January 05, 1992
On the trail: Mount Airy officials hopeto develop a hiker-biker trail from the center of town to the Patapsco River along the old B&O tracks. The first phase of the 2-mile trail would run from the center of town to Watkins Park and would be a multipurpose trail. Organizers hope to continue down the right of way, adding another mile of trail, to the Patapsco. Town officials must decide whether to lease the land, buy it or ask property owners to donate it for the project.
Charter petition readied: The Committee forCharter Government announces it has collected enough petition signatures to start the process of changing the county's 154-year-old commissioner form of government. The committee has collected more than 3,800 signatures from the county's 56,729 registered voters, exceeding the 5 percent necessary to require the county commissioners to appointa board to write a charter. The Board of Elections has yet to verifythe signatures. A previous petition drive was unsuccessful when the Board of Elections invalidated many of the 2,000 signatures because they lacked necessary information.
Mixed reviews for repairs: The $5-million reconstruction of the Liberty Road/Route 32 intersection iscomplete, but businesses on the corner are not entirely pleased. Business owners say concrete barriers in the middle of both roads hindercustomers from getting to their shops. Said Exxon station owner Tom DeBaugh, "It's real hard to get in and out of the station, especiallytrying to get onto Route 32." Project engineers say the median strips safely channel traffic through the intersection.
Escapee at large: Police are still searching for one of two men who escaped from theSykesville Central Laundry Camp. Adam Dare Blades, 20, originally from Caroline County, remains at large. He was serving a three-year sentence for a third-degree sex offense. The other man, 21-year-old MarkJohn Harp of Anne Arundel County, was recaptured in Glen Burnie.
Shelter is full: A waiting list for space in the shelter for the homeless bulged to an all-time high in August, the Human Services Programs of Carroll County Inc. reports. Since HSP began operating shelters in 1985, it has not had a waiting list. But 28 women and children were without a place to stay in August. The list has ranged between 10 and 30 women since mid-August, with a typical wait of 10 days to two weeks.
Attorney buys building: Westminster attorney Robert H. Lennon contracts to buy the colonial-style building on Main Street deserted by Baltimore Federal in June 1990. "I grew up in Westminster and always thought it was an attractive building," Lennon said of the property at 6 E. Main St. The county commissioners tried to buy the building during the liquidation of Baltimore Federal's assets but lost the contract in a closed-bidding process. Lennon would not say how much he had offered for the two-floor, 1,880-square-foot building.
October
Cuts anger Dixon: Delegate Richard N. Dixon, who serves on the House Budget Committee, criticizes Gov. William Donald Schaefer's budget cuts, which would reduce state troopers and social programs. Dixon speculates that Schaefer's announcement of budget cuts was timed toinfluence legislators to support tax increases.
ATV riding
