Route 32

Maryland's new secretary of transportation is discouraging a Carroll County commissioner from lobbying for federal dollars for a highway project that is also underscoring growing tensions on the local board. Commissioner Michael D. Zimmer's proposed extension of U.S. 29 from Howard County would bisect Carroll and include bypasses of Westminster and Taneytown. "We would encourage the county not to pursue separate federal ... funding for independent projects," Secretary John D. Porcari recently wrote in a letter to Zimmer.

Although the State Highway Administration has said it will consider objections raised last week to the proposed expansion of a nine-mile stretch of Route 32 in western Howard County, some opponents say they doubt they have stopped the widening project."

25 years ago:Carroll Commissioner J. Norman Graham recently stated the county is ready to purchase a 50-acre tract in Eldersburg, if the school board is in accord, for building the proposed Southeast Area High School. The site is across from a large planned clothing warehouse, bounded by Route 32, Johnsville and Bartholow roads. This will be the county's fifth high school and is scheduled for completion in September 1977. When the school is completed, attendance lines for Westminster and South Carroll high schools will be redrawn.

A FINAL decision on whether to widen Route 32 between Route 108 and Interstate 70 will be made this summer by the State Highway Administration. Despite well-reasoned arguments against making the road wider, it is the best course to improve traffic flow and safety.Concern that making the highway easier to travel will increase development is legitimate. However, the County Council holds the power through zoning restrictions to ensure that widening Route 32 doesn't thwart Smart Growth.The highway administration has been studying the Route 32 problem for four years.

FiresSykesville: Firefighters transferred an engine at 5: 32 p.m. Monday to the Bethany station in Howard County. Units were out four hours.Sykesville: Firefighters assisted Howard County at 5: 24 p.m. Monday, responding to a house fire in the 10000 block of Hoffman's Choice Lane. Units were out eight minutes.Sykesville: Firefighters from Sykesville and Winfield responded at 3: 35 p.m. Monday to a brush fire in the 7400 block of Old Washington Road. Units were out 26 minutes.Gamber: Firefighters responded at 2: 13 p.m. Monday to telephone wires down on Nicodemus Road at Route 32. Units were out 19 minutes.

FiresWestminster: Firefighters responded at 2: 16 a.m. Saturday to a cleanup detail in the 200 block of W. Main St. Units were out 20 minutes.Westminster: Firefighters from Westminster and Manchester responded at 9: 28 a.m. Friday to a house fire in the 1500 block of Manchester Road. Units were out five minutes.Westminster: Firefighters responded at 6: 40 a.m. Friday to an auto fire on Route 97 near Route 32. Units were out 20 minutes.Pub Date: 4/20/99

Reveling in voters' overwhelming approval of annexation of the Warfield Complex, Sykesville officials said yesterday the real work of developing the $20 million project can now begin.Mayor Jonathan Herman said more in-depth planning is needed before restoration can begin on the 15 aging buildings, once part of Springfield Hospital Center on Route 32. Officials are seeking state money to begin what many expect to be a 20-year project.Until Wednesday's referendum -- which resulted from a petition by residents concerned with the project's cost -- the town had to put its plans and its prospects on hold.

Although the State Highway Administration has said it will consider objections raised last week to the proposed expansion of a nine-mile stretch of Route 32 in western Howard County, some opponents say they doubt they have stopped the widening project."

For years, Carroll County has considered improvements to Obrecht Road as a way to ease traffic congestion in Eldersburg. Funding for the project has often been delayed, and construction has been a source of contention for county officials.Obrecht Road, which runs from Route 97 east to Route 32, could be an alternative for commuters who are clogging Liberty Road, the main thoroughfare through Eldersburg, while en route to Route 32 and Interstate 70. But Obrecht Road is a winding road, with poor sight distance and a difficult entrance at Route 32.Now improvements are again budgeted, and construction could begin next year.

A petition to rezone conservation land for business sailed through the Carroll County Planning and Zoning Commission yesterday, paving the way for construction of the $3.5 million corporate headquarters for Episcopal Ministries to the Aging.The seven-member panel voted unanimously in favor of the petition shortly after touring the 4.5-acre site along Route 32, just north of Sykesville.The property adjoins Fairhaven Retirement Community, a subsidiary of Episcopal Ministries to the Aging (EMA)

Responding to concerns from Howard County residents after a pair of well-publicized fatal crashes, the State Highway Administration said it will launch an $800,000 project Sunday to add new left-turn lanes at three intersections along Route 32 north of Interstate 70. The highway agency said it will build the new turn lanes on Maryland 32 at the intersections with Day Road, Amberwoods Way and the southern end of River Road - all of which lie between Old...

A fatal crash on Route 32 in Howard County last week is spurring safety improvements to a stretch of road that residents have been complaining about for years. Local and state officials unveiled plans Wednesday that they hope will curb the rash of accidents involving cars turning into and coming out of three communities off Route 32 between Route 99 and the Carroll County line. The State Highway Administration plans to begin construction this fall on new left-turn lanes on Route 32 at Amberwoods Way, River Road and Day Road, the officials said.

After the second fatal car accident in less than three months on the same stretch of Route 32, local and state officials are considering a "short-term" plan to resurface and restripe the three-mile section of roadway near the Howard County-Carroll County line. Dr. Brian Emery was killed late Thursday afternoon when his Acura was rear-ended as he tried to make a left turn from a northbound lane of Route 32 onto Amberwoods Way. Emery's car was sent into the southbound lanes, where it was hit by a pickup truck.

Sykesville physician killed in Route 32 crash 3 A 49-year-old Sykesville physician who had supported a group pushing for safety improvements on Route 32 in Howard County died in a three-vehicle accident on that road Thursday evening, according to police. Dr. Brian Edgar Emery, an ear, nose and throat specialist who lived in the 12000 block of Forest Creek Court, was pronounced dead at the scene after the Acura he was driving was struck from behind by a northbound Chevrolet Express van about 5:30 p.m. as Emery waited to make a left turn onto Amberwoods Way, police said.

At first glance, the western Howard County intersection of Route 32 and River Road looks much like any other along the busy corridor heading toward the nearby Carroll County line. Cars and trucks zoom in both directions, most not heeding the 50-mph speed limit, many not adhering to signs advising headlights for better visibility and nearly every one of them ignoring cars trying to inch into traffic. To those who live in the Howard Lodge neighborhood tucked inside that intersection, the confluence of high-speed driving and a quick turn into traffic was, quite literally and tragically, an accident waiting to happen.

A Sykesville woman has died of injuries suffered in a two-vehicle accident last week that killed her 13-year-old son and injured her 5-year-old daughter. Kyong Hae Kim, 51, of the 12200 block of Howard Lodge Road died Monday night at Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where she had been taken in critical condition last Wednesday after the accident near her family's home. Kim, whose friends called her Jennifer, was taking her son, Vincent, and her daughter, Jacqueline, to a riding lesson at a nearby stable when she pulled out of the neighborhood at River Road and was trying to head south on Route 32. A flat-bed tow truck driven by a Westminster man was northbound on Route 32 when it collided with Kim's Mazda van. Vincent was pronounced dead at Howard County Hospital later that day. Jacqueline was taken to Children's Hospital in Washington and was released a couple of days later.

Hagerstown man critically injured in Glenelg crash 1 A Hagerstown man was critically injured early yesterday morning when his vehicle crashed into a guardrail on Route 32 in Glenelg, Howard County police say. The motorist, identified as Lawrence Elliott Black, 26, was driving northbound on Route 32 near the Burntwoods Road interchange at about 2:45 a.m. when his 2005 Hyundai drove off the right side of the roadway, according to officials. At impact, Black, who was not wearing a seat belt, was thrown from the vehicle.

Man dies in Carroll crash; police say alcohol involved 2 Alcohol and excessive speed are thought to be factors in a head-on collision on Route 32 in Carroll County that killed a Sykesville man and injured another early yesterday, a sheriff's office spokesman said. Based on the investigation, it appears that Timothy Andrew Mahoney, 21, lost control of a 2005 Hyundai Tiburon while traveling south on Route 32 north of Nottingham Road just before 5:20 a.m., Carroll County Sheriff's Office spokesman Maj. Phil Kasten said.

The Lisbon Volunteer Fire Co., 1330 Route 94, will hold a "Quarter Auction" fundraiser on Saturday. Doors will open at 2 p.m., and the auction will start at 3 p.m. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door; no refunds. Each person who purchases a ticket will receive $10 in quarters and a bidding paddle. Information: Judy Gue, 240-674-1961. around town New traffic patterns : The State Highway Administration has opened three roundabouts and two new ramps along Route 32. Traffic signals have been removed at Pfefferkorn and Ten Oaks roads.

The River Hill Community Association is holding a "Helping Our Heroes" donation drive. Donations will be accepted at Claret Hall and distributed to wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Army Hospital. Prepaid phone cards, electric shavers, clothing, digital video discs and other items are needed. The River Hill Community Association is working with the Soldier Family Assistance Center to collect the items. Information: Mary Harris, 410-531-1749. The community association's breakfast/lunch with Santa will be held from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. (breakfast)