Hampstead Town

AN EXHIBIT OF 90 artworks by children from Hampstead and Spring Garden Elementary schools is on display through next month at Hampstead Town Hall, 1034 S. Carroll St. The children, in first through fifth grade, are taught by art teachers Jan VanBibber and Brigitte Delzingaro of Spring Garden Elementary School and Barbara Hammond of Hampstead Elementary School. The large and colorful exhibit shows how the children have explored world cultures and famous artists through art projects. The public may view the show during regular Town Hall hours -- 8: 30 a.m. to 4: 30 p.m. Monday through Friday -- and when evening public meetings are held.

Mary Alice Lare, a retired Carroll County librarian and the first woman to serve on the Hampstead Town Council, died Wednesday of cancer at her home. She was 82. Born Mary Alice Brown in Hampstead, she was a 1941 Hampstead High School graduate and earned a bachelor's degree from Hood College. After raising a family, she earned a master's degree in library science from Rosary College in River Forest, Ill., in 1974. Mrs. Lare, whose family had lived in Hampstead for many years, decided to run for Town Council nearly 35 years ago. She won a seat and served for a term.

The Hampstead Town Council has tentatively approved a redevelopment plan for the old Hampstead Elementary School, a move Mayor Christopher M. Nevin hopes will hasten transfer of the building from county to town control. Nevin calls the project, which would transform the Main Street building from a vacant schoolhouse into a low-cost apartment complex for senior citizens, the pillar of Hampstead's downtown revitalization effort. But the town's efforts to gain control of the building have become mixed up in the contentious relationship between Hampstead leaders and Carroll County's commissioners.

Hampstead town officials have asked the Carroll County commissioners to consider a zoning amendment to prohibit billboards along the $83.4 million Hampstead Bypass to emphasize the 4 1/2 -mile roadway's role as a scenic gateway, when it opens to traffic at the end of 2008. "We'll have this new road going through pristine countryside," Hampstead Mayor Haven N. Shoemaker Jr. said. "We'd like to keep it as blemish-free as possible and maintain the rural character of our community." Hampstead passed an ordinance in 2001 to prohibit all billboards from being erected within the municipal boundaries, town officials said.

Responding to Hampstead residents' complaints about cable service, Linda Jenne called Adelphia Cable 165 times between June 1 and June 15. The town's cable coordinator reached a customer service agent three times. That's an unacceptable level of service and a violation of Adelphia's contract, said Hampstead Town Manager Ken Decker. As a result, Decker plans to ask Carroll County's Cable Commission at its next meeting July 12 for permission on behalf of the town to seek damages of $200 a day for the two-week period.

Mary Alice Lare, a retired Carroll County librarian and the first woman to serve on the Hampstead Town Council, died Wednesday of cancer at her home. She was 82. Born Mary Alice Brown in Hampstead, she was a 1941 Hampstead High School graduate and earned a bachelor's degree from Hood College. After raising a family, she earned a master's degree in library science from Rosary College in River Forest, Ill., in 1974. Mrs. Lare, whose family had lived in Hampstead for many years, decided to run for Town Council nearly 35 years ago. She won a seat and served for a term.

Hampstead town officials have asked the Carroll County commissioners to consider a zoning amendment to prohibit billboards along the $83.4 million Hampstead Bypass to emphasize the 4 1/2 -mile roadway's role as a scenic gateway, when it opens to traffic at the end of 2008. "We'll have this new road going through pristine countryside," Hampstead Mayor Haven N. Shoemaker Jr. said. "We'd like to keep it as blemish-free as possible and maintain the rural character of our community." Hampstead passed an ordinance in 2001 to prohibit all billboards from being erected within the municipal boundaries, town officials said.

At its meeting tomorrow night, Hampstead Town Council will consider for the third time a proposed agreement with developer Martin K. P. Hill, which would allow him to begin construction on his North Carroll Farms IV development.The agreement tries to resolve a dispute over storm-water management and open space, which led Hampstead officials to revoke 50 of Hill's building permits for the development last year.Council members discussed the proposal at two meetings but postponed a vote to study the issues more thoroughly.

At its Monday night meeting, the Hampstead Planning and Zoning Commission approved the site plan for renovations to the Exxon service station on Route 30.Commission Chairman Arthur Moler said yesterday that the commission members' main concern with the site had been the size and number of proposed signs."

A 26-year-old Shiloh Run homeowner was sworn in late Tuesday to fill the vacant seat on the Hampstead Town Council.David E. Bredenburg was appointed by the council to serve out the term of Jacqueline Hyatt, a four-year councilwoman who resigned Oct. 10. Ms. Hyatt essentially had agreed with the council's "slow-growth" agenda but not necessarily with members' aggressive pursuit of that agenda.The newest councilman said yesterday that he shares the council's concerns about rapid growth outpacing the town's ability to provide adequate facilities, such as sufficient water and waste treatment.

Air quality research offered by residents to commissioners Air quality issues dominated the Carroll County commissioners' monthly community discussion time yesterday, as two residents presented their research on emissions from the Lehigh Cement Co. in Union Bridge. "We are concerned with what Lehigh is emitting into our air and the consequences its proposed rock crusher will add to our air quality burden," said Sher Horosko of Westminster. "We are sensitive to Lehigh's right to earn a profit and its contribution to the economic prosperity of the community.

Hampstead town officials have invited residents to a long-sought meeting with an official of the Maryland Department of the Environment to answer questions and to consider remedies for the presence of the gasoline additive MTBE in some wells in a neighborhood east of town. The meeting has been set for 7 p.m. Jan. 26 at Town Hall, said Hampstead Town Manager Ken Decker, who sent letters Thursday inviting 40 to 50 area residents. Herbert M. Meade, administrator of the Waste Management Administration's Oil Control Program, is scheduled to attend.

Hampstead town officials have invited residents to a long-sought meeting with an official of the Maryland Department of the Environment to answer questions and to consider remedies for the presence of the gasoline additive MTBE in some wells in a neighborhood east of town. The meeting has been set for 7 p.m. Jan. 26 at Town Hall, said Hampstead Town Manager Ken Decker, who sent letters Thursday inviting 40 to 50 area residents. Herbert M. Meade, administrator of the Waste Management Administration's Oil Control Program, is scheduled to attend.

Plans to redevelop Hampstead's old elementary school may clear another hurdle tonight when the Town Council is expected to give developers ownership of the property for a $10 million senior housing project. If the Hampstead Town Council approves the abandonment of the property, ownership of the 87-year-old schoolhouse and its adjacent parking lot will be transferred to the development team, which includes Landex Corp. of Baltimore and Interfaith Housing Alliance in Frederick. Groundbreaking for the complex of 84 one- and two-bedroom units is set for this spring, with construction expected to take about 18 months.

The bog turtle is no friend to Lee Walsh. Because of concerns that a proposed Route 30 bypass around Hampstead would harm the endangered turtle's habitat, the State Highway Administration has shifted the proposed route to the west, deep into Walsh's 115-acre cattle farm. Walsh estimated he would lose about 50 acres if the bypass takes this planned course and that it would be a grave blow to his business, he said. "I'd probably be done." He figures the best he can hope for now is a good deal on his land from the state.

Questions unanswered in plan for old school I am surprised and somewhat perturbed by the tone of the article written by Childs Walker in the coverage of proposals received for the Old Hampstead Elementary School ("Hampstead council OKs building transfer," Aug. 16). I was inappropriately characterized as a "petition toting resident" in a "last minute protest." It is my belief that if legitimate questions exist on a government project, that citizens have the right to first receive accurate answers before the project moves forward.

William Schukraft Pearson Sr., a retired Hampstead town councilman who developed and marketed his own inventions, died Monday at his home of undetermined causes. He was 89.Mr. Pearson was born and educated in Chicago. His father was an electrical engineer and his mother a schoolteacher. He attended Crane Tech in Chicago but eschewed college because, as he once said, "I didn't want to learn a foreign language."He went to work rebuilding transformers for Commonwealth Edison, a Chicago utility.

Hampstead Town Council agreed last night to pursue legal action against the owner of the neighboring Sweetheart Cup property, because concerns about a berm - a mound of dirt - built over a municipal water main have not been addressed. The extra soil could cause problems if town workers have to repair the section of pipe under the berm, said Hampstead Town Manager Kenneth Decker. The town doesn't have the excavation equipment - a backhoe and trench-shoring walls - to deal with pipe leaks so far below ground.

Hampstead got its wish yesterday when the Carroll County commissioners agreed to let the town proceed with a plan that would see Old Hampstead Elementary School redeveloped into housing for low-income seniors. The decision brings a tentative end to the five-year debate between town and county over the fate of the vacant school, which is maintained by the county school board. "I was confident because this plan is what's best for everyone involved," said Hampstead Mayor Christopher M. Nevin, who has described the school as a potential pillar in the town's Main Street revitalization plans.