its employees, and police officers. This was done in order to try to compete and to retain the police officers.

References

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  2. 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  4. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Berwyn Heights, Maryland
  5. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. "SWAT team kills 2 dogs in raid on Md. mayor's home". Associated Press. The Washington Post. July 31, 2008. Retrieved August 7, 2008.
  8. 2 arrested in DC-area marijuana-smuggling scheme". Associated Press. The Washington Post. August 6, 2008. Retrieved August 7, 2008.
  9. Helderman, Rosalind S. "Pr. George's Officers Lacked 'No-Knock' Warrant in Raid". The Washington Post. August 6, 2008. Retrieved August 7, 2008.
  10. Helderman, Rosalind S.; Davis, Aaron C."FBI Launches Review of Berwyn Heights Raid". The Washington Post. August 8, 2008. Retrieved August 8, 2008.
  11. Helderman, Rosalind S. "Residents Honor Mayor, Slain Dogs at Rally". The Washington Post. August 4, 2008. Retrieved August 8, 2008.
  12. M-NCPPC Illustrated Inventory of Historic Sites (Prince George's County, Maryland), 2006.
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External links