Local Governments

As a local business owner, I was happy for the opportunity to participate in the recent public meeting to discuss the proposed Baltimore Washington Rail Facility. While I agree that it is incredibly important to continue this discussion openly, I hope residents of our community will not lose sight of how important this facility can be to our local economy. In addition to driving economic growth, providing additional tax income to our local governments, and creating jobs, as a business owner, I see an even more important benefit.

A war on rural Maryland? We've been under siege for decades. But the enemy is sprawling development pressure, not government policies. ("Rural leaders rebel against O'Malley's statewide growth plan," Oct. 27). I should know. The Bay Bridge empties directly into my county. PlanMaryland, the state's new thinking about how to manage its future growth, is a positive step. It seeks to have rural towns absorb a greater portion of new residents, and in the process revive those towns, save tax dollars, preserve our farms and forests, and cut down on our endless commuting time, among other benefits.

Spend our money more wisely. I think that's what the average person wants from government. We're not extremists. We don't want government spending indiscriminately on programs that don't work, nor do we want government indiscriminately slashing spending in a way that only makes our problems worse. We want leaders who are good with money - our money. That's why we're so disappointed with some officials (perhaps the minority) who are condemning a plan to put the Chesapeake Bay region under a "pollution diet.

Bruce Holstein moved to Carroll County eight years ago looking for land to build a house so he could live closer to his grown daughter and her family. He settled on a historic road with no streetlights, flanked by maple and hickory trees, with corn and soybean farms in the distance. It's a small-town way of life that Holstein wants to preserve, and he sees no bigger threat than a statewide plan to direct development — a plan set to take effect as early as next month. Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley's effort to target growth near existing development — and to withhold funding from local governments that don't comply — has raised hackles in some corners of Maryland.

I hope that driving on the newly repaved sections of Interstate 95 - without paying tolls - will be a reminder to everyone of how well-maintained infrastructure (highways, bridges, water and sewer lines) make life for all of us more comfortable as well as safer. The U.S. is seriously behind in maintaining and upgrading its infrastructure, much of which was built in the decades after World War II. For the last 20 years we have been starving our public sector by cutting taxes to the point where we now worry about not having enough money even to pay our police, firefighters and teachers.

Here, recycling is the name of the game. Copper and aluminum obviously, but also steel, brick and even seemingly worthless nuggets of concrete from demolished buildings find their way to new and productive uses. Grasses are planted to protect critical wetlands near the Chesapeake Bay, and further toward the Appalachian Piedmont, new trees will help protect tributaries of the Potomac River. Dedicated individuals pick up trash along miles of highway and reclaim historic sites. The mission spans the generations, as well; kids tend raised beds, pick cucumbers and make friends with writhing red worms in rich black soil.

"Choose Civility" has been a theme of Columbia and Howard County for a few years now, and until recently it seemed a very apropos statement for the area. Howard County was an oasis in a desert. I work in Montgomery County, and driving there is like driving through a mine field. Washington, D.C., is even worse, maddeningly Big Brother-like. I take a deep breath and relax when I get back home to Howard County, this oasis of civility. When I heard about the speed camera program, I was so disappointed.

For anyone looking into why Maryland's 14-year-old campaign to reduce sprawl development has proved so ineffective, we present the learned members of the Anne Arundel County Council. Next week, they're scheduled to give a demonstration of how not to follow the growth restrictions advocated by their own constituents. As long as anyone can remember, Route 214 (Central Avenue) has been the line of demarcation between the commercial development on Route 2 (Solomons Island Road) and the rural South County.

The political tug of war over teacher pension costs is escalating, as Howard County Executive Ken Ulman asked state legislators to put the burden of any shift of those payments from the state to local governments directly on the county school board. Although he opposes any shift in pension costs, Ulman told Senate Budget and Taxation Committee Chairman Edward J. Kasemeyer and six of Howard's eight state delegates on Monday that if local governments are saddled with a portion of that bill, he'd hope to see the county's general treasury preserved by placing the added cost directly on the schools.

The prominent land-use lawyer poised to take over as Baltimore County's land development chief has decades of experience in local government, but some question how he will distance himself from former clients and colleagues doing business with his agency. Arnold E. Jablon's nomination to the new Department of Permits, Inspections and Approvals was submitted to the County Council for consideration last week by County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, who has already moved to address concerns over potential conflicts of interest.