ALEXANDER GREENE

Record Group 17: Personal Papers

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

Born in 1923 and raised in New York City and Eastern Kentucky, Alexander Greene moved to Montgomery County in the years following World War II. After being discharged from the Army, Greene and his wife Jayne moved to Potomac, Maryland and then in 1950 settled in Rockville. An employee of the Environmental Protection Agency and the former Budget Bureau, Greene soon became involved in County politics and civic activities.

Greene served on the Rockville City Council from 1954 to 1958. In this capacity he worked to develop a Master Plan for the City, new zoning ordinances, and city codes that addressed problems of utility shortages, inadequate sewer capacity, and poor roads. He was also a member of a Council-appointed Committee which tackled the appalling housing conditions of African- American citizens in Rockville, and was criticized by some for advocating desegregation and subsidized housing.

Greene served as Mayor of the City of Rockville from 1958 to 1962. At the end of his second term he declined re-election and joined the Planning Commission under the Department of Housing and Community Development. Feeling that the Housing Authority should be independent of the Department, Greene lobbied successfully for the establishment of the Housing Opportunities Commission which was inaugurated under the Housing Opportunities Act in 1974.

Greene left Rockville government to start his own consulting business in 1979. However, he soon re-entered government service as Intergovernmental Programs Coordinator and Top-Level Advisor to County Executive Charles W. Gilchrist. Serving also as Gilchrist's troubleshooter, Greene coordinated activities for such controversial events as the opening of the Oaks Landfill near Laytonsville, the growing problems of sewage treatment facilities, and the transfer of the County's cable system from Tribune-United to Cable TV Montgomery. He also served as an aide to Gilchrist's successor Sidney Kramer. Alexander Greene retired from government service in February 1988.

For further information see the biographical sketch Alexander J. Greene: Top-Level Advisor and Intergovernmental Programs Coordinator for Former County Executive Charles Gilchrist, in Record Group 16: Oral Histories.

PROCESSING PROCEDURES

General processing procedures consisted of discarding duplicates, unnecessary binders, and routine transmittals. Oversized documents and photographs were removed from the original location in their assigned series and placed in separate containers. Separation sheets were inserted in the original location within the folder to indicate the new location of any records placed elsewhere.

Preservation copying of newspaper clippings was performed whenever feasible. Records in folders were arranged, unless otherwise indicated, in forward chronological order, with undated records appearing at the end of the folder.

PROVENANCE

4 cubic feet of records were donated to the Archives by Alexander Greene in 1988, and 2 cubic feet of records were accessioned in 1996.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The papers of Alexander Greene comprise 3 cubic feet of materials ranging in date from 1952-1986. The records document Greene's service for the City of Rockville and for Montgomery County government. They also cover Greene's participation in the civic organization Citizens For Good Government. Document types include correspondence and memoranda, reports, notes, meeting minutes, maps, and plats.

The records are arranged in three series:

Series I: Citizens For Good Government

Series II: City of Rockville

Series III: Montgomery County

Subseries 1: Department of Community and Economic Development

Subseries 2: Housing Authority

Subseries 3: Sludge Disposal

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Series I: Citizens For Good Government (CGG), 1954-1966 (0.2 cu. ft.)

This series documents Greene's involvement with Citizens For Good Government, a civic organization of Montgomery County. Significant topics addressed include monitoring and evaluation of the city government, the group's platform at municipal elections, the industrial and commercial development of Rockville, and improvement of the city's cultural and educational facilities. Materials include correspondence, minutes of membership meetings and Executive Committee meetings, and copies of the organization's newsletter.

The series is arranged chronologically.

Series II: City of Rockville, 1952-1967 (1.5 cu. ft.)

This series documents Greene's activities both as a member of the Rockville City Council and as Mayor. The records, which include Greene's notes and speeches, correspondence, reports, and publications, relate to such topics as desegregation, libraries, the sister city program with Pinneberg, Germany, the offices of City Manager and City Attorney, and government services such as refuse collection. Also well documented in the series is the issue of sludge entrenchment during the 1950s.

The series is arranged alphabetically by subject.

Series III: Montgomery County, 1961-1986 (1.3 cu. ft.)

This series chronicles Greene's activities in various agencies of the County government and records the interaction of those agencies in issues of planning, community development and housing. Record types include correspondence, publications, reports, minutes, documentation of real estate transactions, maps, and plats.

The series is arranged alphabetically by subject within three subseries: Department of Community and Economic Development, Housing Authority, and Sludge Disposal.

Subseries 1: Department of Community and Economic Development, 1975-1982 ( 0.34 cu. ft.)

This subseries contains documents relating to improvements to, and abandonments of, property in the East Bethesda and Silver Spring areas of Montgomery County in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The records document public opinions regarding proposed improvements, and provide evidence of contractual aspects of the work performed. Record types include proposals, contracts, quit claim deeds, construction easement agreements, documentation of property taxes and leases, title searches, correspondence, reports, and plats. 5 folders are restricted as they contain confidential financial information.

Subseries 2: Housing Authority, 1961-1986, (0.86 cu. ft.)

Records in this subseries relate to Greene's activities in the Montgomery County Planning Commission and the Department of Housing and Community Development. Correspondence, publications, reports, and minutes of the Housing Authority document Greene's pursuit of an independent Housing Opportunities Commission. The records document the Housing Authority's interaction with other County activities and departments, such as the Bel Pre Square turnkey projects, and the Department of Community Development.

Subseries 3: Sludge Disposal, 1975-1980 (0.1 cu. ft.)

This subseries records the interaction of various County and state agencies concerning sludge containment sites in Montgomery County. Documentation includes correspondence, memoranda, reports, water quality analysis data, maps, and plats.

BOX INVENTORY

Series I: Citizens For Good Government

Box 1

Citizens for Good Government (CGG)

1954-1962

1963-1966

Series II: City of Rockville

All American City, 1955-1962

Budgets and Finance

1953-1957

1958-1961

City Attorney, 1955-1962

City Hall, 1958-1962

City Manager, 1955-1962

Civic Center, 1955-1962

Civil Defense, 1961

Development

1955-1961

1961-1962

General, 1954-1962

Housing Authority

1955-1960

1960-1963

Letters of Invitation, Thanks, and Complaint, 1954-1962

Miscellaneous, 1952-1967

Municipal League, 1954-1962

Notes and Speeches, n.d.

Segregation, 1955, & 1960-1961

Recreation and Parks Advisory Commission, 1954-1962

Box 2

Refuse Collection, 1960-1962

Rockville Centennial, 1960

Rockville Library (Entering Library System), 1954-1959

Sister City Program, 1957-1961

Text Amendments, 1954-1962

Traffic & Transportation

1955-1961

1961-1962

Urban Renewal, 1955-1963

Water and Sewage

1953-1955

1956-1958

1959-1960

1961-1962, & 1966

Budget Spreadsheets, 1955-1957

Series III: Montgomery County

Subseries 1: Department of Community and Economic Development

East Bethesda

Chase Avenue, Westboro Subdivision, 1979 RESTRICTED

Chase Avenue, West Chevy Chase Heights, 1979 RESTRICTED

Middleton Lane, Middleton Subdivision

1979 RESTRICTED

General, 1980-1982

Public Hearing 1979-1980

East Bethesda/East Silver Spring

Engineering Consultant Selection, 1975-1978

Engineering Contract with Interprofessional Planning & Design Studio Ltd. (IPDS), 1977-1980

East Silver Springs

Lots 2-7, 1978-1980 RESTRICTED

Lots 14, 21-23, & 25-27, 1978-1980 RESTRICTED

Thayer Place, 1978-1980

Thayer Place Public Hearing, 1978-1979

East-West Highway Sidewalk Summitt Hill Joint Venture, 1979

Subseries 2: Housing Authority

Box 3

General Files

1966-1968

1969-1970

1971-1974

Meeting Minutes

April, 1966-December, 1968

January, 1969-May, 1970

June, 1970-December, 1971

January, 1972-March, 1973

July, 1973-December, 1975

January, 1976-December, 1977

Outside Information, 1961-1969

Relations with Department of Community Development, 1966-1969

Turnkey Projects

1967-1968

1968-1969

1969-1970

Housing Opportunities Commission, 1974-1986

Subseries 3: Sludge Disposal

1975-1978

1979-1980

Water Quality Analyses, 1980