Deep Creek Lake

TYPICALLY, the government buys open space land from private landowners and sets it aside for common use. But at Deep Creek Lake in Garrett County, the state of Maryland is buying up 600 acres around the lake and reselling it to private individuals, at cost, for their personal use. The unusual arrangement is part of the complicated, protracted negotiations for Maryland to acquire the lake and surrounding lands from GPU, Inc., the utilities firm whose...

The state's planned $7.8 million purchase of Deep Creek Lake, Western Maryland's leading tourist attraction, has spurred concerns among lakeside property owners that the sale could lead to unwanted development or cost them money to preserve their access to the water.Some property owners -- and officials of Garrett County, where the lake is located -- are urging the state to buy not only Deep Creek, but 600 acres that border the lake.The 74-year-old man-made lake and the 600 acres are owned by GPU Inc., a Morristown, N.J.-based utility that is selling its Maryland holdings.

Gambling is OK if it (A) benefits charities; (B) funds schools; (C) improves horses; (D) reflects Native American rights; (E) keeps mad-money in-state or (F) lightens taxes. What can never justify it is fun.The state bought Deep Creek Lake and will move it to Prince George's County.Cheer up. Studies show that bottled water is, on average, as safe as tap water.Beat Tampa Bay!Pub Date: 4/05/99

DEEP CREEK LAKE -- What is so appealing to many people about this 3,900-acre body of water in Western Maryland is not just what can be found along its shores, but what cannot be found. No golden arches tower above Garrett County's Deep Creek Lake, no giant plastic pirates wave to tourists to play a round of miniature golf or sip a margarita. None of Ocean City is here. The area is as pristine as an area that attracts a half-million visitors each year can be. Now that the state has bought the lake, people in Garrett County are maneuvering for the power to ward off development.

The Glendening administration and a New Jersey-based power company will not reach an agreement on Maryland's intended purchase of Deep Creek Lake by today's deadline, a state official said yesterday.But talks -- described as "good-faith negotiations" -- are continuing, said R. Stevens Cassard Jr., assistant secretary for real estate in the Department of General Services.Cassard said General Services Secretary Eugene R. Lynch talked by phone yesterday with representatives of GPU Inc., which is selling the lake and its hydroelectric dam, and will hold face-to-face talks with company officials Friday.

McHENRY -- Despite missing a deadline in the negotiating process, a power company's sale of Deep Creek Lake to the state appears to be on track, officials for both sides said at a public meeting here yesterday.About 200 people gathered at Garrett Community College for an update on the sale of the 73-year-old lake, which GPU Inc. put up for sale in March along with the hydroelectric dam that created it.With the utility planning to auction the Western Maryland facility, along with 31 other plants, the state stepped in to ensure protection of the lake -- hailed as a state treasure by Gov. Parris N. Glendening and the area's economic linchpin by Western Maryland business leaders.

Call us brave or foolish. Craving a break from a lemming-like pilgrimage to the shore this summer, our family of five booked a place in the mountains, sight unseen. Having thumbed through a Realtor's flier in March, we found lakefront rentals cheaper than comparable oceanfront units. So, promptly, we booked an A-frame cottage on Deep Creek Lake and gladly paid the extra security deposit so that our Labrador retrievers could accompany us.Great outdoors, here we come. We posted the paragraph describing the "Islamorada" on our refrigerator door and counted down the weeks.

LAST WEEK'S agreement for the state to acquire a popular Western Maryland landmark, Deep Creek Lake, is indeed a "momentous first step" toward preserving a state treasure, as Gov. Parris N. Glendening put it.The fate of the 3,900-acre man-made lake and shoreline in Garrett County had been in doubt since owner GPU Inc. put the property and its hydroelectric dam up for sale in February as part of a plan to cut the company's power-generation facilities.The...

McHENRY -- It was 10: 20 Monday night, the end of the Memorial Day weekend at Deep Creek Lake, and the bears were having a banquet on Rock Lodge Road.The 300-plus-pound mother and her two retriever-sized cubs had arrived on the heels of the just-departed renters of a tourist cabin. Their feast was an unsealed trash can and two plastic bags overstuffed with scraps: steamed crab remains, oyster shells, meat packages, fast food containers and coffee grounds.After about 20 minutes, the creatures ambled off, leaving behind garbage scattered across the yard and one more reason for Garrett County to be fed up with bears.

OAKLAND -- After a weekend meeting, Garrett County interests have decided to defer to state government in efforts to buy Deep Creek Lake from GPU Energy, an electric utility that has put the lake -- along with the hydroelectric dam that created it -- on the market.A local advisory panel had backed a bid for the power plant and 3,900-acre lake -- a recreational resource accounting for more than half of Garrett County's tax base -- by a consortium composed of county government, lakefront property owners and an independent power producer.