Route 30

The six candidates running for three Manchester Town Council seats tomorrow generally agree upon what the community's priorities should be for the next four years: water, Main Street revitalization and traffic. Their differences lie more in their ages and experiences: They range from 27 to 70 years old, and include young workers and retired executives who have lived in town from four to 70 years. Of the three council members whose terms were expiring, only Daniel C. Riley is seeking re-election - and he decided as the deadline loomed.

A new study states that the habitat of the endangered bog turtle would not be damaged by construction of a badly needed Route 30 bypass around Hampstead, offering commuters hope for an end to long waits at the Carroll County town's stoplights, and perhaps allaying concerns about the survival of a creature few people had heard of three years ago. "Construction of the Hampstead Bypass will ... have a negligible impact on the bog turtle wetlands," said...

A new study states that the habitat of the endangered bog turtle would not be damaged by construction of a badly needed Route 30 bypass around Hampstead, offering commuters hope for an end to long waits at the Carroll County town's stoplights, and perhaps allaying concerns about the survival of a creature few people had heard of three years ago. "Construction of the Hampstead Bypass will ... have a negligible impact on the bog turtle wetlands," said...

The five candidates for Hampstead's three open council seats agree on a lot. Two challengers and three incumbents, they all list Main Street revitalization as the town's top priority, they all say the council must vigilantly lobby the state for a Route 30 bypass and they all want to avoid tax increases. So why, a person might ask, do the incumbents face opposition in Tuesday's election? Challenger C. Donald Warner said he's running because the current council, despite having the correct priorities, has been ineffective in pushing the town's interests.

Manchester has annexed the largest number of acres in more than 20 years - a move that will mean not only a couple hundred new homes, but also millions of dollars worth of water and road improvements. The annexation of the Black Farm/Fayle property occurs after eight years of planning and study by local builder Martin K. P. Hill of Masonry Homes Inc. in Manchester. The property - several parcels totaling 157 1/2 acres - lies north of town. The improvements will include construction of a well and water tower and the relocation of Lineboro Road to improve its intersection with Route 30. The Town Council's vote approving the annexation was rapid and without controversy Tuesday night.

Two Pennsylvania men were injured - one of them critically - when a CSX train slammed into their pickup truck at an icy rail crossing on a private road north of Reisterstown yesterday morning. The train - made up of four locomotives headed from Hanover, Pa., to Baltimore - hit the truck broadside at 10:57 a.m., police said, and dragged it south about 30 feet to an embankment along Route 30. The truck's driver, Joshua Freeburn, 24, of the first block of Coffeytown Road in Dillsburg, Pa., was trapped in the vehicle and freed by Baltimore County firefighters, said Cpl. Vickie Ware- hime, county police spokeswoman.

Manchester Town Council has endorsed task force recommendations to beautify Route 30 and to improve traffic flow along the busy corridor - but not without barbed comments about the need for a bypass. Construction on the road improvements could begin by 2002 and be completed by 2004, said Philip L. Arbaugh, town manager. An estimated $600,000 to $700,000 for planning and engineering work is in the state budget, town officials said. Arbaugh asked the council to act on the recommendations Tuesday night, so the plans developed with the State Highway Administration would be realized as soon as possible.

The robbery of a Hampstead gift store Tuesday evening is the sixth such crime in the Route 30 corridor in recent weeks and may have been committed by the same man, Hampstead police said yesterday. The man entered the Holy Cow shop in the 1300 block of Main St. about 6 p.m. Tuesday and walked around briefly before starting a conversation and asking for change, said Capt. Jay Gribbin. The robber then ordered the clerk to lie on the floor and grabbed an undisclosed amount of cash from the open register, police said.

The long-delayed Hampstead bypass, which would alleviate heavy traffic along Route 30, tops the list of $110 million in state road projects planned in Carroll the next six years, state highway officials said yesterday. Town and county officials lobbied hard yesterday during the annual meeting with the state Department of Transportation in Westminster to get the 5.8-mile road built soon. The $35 million bypass, a road the county has made its priority, generated the most comment during the two-hour session The bypass has been on the drawing board for 30 years, but it has yet to be designed.

Sections of Shiloh Avenue between Route 30 and the Carroll County line will be closed starting today for pavement repairs. The road will be closed from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily until repairs are completed. The road will be closed in sections, with West Alley and Carroll Street as detour routes. Information: 410-239-7408. Manchester to discuss skate park site at meeting Manchester will hold a public meeting to discuss the location of a proposed skate park at 8 p.m. Tuesday at Town Hall.