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FREEDOM
AREA CITIZENS’ COUNCIL
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| A Publication
of FACC / Freedom Area Citizens’ Council |
November 2002
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FACC
launches annual membership drive for families/HOAs
The
FACC is launching its annual membership drive. We hope to
increase our membership significantly and, specifically,
to increase the number of Homeowners Associations (HOAs)
that belong to FACC.
FACC
memberships run from January to December of each year. The
fee for membership is $10/family/year. All citizens over
18 years of age who live in the Freedom Community Planning
Area (CPA) are eligible to become FACC members. Members
who renew or join in the last four months of each calendar
year become members through the following year—that
is, for up to 16 months. Families (members) are encouraged
to use the form (page 2) to renew their membership.
Members
who belong to HOAs are encouraged to contact the officers
of their HOAs to join FACC using an HOA membership. The
membership fee for HOAs has been reduced to $50 per year.
Each
HOA will receive five (5) membership cards good for discounts
at designated area merchants. HOA memberships in the FACC
also entitle the HOA to receive complimentary copies of
the Freedom Informer (newsletter), free listings of HOA
events (yard sales, annual meetings) in the Freedom Banner
(quarterly newspaper), and linkage of your HOA web site
to the FACC web site at FreedomAreaCitizens.org.
Representatives
of the FACC will be pleased to attend an HOA annual or monthly
meeting to brief members of the HOA on the advantages of
joining the FACC. To arrange briefings, please indicate
a point of contact on the membership form on page 2 or call
Ross Dangel, Chairman FACC, at (410) 549-4547.
FACC
hosts monthly meetings at the Carrolltown Christian Church
in Carrolltown Center on the third Tuesday of each month
(except December). The November meeting will be held on
Tuesday, November 19 beginning at 7 p.m.
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FACC
invited to join Town/County Staff Meetings
The
Freedom Area Citizens’ Council has been invited to
participate in the quarterly meetings of a new group of
staff representatives from each of the municipalities and
the Carroll County Department of Planning.
The
group arose because of disagreements between the Board of
Commissioners and the eight municipalities in Carroll County.
The County alleged that mismanagement of residential growth
was caused by the towns and that the towns were responsible
for most of the residential growth in recent years.. This
allegation was easily refuted by the planning staffs of
the municipalities when the towns proved that of the 3,844
permits issued since the Concurrency Management Ordinance
was passed, 1829 or 32 percent were issued by the towns.
It was also discovered that the database of planned and
completed residential construction required by the county’s
Concurrency Management Ordinance had not been maintained
by the county as required.
As a
result the towns formed the Carroll Count Council of Governments
(CCCOG) and proposed periodic meetings with county planners
to address issues related to growth. The group currently
consists of representatives from each of the eight towns
in Carroll County, from the Fire Chiefs Association, and
the County Planning Department.
At its
first meeting on August 28, 2002, the group reached consensus
that the FACC should be invited to attend the quarterly
meetings. Also invited were the Finksburg Planning Area
Council, State Highway Administration, Board of Education,
County Department of Public Works and the County Bureau
of Information Technology Services. In addition, the scope
of the town/county staff sessions was extended by the county
to cover other issues.
The
next meeting of the group is scheduled for Wednesday, November
13th at 1:30 p.m. in Room 300A of the county office building.
Mr. Ken Plante will represent the FACC.
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NEXT FACC MEETING
Tuesday Oct. 15 at 7 p.m.
Carrolltown Center
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Commentary:
Commissioner
surprise
The
primary for Carroll County Commissioners had a big surprise
on the Republican side. The five candidates (including two
incumbents) associated with favoring residential growth
and developing Piney Run as a water resource were rejected
in favor of incumbent Julia Walsh Gouge, Dean Minnich and
Perry Jones. The public had finally had enough of bad management
by the “Dream Team” and weren’t in the mood
to choose any Frazier/Dell clones or cronies.
In the
general election however the big surprise was that there
were no surprises. On the Democratic side, all three candidates
were slow growth advocates. Betty Hirsch Smith had that
slogan on her signs. Further, the Democratic hopefuls were
serious candidates who ran serious campaigns. [Neil] Ridgely
had been a town manager and [Jeannie] Nichols was a leader
on the Sykesville Town Council. Smith was an experienced
operator who in a previous incarnation had been a member
of the Republican Central Committee. She expected to draw
votes from both parties. For a change, the Democrats expected
to do well in the general election, perhaps even pick off
a seat.
It didn’t
happen. The three Republicans got twice the vote of the
three Democrats. And the vote was evenly split in both parties.
It was in fact a party line vote. The Republicans took 68%
if the votes for commissioner. The Democrats took slightly
over 26%. The remaining 4% was split between the Independent
and the Green Party candidate. This 4% may have been some
“anti- Gouge” backlash among disgruntled pro-growth
Republicans. Backlash or not, Julia Gouge was the biggest
single vote getter with 25% of the vote.
The
three Democratic commissioner candidates did not do better
than Democrats in general. The Democratic candidates for
Register of Wills, Sheriff, Clerk of the Court, and State
Attorney scored in the 20% - 30% range. Considering the
quality of the candidates, the growth issue
and vigorous campaign this was a crushing defeat for the
three Democratic candidates for Commissioner. The usual
Democratic line-up of Larry, Moe and Curley could not have
done much worse.
Once
again the Republican primary was the real election in Carroll
County. The effort by anti-growth citizens in the primary
paid off. The three Republican Commissioners-elect are all
voicing the growth control line. If two of them stick to
it in practice then the residents will
have some protection. It will be sorely needed. The Ehrlich
administration will not be nearly as pro-active as he departing
Glendenning administration in protecting such sites as Piney
Run.
John
Culleton
Eldersburg
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Commentary:
Time to
drain the swamp
I had planned
on doing a post-mortem on Tuesday’s local election, but deadlines
prevented my waiting. So instead, I chose to write about what I
consider should be at the top of the new board of commissioners’
agenda.
And since all
the candidates for that job were “singing from the same song
book” during the campaign (with none hitting any noticeable
high or sour notes), it matters little which three ended up winning
what was, essentially, a popularity contest even if the respective
central committees of the two parties would have us believing otherwise.
As the saying
goes, “a new broom sweeps clean,” which often occurs whenever
there is a change in leadership in government or in the private
sector. But the swamp the new board will be moving into will require
more than a broom to clean up the mess. Sump pumps would be more
like it. And they might want to consider setting traps for catching
all the swamp rats that’ll be scurrying for cover after they’ve
taken over, as well as for snaring those with special interests
from attempting to ingratiate themselves with the new board.
To my knowledge,
Dean Minnich was the only candidate who has expressed a willingness
to do the necessary “housecleaning.” And, hopefully, the
other two will support him. If they don’t, then the voters
obviously made a mistake by putting ‘em in office.
In a position
paper he wrote setting forth his agenda (if elected), he stated
he would have members of the Planning and Zoning Commission, Zoning
Ordinance Review Committee, and Ethics Commission submit their resignations.
And after the commissioners had decided whose resignations they’d
accept, to then solicit recommendations for filling the vacant positions
from the towns and citizens groups throughout the county.
And unlike the
previous board, he would be against requiring department heads to
also submit their resignations. That unwarranted action on the part
of Commissioners Dell and Frazier gave employees a clear signal
as to their dictatorial management style, using it as they did as
a means for disposing of, or demoting, those on their “hit
list.”
To her credit,
Commissioner Gouge protested mightily, but to no avail; the same
as she did when other heads were later lopped-off for bogus, or
for the flimsiest of reasons. Some would say that justice was finally
served when Dell and Frazier suffered a similar fate in the primary
election. But not me, for Dell, who did what he thought was right
during his 12 years in office, was deserving of a better ending
to his political career than he got.
But it’s
for sure that the new board will be welcomed with pen arms by the
vast majority of county employees, with more than a few thinking,
if not yelling out loud, ”Free at last.” Free from being
micromanaged, free from being forced to march in lockstep with every
decision made by two of the commissioners, free from the fear of
reprisal for exercising any independent judgments or initiatives
in performing their jobs, and free from being treated like children
by having a new “character trait” shoved down their throats
each month like a dose of castor oil.
They’re
certainly entitled, after the election, to hoop and holler and set
off a few firecrackers outside of the county office building to
celebrate their newfound freedom. But they better refrain from popping
a cork or two lest Commissioner Robin Frazier, a life-long teetotaler,
blows the whistle on ‘em for drinking on county property.
David
Grand
Wetminster
Say
“No” to Ethics Commission subpoena powers
In a public
hearing before the County Commissioners on November 7, the Carroll
County Ethics Commission argued for subpoena powers. Commission
Chairman James Talley argued that the Commission was a “paper
tiger” without authority to compel witnesses to testify. As
a result of the hearing, County Commissioners may ask the county’s
legislative delegation to draft a law granting subpoena powers to
the Commission.
Some residents
at the hearing argued against the move, stating that authority to
subpoena witnesses “is too much authority for the commission,”
and that if charges warrant, the case should be referred to the
County Attorney.
The current
Commission has been the subject of some controversy because of inconsistent
application of its investigation of issues. For this reason, we
urge citizens to oppose the requested additional authority for the
Ethics Commission.
Phil Bennett
Editor
Primoff
property on Planning and Zoning agenda
The proposed
preliminary plan for Freedom Hills, a 31-unit subdivision at the
intersection of MD 97 and Obrecht Road in Woodbine will be on the
agenda for the Carroll County Planning and Zoning Commission on
November 19th. The time for this item had not been decided at the
time of this writing. The meeting will be held in Room 003/004 of
the county office building.
The Primoff
property was previously considered under the revised ordinance drafted
by the Zoning Ordinance Review Committee. The proposed ordinance,
which would have permitted shifting building rights from the Conservation
Zone to adjacent Agricultural Zone land, was rejected after public
outcry from citizens and objection by the State government.
Trial
date set on alleged misspending of water fees
The Carroll
County Clerk of the Circuit Court recently announced the trial date
for Perkins v. Carroll County, a suit brought by Mr. Perkins and
several other citizens. The scheduled date is December 20, 2002
at 10:00 a.m. in the Court House Annex, 55 North Court Street in
Westminster.
The suit alleges
that the Carroll County Government has illegally and unconstitutionally
collected maintenance fees from current users of the Freedom Water
and Sewer system to build the proposed water treatment plant at
Piney Run Lake. A previous attempt by the County to dismiss the
case was heard by Circuit Court Judge Luke K. Burns on May 24, 2002.
The request to dismiss was later rejected by Judge Burns.
Jim Slater
to speak at November FACC meeting
Jim Slater,
Environmental Compliance Specialist, Carroll County Department of
Public Works will speak at the November 19th FACC General Membership
meeting in the Carrolltown Center. Mr. Slater will speak on the
county’s recently drafted Water and Sewer Master Plan and on
the status of the on-going drought in the local area and on other
subjects related to water resources.
NOTICE!
THERE WILL NOT BE A FACC GENERAL
MEMBERSHIP MEETING IN DECEMBER.
THE FIRST MEETING IN 2003 WILL BE ON
TUESDAY JANUARY 21 AT 7 P.M.
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