Town Government

A new civic group could emerge in Westminster this month after leaders of west side neighborhoods meet to form a coalition, with an eye toward increasing their muscle and improving communication with city government.The coalition will include five communities west of Route 31: The Greens of Westminster, Furnace Hills, Avondale Run, Eagleview Estates and Whispering Meadows, said Richard Geelhaar, president of The Greens homeowners association.Representatives of those communities will meet May 21 at The Greens to organize a group now called "the West of 31," he said.

When it comes to mayoral races in Carroll County, New Windsor has the only game in town.Uncontested and lackluster races have led to voter apathy in six of Carroll's seven municipal elections, but New Windsor's 600 registered voters have a choice of two candidates for mayor and six others for two Town Council seats.A candidate forum April 30 drew about 100 residents eager to hear what their neighbors had to say about growth, police protection, economic development and traffic.Many left undecided on council choices, but the forum provided clear differences between Mayor Jack A. Gullo Jr. and his challenger, Samuel M. Pierce.

Mount Airy has become Carroll County's third incorporated town to open a home page on the Internet.The page features a sketch of Twin Arch Bridge by local artist Charles Beck, a welcome from Mayor Gerald R. Johnson and a "still-under-construction" index of local services, ranging from recycling information to area hospitals to retail shopping centers.Westminster's home page touts the city as the "Summer Home of the Baltimore Ravens." Manchester's features a "Welcome to Manchester" sign at the edge of the town on Route 30. Other Carroll towns are working on home pages.

PORT DEPOSIT -- The municipal treasury has slipped at least $850,000 into the red, state auditors have found -- leading some residents of this historic town on the Susquehanna River to fear their government is on the brink of financial ruin.The auditors' scathing report, which comes amid a simmering political scandal, details inadequate recordkeeping, improper bidding procedures, cash payments to employees and blank checks signed by the mayor.Recordkeeping was so shoddy, the report says, that neither investigators nor town officials can say how much money the town has to spend.

IMPROVISING IS a much admired quality in jazz, but making up the rules as one goes along is hardly appropriate for government.Carroll County government's granting of a grading permit to developer Martin K. P. Hill for his new project in Hampstead without the town's approval is unprecedented. It is a violation of the county's own ordinance as well as a slap at all eight of Carroll's incorporated towns.On Dec. 18, the county issued Mr. Hill a grading permit for the 90-unit Roberts Field condominium community without Hampstead's approval.

For many Hampstead officials, the concept is pretty simple. Those who make the decisions for the town ought to live there. Even in Carroll towns that don't require residency, officials always have preferred having reside community governs itself," said Jack A. Gullo Jr., mayor of New Windsor. "It doesn't sit well with some residents to have people outside of town in control."Tonight, Hampstead's mayor and council have scheduled a public hearing on three residency ordinances. If passed, any member of the Planning and Zoning Commission, the Ethics Commission or the Board of Zoning Appeals would be required to live within town limits."

An editorial in The Sun for Carroll yesterday incorrectly reported the population of Hampstead. The population is about 3,800.The Sun regrets the errors.THERE WAS a time when Hampstead had difficulty finding town residents to serve on its various boards and commissions. As a result, people who lived outside the town often occupied seats on important policy panels such as the planning commission, the ethics board and the board of zoning appeals. Things have changed, and the town council soon will be considering an ordinance requiring any member of a board or commission to be a town resident.

Despite its remote location in the northwest corner of Carroll County, Taneytown has experienced an explosion of residential growth in recent years. The major tasks facing the town government are developing the public services to accommodate this influx of people, rejuvenating the town's old commercial district and ensuring that new commercial development outside the town's center enhances, rather than detracts from, the local quality of life.Taneytown's elected officials will also have to choose a new town manager.

Norman C. Hammond didn't know what he was getting himself into when he became a regular at Mount Airy Town Council meetings three years ago.He got himself into politics. Or, as he describes it, "I'm participating in government."The 70-year-old retired Army colonel and IBM manager was named to the council this month to replace Marcum N. Nance, who resigned in July to take a job in England. The four other councilmen appointed Mr. Hammond to serve the 18 months remaining in Mr. Nance's four-year term.

The Carroll County Planning Commission quickly waived county zoning requirements yesterday for two residential lots in Taneytown. The commission also did not object to the town's proposal to annex a business.The commission waived the county's zoning requirements on lot size for two lots totaling half an acre, owned by A. Elaine and Leonard G. Wantz Jr.The waiver was necessary because the town government plans to rezone the property for higher density, according to a county planning staff report.