20050712 This Year Halloween Comes Early in Maryland

This Year Halloween Comes Early in Maryland

July 12^th, 2005 by Kevin Dayhoff (739 words)

Who among us has not heard of the Salem witch hunt trials of 1692 in Massachusetts? Did you know that in Maryland, we had a few witch hunts between 1665 and 1686, one in 1712 and apparently, another hunt is scheduled for the summer of 2005?

According to a Carroll County Times article on October 31^st, 1993, “Belief in witches and supernatural spirits were part of the Pennsylvania German culture brought into this area by the settlers.” Apparently, some folks in Maryland still believe in hunting witches.

The Times article mentions that in the December 1936 edition of Maryland Historical Magazine, Judge Francis Neal Parke wrote an article entitled "Witchcraft in Maryland."

Judge Parke was one of Maryland’s most celebrated jurists. He was born in Westminster in 1871 and admitted to the bar in 1893. He was appointed Chief Judge of the Fifth Judicial Circuit in 1924 and served in that capacity until his retirement in 1941. He returned to private practice on Court Street, in Westminster, until his death in 1955.

In his article, Judge Parke discussed that the “earliest cases [of alleged witchcraft] involved the hanging of women assumed to be witches while aboard ships traveling from England to the colonies in 1654 and 1658” shortly after Maryland was founded in March 25^th, 1634. Judge Parke reports five additional cases of alleged witchcraft. “The first four cases occurred between 1665 and 1686, and the fifth was in 1712.”

Back to the future, I read an Associated Press article in the Carroll County Times the other day that House Speaker Michael E. Busch has actually, for real, I’m not making this up, named a “committee of four Democrats and two Republicans to join six state senators in an inquiry into the personnel polices of the Ehrlich administration.”

In a published account last May in the Washington Times, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., said, “A lot of people have indicated they want to testify before a commission… It is not going to be a witch hunt.”

Oh, I feel better all ready.

Perhaps the team of Miller and Busch feel a good witch hunt, every 300 years or so, does a state good. According to an account of the Salem witch hunt trials, that I have in my library, by Douglas Linder, in the summer of 1692 nineteen men and women were convicted of being witches and hung. An 80 year old was crushed to death under some heavy rocks for refusing to agree to go on trial. Take heed, if anyone out there is considering not playing along with the Annapolis version of “Salem 2005”; I suggest that you re-read the previous sentence.

The senators and delegates named to the committee are some of the most talented and capable elected officials in Annapolis. I just wish that they weren’t wasting their time on a witch hunt.

Perhaps, our Maryland General Assembly leaders aren’t aware of some of the other challenges facing us in the State of Maryland.

For example, how about a committee on the continuing crisis in health care? A little committee on the cost of prescription medicine? How about a small committee on the state’s continuing structural budget deficit? School construction? Road congestion and transportation needs? How about the challenges in our juvenile justice system? Attracting new business to Maryland? Business retention? Teacher compensation and retention?

For all you folks reading this at home, these issues are affecting your quality of life and mine. Do not, for one minute, think that this little parlor game of political charades is none of your concern.

The state workforce includes 80,000 employees. According to a Washington Times article on May 25^th, 2005, “Lawrence J. Hogan Jr., the governor's secretary of appointments, said the Ehrlich administration in three years has fired 280 of its 7,000 at-will workers. Mr. Ehrlich's Democratic predecessor, Gov. Parris N. Glendening, fired 309 at-will workers in a single year from the Department of Transportation alone…”

Paul E. Schurick, the governor's communications director, said it better than I could in a June 3^rd, 2005 Gazette article by Thomas Dennison: "The double standard is as gross and as egregious as I have ever seen. The fact of the matter is, dozens of legislators have made a career of trying to influence the hiring and firing of state employees."

Happy Halloween. Shenanigans like this out of Annapolis sure aren’t a treat and the trick is on us.

Kevin Dayhoff writes from Westminster. E-mail him at: kdayhoff@carr.org

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20050702 Langdon’s “Direct To You station turns 50” by Kristin DeIuliis Carroll County Times

Langdon’s “Direct To You station turns 50” by Kristin DeIuliis Carroll County Times

Direct To You gas station turns 50

By Kristin DeIuliis, Times Staff Writer Saturday, July 02, 2005

Jim Langdon is proud that his family business has been around for 50 years.

[…]

Jim Langdon's father, James Langdon, opened the gas station, which is on George Street in Westminster, in 1955. Originally, Direct To You also ran an ice cream stand next to the station, but that closed in 1964 to devote more time to the gas station.

The station doesn't offer ice cream anymore…

"We'll do anything for our customers," Langdon said. "We know that people don't like pumping their own gas. They don't want to smell like the pumps."

[…]

One event Langdon remembers particularly well was the oil crisis in 1973, when OPEC refused to ship oil to countries that had supported Israel in its conflict with Egypt. The consequence was a severe oil crisis in the United States.

[…]

Langdon's wife, Margaret Langdon and son, Michael Langdon, 29, also help run Direct To You Gas. Margaret keeps the books and Michael is the general manager.

[…]

Fuel prices

When Direct To You Gas opened in 1955, it sold fuel for 19.9 cents per gallon.

When Jim Langdon started working full time with his dad in 1970, gas was about 30.9 cents per gallon.

Today, Direct To You Gas sells regular fuel for about 2.17 per gallon.

Read the entire article here: Direct To You gas station turns 50

http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/articles/2005/07/02/news/local_news/news1s.txt

http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/

People Carroll County

Westminster Business

Westminster Business Direct To You Gas

Business Carroll County

Carroll County Times

20050702 Langdon’s “Direct To You station turns 50” by Kristin DeIuliis Carroll County Times

####

19950701 The Big Tree Champions of MD DNR

1995 The Big Tree Champions of MD DNR

http://www.dnr.state.md.us/forests/trees/champs.html

The Big Tree Champions of Maryland 1995

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The trees listed are organized by alphabetically by scientific name. The group below is A to Cha. Included in the listing are: firs, maples, buckeyes, tree of heaven, mimosa, hazel alder, serviceberry, hercules club, paw paw, birch trees, mulberrys, boxwoods, musclewoods, hickorys, chestnuts, catalpas, cedars, hackberries, katsuratrees, redbuds, and cedars. Section 2, Section 3, and Section 4 list other trees. So if you do not see the tree you are looking for check out the other sections and you will find what you need.

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Species : Balsam fir (Abies balsamea)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 7' 4"
Height: 70'
Crown spread: 35'
Points: 166.8
Owner and location: Bernard C. Boykin, Ruxton, Baltimore Co.

Species : White fir (Abies concolor)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 7' 4"
Height: 70'
Crown spread: 35'
Points: 166.8
Owner and location: St Mary's Catholic Ch., Upper Marlboro, Prince George's Co.

Species : Fraser fir (Abies fraseri)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 7' 4"
Height: 70'
Crown spread: 35'
Points: 166.8
Owner and location: Philip V. W. Dodds, Annapolis, Anne Arundel Co.

Species : Grand fir (Abies grandis)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 9' 4"
Height: 102'
Crown spread: 48'
Points: 226
Owner and location: Phil and Karen Saba, Olney, Montgomery Co.

Species : Nordman fir (Abies nordmanniana)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 9' 2"
Height: 86'
Crown spread: 37'
Points: 205.3
Owner and location: Franz Burda, Easton, Talbot Co.

Species : Grand fir (Abies grandis)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 9' 4"
Height: 102'
Crown spread: 48'
Points: 226
Owner and location: Phil and Karen Saba, Olney, Montgomery Co.

Species : Hedge maple (Acer campestre)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 9' 3"
Height: 61'
Crown spread: 35'
Points: 180.75
Owner and location: Henry and Josephine Magness, BelAir, Harford Co.

Species : Paperback maple (Acer griseum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 2' 6"
Height: 27'
Crown spread: 18'
Points: 61.5
Owner and location: City of Baltimore - Cylburn Arboretum, Baltimore, Baltimore City

Species : Chalk maple (Acer leucoderme)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 1' 8"
Height: 29'
Crown spread: 17'
Points: 53.3
Owner and location: Howard Co. Rec & Parks, Ellicott City, Howard Co.

Species : Boxelder (Acer negundo)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 15' 0"
Height: 78'
Crown spread: 84'
Points: 279
Owner and location: O'Brien Reality, Dunkirk, Calvert Co.

Species : Black maple (Acer nigrum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 8' 4"
Height: 81'
Crown spread: 62'
Points: 196.5
Owner and location: Harford Glen Env. Ed. Ctr, Bel Air, Harford Co.

Species : Italian maple (Acer opalus)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 1' 6"
Height: 18'
Crown spread: 16'
Points: 40
Owner and location: City of Baltimore - Cylburn Arboretum, Baltimore, Baltimore City.

Species : Cutleaf maple (Acer ornatum dentatum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 2' 10"
Height: 22'
Crown spread: 40'
Points: 66
Owner and location: Anthony Ladd, Oxford, Talbot Co.

Species : Japanese maple (Acer palmatum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 12' 0"
Height: 17'
Crown spread: 56'
Points: 175
Owner and location: Richard H. Farquhar, Ashton, Montgomery Co.

Species : Japanese cutleaf weeping maple (Acer palmatum ornatum dentatum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 1'10"
Height: 15'
Crown spread: 19'
Points: 41.8
Owner and location: Dr. William Gatewood, Darlington, Harford Co.

Species : Norway maple (Acer platanoides)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 16' 1"
Height: 71'
Crown spread: 84'
Points: 285
Owner and location: Mrs. Thomas Cadwalder, Joppa, Harford Co.

Species : Red maple (Acer rubrum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 15' 2"
Height: 90'
Crown spread: 84'
Points: 293
Owner and location: RR. J. Angermier, Greenock, Anne Arundel Co.

Species : Silver maple (Acer saccharinum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 25' 5"
Height: 84'
Crown spread: 103'
Points: 414.75
Owner and location: John Henrici, Silver Spring, Montgomery Co.

Species : Sugar maple (Acer saccharum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 22' 5"
Height: 51'
Crown spread: 47'
Points: 331.8
Owner and location: Richard Cropp, Kitzmiller, Garrett Co.

Species : Painted maple (Acer truncatum mono)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 2' 6"
Height: 33'
Crown spread: 30'
Points: 70.5
Owner and location: City of Baltimore Cylburn Arboretum, Baltimore, Baltimore City.

Species : Ohio buckeye (Aesculus glabra)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 14' 2"
Height: 82'
Crown spread: 66'
Points: 268.5
Owner and location: Mrs. Sophia Powell, Cumberland, Allegany Co.

Species : Horsechestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 13' 5"
Height: 89'
Crown spread: 57'
Points: 264.3
Owner and location: David Banner, West River, Anne Arundel Co.

Species : Yellow buckeye (Aesculus octandra)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 12' 6"
Height: 91'
Crown spread: 54'
Points: 254.5
Owner and location: Milton J. Fiery, III, Glencoe, Baltimore Co.

Species : Red buckeye (Aesculus pavia)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 2' 7"
Height: 27'
Crown spread: 32'
Points: 76
Owner and location: Mrs. Wilcox, Port Republic, Calvert Co.

Species : Tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 12' 7"
Height: 90'
Crown spread: 73'
Points: 259.25
Owner and location: Grace Dowell, Sunderland, Calvert Co.

Species : Mimosa (Albizia julibrissin)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 9' 2"
Height: 39'
Crown spread: 69'
Points: 166.3
Owner and location: Grant Tate, Eldersburg, Carroll Co.

Species : Hazel alder (Alnus serrulata)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 0' 10"
Height: 21'
Crown spread: 14'
Points: 34.5
Owner and location: Colby B. Rucker, Arnold, Anne Arundel Co.

Species : Serviceberry (Amelanchier aborea)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 10' 1"
Height: 39'
Crown spread: 30'
Points: 167.5
Owner and location: State of Maryland, Grantsville, Garrett Co.

Species : Hercules club (Aralia spinosa)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 1' 3"
Height: 22'
Crown spread: 14'
Points: 40.5
Owner and location: Mrs. Wilfred B. Hathaway, Churchville, Harford Co.

Species : Paw paw (Asimina triloba)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 2' 4'
Height: 35'
Crown spread: 26'
Points: 69.5
Owner and location: Alice Ferguson Foundation, Accokeek, Prince George's Co.

Species : River birch (Betula nigra)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 17' 3"
Height: 81'
Crown spread: 96'
Points: 312
Owner and location: Mitchellville, Prince George's Co.

Species : Paper birch (Betula papyrifera)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 5' 11"
Height: 49'
Crown spread: 46'
Points: 131.5
Owner and location: Richard Anderson, Silver Spring, Montgomery Co.

Species : European white birch (Betula pendula)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 3' 10"
Height: 49'
Crown spread: 20'
Points: 100
Owner and location: Richard Allen, Silver Spring, Montgomery Co.

Species : European white birch (Betula pendula)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 6' 4"
Height: 49'
Crown spread: 54'
Points: 138.5
Owner and location: Scientists Cliffs Association, Port Republic, Calvert Co.

Species : Grey birch (Betula populifolia)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 8' 7"
Height: 68'
Crown spread: 50'
Points: 183.5
Owner and location: Mrs. James D. Spruill, Parkton, Baltimore Co.

Species : River birch (Betula nigra)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 17' 3"
Height: 81'
Crown spread: 96'
Points: 312
Owner and location: Mitchellville, Prince George's Co.

Species : Paper birch (Betula papyrifera)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 5' 11"
Height: 49'
Crown spread: 46'
Points: 131.5
Owner and location: Richard Anderson, Silver Spring, Montgomery Co.

Species : European white birch (Betula pendula)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 3' 10"
Height: 49'
Crown spread: 20'
Points: 100
Owner and location: Richard Allen, Silver Spring, Montgomery Co.

Species : European white birch (Betula pendula)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 6' 4"
Height: 49'
Crown spread: 54'
Points: 138.5
Owner and location: Scientisis Cliffs Association, Port Republic, Calvert Co.

Species : Grey birch (Betula populifolia)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 8' 7"
Height: 68'
Crown spread: 50'
Points: 183.5
Owner and location: Mrs. James D. Spruill, Parkton, Baltimore Co.

Species : Paper mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 6' 6"
Height: 59'
Crown spread: 36'
Points: 146
Owner and location: City of Baltimore, Baltimore, Baltimore City Co.

Species : Boxwood (Buxus sempervirens)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 2' 6"
Height: 31'
Crown spread: 22'
Points: 66.5
Owner and location: Kevin E. Dayhoff, Westminster, Carroll Co.

Species : Musclewood (Carpinus caroliniana)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 4' 2"
Height: 56'
Crown spread: 45'
Points: 117.3
Owner and location: Howard Co. Rec & Parks, Ellicott City, Howard Co.

Species : Bitternut hickory (Carya cordiformis)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 12' 7"
Height: 125'
Crown spread: 42'
Points: 286.5
Owner and location: Dr. Hiroshi Nakazawa, Baltimore, Baltimore Co.

Species : Pignut hickory(Carya glabra)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 8' 6"
Height: 127'
Crown spread: 60'
Points: 244
Owner and location: US Fish and Wildlife Service, Laurel, Prince George's Co.

Species : Pecan(Carya ilinoensis)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 15' 4"
Height: 134'
Crown spread: 95'
Points: 341.8
Owner and location: Hampton Nat. Hist. Site, Towson, Baltimore Co.

Species : Shellbark Hickory(Carya laciniosa)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 10' 6"
Height: 87'
Crown spread: 68'
Points: 330
Owner and location: A.D. Farquar, Sandy Springs, Montgomery Co.

Species : Red hickory(Carya ovalis)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 7' 8"
Height: 80'
Crown spread: 55'
Points: 185.8
Owner and location: Southeast Washington, Keedysville, Washington Co.

Species : Shadbark hickory(Carya ovata)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 14' 9"
Height: 90'
Crown spread: 116'
Points: 296
Owner and location: James and Kathleen Suite, Edgewater, Anne Arundel County.

Species : Pale-leaved hickory(Carya pallida)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 11' 4"
Height: 100'
Crown spread: 62'
Points: 251.5
Owner and location: State of Maryland, St. Leonard, Calvert Co.

Species : Mockernut hickory(Carya tomentosa)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 14' 10"
Height: 108'
Crown spread: 65'
Points: 302.25
Owner and location: MNCPPC, Upper Marlboro, Prince George's Co.

Species : Japanese chestnut(Castanea crenata)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 11' 3"
Height: 47'
Crown spread: 54'
Points: 195.5
Owner and location: M. Dorsey Wright, Centerville, Queen Anne's Co.

Species : American Chestnut(Castanea dentata)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 7' 3"
Height: 75'
Crown spread: 36'
Points: 171
Owner and location: American Chestnut Land Trust, Port Republic, Calvert Co.

Species : Chinese chestnut(Castanea mollissima)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 17' 0"
Height: 53'
Crown spread: 62'
Points: 272.5
Owner and location: MD Dept. of natural Resources, Upper Marlboro, Prince George's Co.

Species : Allegheny chinkapin(Carya ovata)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 7"
Height: 16'
Crown spread: 16'
Points: 27
Owner and location: Southern Middle School, Lusby, Calvert Co.

Species : Southern catalpa(Catalpa bignonioides)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 17' 2"
Height: 68'
Crown spread: 73'
Points: 292.3
Owner and location: Mr. & Mrs. Chas. Curlett, Ruxton, Baltimore Co.

Species : Northern catalpa(Catalpa speciosa)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 18' 1"
Height: 76'
Crown spread: 79'
Points: 312.75
Owner and location: Darnestown Civic Association, Darnestown, Montgomery Co.

Species : Blue atlas cedar(Cedrus atlantica)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 9' 7"
Height: 52'
Crown spread: 76'
Points: 186
Owner and location: Landmark Sta. Townhomes, Germantown, Montgomery Co.

Species : Deodar cedar(Cedrus deodara)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 7' 4"
Height: 76'
Crown spread: 40'
Points: 174
Owner and location: McCrilis Gardens, Bethesda, Montgomery Co.

Species : Lebanon cedar(Cedrus libani)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 11' 4"
Height: 64'
Crown spread: 78'
Points: 219.5
Owner and location: Hampton Nat. Hist. Site, Towson, Baltimore Co.

Species : Hackberry(Celtis occidentalis)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 18' 0"
Height: 87'
Crown spread: 82'
Points: 325.5
Owner and location: Howard Williams, Boyds, Montgomery Co.

Species : Kasuretree(Cercidiphyllum japonicum)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 7' 9"
Height: 59'
Crown spread: 40'
Points: 162
Owner and location: Park Raven Apartments, Baltimore, Baltimore City Co.

Species : Redbud(Cercis canadensis)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 3' 2"
Height: 28'
Crown spread: 39'
Points: 75.75
Owner and location: William Flury, Bethesda, Montgomery Co.

Species : Port-orford cedar(Chamaecyparis lawsoniana)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 9' 5"
Height: 61'
Crown spread: 39'
Points: 183.75
Owner and location: Jack Schumacher, Gaithersburg, Montgomery Co.

Species : Japanese falsecypress(Chamaecyparis pisifera)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 6' 4"
Height: 63'
Crown spread: 23'
Points: 144.75
Owner and location: Tracy Batteson, Port Republic, Calvert Co.

Species : Atlantic white cedar(Chamaecyparis thyoides)
Circumference at 4 1/2 ft: 8' 8"
Height: 73'
Crown spread: 28'
Points: 184
Owner and location: City of Salisbury, Salisbury, Wicomico Co.

19950701 The Big Tree Champions of MD DNR

Agriculture Nursery Stock and Landscaping Big Tree Champions

Maryland Department of Natural Resources

20050620 Carroll County Times: New mayor eager to work with employees

By Robert Brodsky, Times Staff Writer

Monday, June 20, 2005

Q&A

Name: Thomas Ferguson

Residence: Westminster

Age: 63

Job: Mayor of Westminster

Reason for becoming involved in city government: Was involved for many years in civic and community groups, but, following his retirement, he wanted to provide a greater contribution to the city.

On May 9, Thomas Ferguson was elected mayor of Westminster, besting former Mayor Kevin Dayhoff by more than 120 votes. Ferguson, a retired bank executive, served nearly four years on the Westminster City Council before taking over as mayor.

Q: How has life changed since becoming mayor of Westminster?

A: I still take the garbage out and still have to walk the dog. Obviously, it hasn't been a dramatic change for me. I've only been retired for about a year. I was used to keeping a regular schedule, and I intend to maintain regular hours here. I've been spending a lot of hours here in the initial days and weeks just to get up to speed about what's going on. But not a lot has changed. I guess the only difference now is that I get to sign things.

Q: What changes have you put in place since taking office and what other changes are on the immediate horizon?

A: I started a regular staff meeting with the folks that report directly to me. We had our first staff meeting last week, and we're going to do that on a monthly basis. It's something that's important and needed, and it's new. Most of the first month has been spent figuring out how this place operates and getting a better understanding of the decision-making process.

Longer term, I want to start a formal strategic planning process. We are going to do a citywide employee opinion survey to get an understanding of how they feel about their jobs. That's the basis for another part of the strategic plan. What is it that employees need and want and what improvements do we need to make as an employer? It's a 360-degree look at ourselves. My experience in all the years that I have been doing this kind of stuff is that the best place to get information is from employees. They'll tell you the truth as long as their opinions and comments are protected and confidential. Sometime - I suspect this summer - we are going to do a citywide analysis of how our jobs are ranked; how we evaluate our jobs and whether or not our job categories are properly structured.

Q: Keeping with the subject of employee relations, you expressed concern during your campaign about the morale of city workers. Do you believe that your concerns were accurate and, if so, what can be done to improve the situation?

A: Part of the purpose of the opinion survey is to get to that question. Is morale an issue and, if so, what are the factors causing concerns among morale? I think my instincts are going to be true and that employees are looking forward to getting their opinions out. ... We are going to get the answer to that in the next few months.

Q: How will your administration be different than that of your predecessor, Kevin Dayhoff?

A: I am going to be here on a regular basis and be accessible for citizens and employees. I tend to be involved with what's going on in city government. Not to the degree of doing any micromanaging. That's what we hire experts to do. But to understand how we operate and ask questions about why we are doing what we are doing and is there a better way to do it? I am very interested in finding ways to make this place more efficient and more cost-effective. I am confident the employees will help us identify areas where we can find some productivity improvements and cost savings. So, I am going to be very much interested in getting employees involved in their day-to-day work life here and telling me and the council and the supervisory management staff what they think can be improved.

Q: What are some of the biggest issues facing the city of Westminster?

A: We have a flood of lots outside the city limits of Westminster that have an awful lot of potential development. I think the pressure the city will be facing is the question of annexation. How big do we want the city boundaries to become? Because the number of available building lots is going to be stunning. I think that's a big issue and one we have to get our arms around pretty quickly. That's why we need to have a full-blown strategic plan that talks about where the future city boundaries should be. We have this thing on a map now. There's this hypothetical line - and literally it's a line on the map - that says "future city boundary." And we have the city water and sewer service area and then we have the actual boundary. We need to ask ourselves a question: Where did that come from and is that what we want? Do we want the boundaries of the city of Westminster to be as big as that? And what are the implications for services and taxpayers? And along with that comes growth and questions about water and where it is going to come from.

Q: How does the city balance continued residential and commercial growth while also remaining a small Main Street town?

A: First of all, we need to make a decision on size and what we are going to look like. Get that down in the form of a document that everybody has bought into and then stick to it. How much more annexation do we want to do? And where do we want that to occur? The whole question of planning for growth and where we want that to occur has to be part of our overall plan. And what kind of growth? Do we want all our neighborhoods to look alike? I live in a neighborhood that is mixed. Different-style houses. Different architectural features. Multifamily, single-family, small houses and big houses. That's the kind of neighborhood that used to be typical. Mixed use has sort of gotten a bad name somewhere along the line. But that's kind of how we all grew up in small-town America. We can't turn the clock back, but I think there's something we can be doing better in our planning process to make the neighborhoods look less homogeneous.

Q: What do you envision Westminster will look like 20 to 25 years from now?

A: Well, growth is inevitable. We're blessed in many ways. We are in a beautiful part of the state, geographically convenient to places like Baltimore, [Washington] D.C., Philadelphia, Gettysburg and, for that matter, even New York. It's three hours to the ocean and four hours to the far western part of the state. Geographically, we are in a wonderful situation. We still have an awful lot of open farmland that is very attractive to people, so we are going to be a magnet for growth. And we're not going to be able to avoid that. I am hoping what we can do is deal with that in a way that doesn't turn this community into something that looks like everything else.

We have beautiful architecture in these older neighborhoods. You see some of that late 19th-century, early 20th-century architecture that's still very visible, particularly in some of these older neighborhoods on Main Street. These are things worth preserving. I would like to see more and more opportunities for people to live here and to work here. Not much in that regard the city can do by itself. But we need the help and cooperation of the county. I am hoping we can find ways to make it affordable.

Reach staff writer Robert Brodsky at 410-857-7865 or RBrodsky@lcniofmd.com.

20050620 Baltimore strength liability for O’Malley

“Baltimore strength liability for O’Malley”

by David Nitkin on June 20^th, 2005,

with a preface written by me on September 21^st, 2005.

Kevin Dayhoff

This hyperlink is dead. The Baltimore Sun does not use permalinks. Sept. 21^st, 2005 - - KED: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/bal-md.mayor20jun20,1,4891366.story?coll=bal-local-headlines

The article pasted below belongs to Baltimore Sun writer David Nitkin, the preface belongs to me.

Today, there was an article in the newspaper that Mayor O’Malley will soon announce his candidacy for the Maryland State House in Maryland’s next gubernatorial contest in November 2006.

I have a huge amount of respect and admiration for Mayor O’Malley.

I would just as well he not run and stay in Baltimore.

Perhaps the only reason that he is declaring this early is to give the indolent dominant Maryland Democrat Party an opportunity to make Governor Ehrlich as miserable as possible during the upcoming Maryland General Assembly - - in the hopes that he can be “disqualified” in the upcoming contest.

What do I mean by disqualified? The Democratic Party will increase its partisan obstructionist politics and play “get the governor” in everything they can. Nothing will get done for the Maryland citizen this upcoming session, except the thrill of watching a gladiator contest to the death.

It ain’t leadership and it ain’t right, but it is what it is and until we elect many more Republicans to the Maryland General Assembly, the Democrats will continue to do what they can do because they can do it.

On June 20^th, 2005, Baltimore Sun writer, David Nitkin wrote a soft-ball fluff piece for the Mayor O’Malley campaign called: “Baltimore a strength and liability for O'Malley - - Mayor focuses on recent positive news after FBI report of more violent crime; Statistics could hurt expected run for governor.”

Actually, it is another example of excellent writing by a very talented Mr. Nitkin, except for one problem; it may have been a nice column, but it was not “straight-down-the-middle news article.

It was a white paper analysis for the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and dangers that lay ahead for a Mayor O’Malley gubernatorial bid.

It is a wonderful example of everything for which the Baltimore Sun deserves the highest of criticism.

The Baltimore Sun does not use permalinks, so I cannot link you to the article.

Since it is an excellent subjective analytical piece on the challenges of running for higher office after serving as a mayor of a city, I will post it on the blog.

It is a must read. And it will give you some insight as to why I respect Mayor O’Malley so much and enjoy his company and look forward to working with him in the future after Governor Ehrlich wins a second term as governor.

_____

Baltimore a strength and liability for O'Malley

Mayor focuses on recent positive news after FBI report of more violent crime; Statistics could hurt expected run for governor

By David Nitkin, Sun Staff, June 20, 2005

The rush of recent good news about Baltimore - its ranking as a top international travel destination, an uptick in how Wall Street views the city's fiscal future - seemed too good to last.

And sure enough, what many consider to be the reality of Maryland's largest city hit home this month. Violent crime rose last year for the first time in five years, according to the latest FBI statistics.

Those are the kind of numbers that haunt big-city mayors as they attempt to advance in politics.

As Mayor Martin O'Malley prepares for an expected run for governor, he must persuade voters to concentrate on the positive - such as Time magazine ranking him in April as one of the country's five best mayors - and brush aside negatives such as the city's high homicide rate and struggling classrooms.

In short, he must buck a trend in modern American politics: the career stagnation of city mayors.

Cities can be tough places to live in, and even harder to govern. Blight, crime, substandard housing and poor schools have stymied generations of policy-makers. Residents with means move to the suburbs, leaving behind a population often mired in poverty and addiction.

"No matter how successful a mayor you might be in a big city, you have an awful lot of problems that remain," said Stephen Goldsmith, a former mayor of Indianapolis who was defeated in a run for Indiana governor in 1996, and is now a professor at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. "You can be very successful in a lot of areas, but it doesn't take a genius as a political opponent to come up with almost an endless list of things you haven't fixed and mistakes you made."

School testing results released this month offer a prime example. O'Malley can rightfully claim that Baltimore schools have made impressive academic gains that rival those of any big city, according to the latest Maryland School Assessment results. But his opponents are sure to note that they remain the worst-performing in the state.

For most of the past century, big-city mayors have been larger-than-life figures, characters who dreamed big and lived large - Fiorello LaGuardia in New York, Richard Daley in Chicago, Frank Rizzo in Philadelphia.

But none of them moved on to higher office. Roads to state houses are lined with the failed candidacies of supremely popular mayors. Consider Ed Koch in New York, who won a second term in 1981 when three of every four voters in the nation's largest city cast a ballot for him and lost a gubernatorial primary the next year to Mario Cuomo.

A variety of factors explains the phenomenon, from tension among cities and rural and suburban sections of a state in the battle for tax dollars and other scarce resources, to racism and xenophobia as cities have grown more ethnically and racially diverse.

"In the age of sprawl, cities that cannot expand - Baltimore's last annexation was 1917 - become filled with high concentrations of poor people," said David Rusk, a former mayor of Albuquerque, N.M., and an urban government expert who has studied Baltimore and its suburbs. "They are looked upon as having city problems. And that is just a euphemism for poor blacks."

For O'Malley, there is hope: Baltimore and Maryland have shattered the rules before.

William Donald Schaefer rode the success of Inner Harbor redevelopment to Annapolis. Before him, Theodore R. McKeldin was a Republican mayor and then governor.

"I think every state is different. ... I think people in our state are smart," O'Malley said in an interview. "They expect their leaders to be effective and make progress."

In Maryland, county governments are preeminently important - more so than in most other states - and Baltimore functions much like one of the state's 23 other counties, said Rusk.

Seen in that light, Maryland has been governed for 16 of the past 19 years by a mayor, covering the tenures of Schaefer and Parris N. Glendening, the former county executive of Prince George's County.

"But that is relatively rare," Rusk said.

Inevitably, mayors who seek higher office must campaign on a theme that they have a successful legacy, that they will do for the state or the nation what they have done for their city.

That's how former Philadelphia Mayor Edward G. Rendell became governor of Pennsylvania. An accessible leader who regularly appeared on sports television shows promoting the region's beloved Eagles, Rendell was embraced in the Philadelphia suburbs as a politician who could grapple with the city's problems.

O'Malley might be following a similar route. His visibility as the lead singer in an Irish band gave him a sort of star quality that eludes many leaders.

The Baltimore television market permeates most of the state, so even Marylanders who rarely cross the city's borders can follow his exploits nightly.

And in Maryland, much of the state is populated by ex-Baltimoreans who still think fondly about their hometown.

Ocean City Mayor Jim N. Mathias Jr. was born in Hampden, and lived in Baltimore and Carroll counties before settling in the resort town in 1972. He's a tireless cheerleader for his small city, but like many in Maryland, harbors a soft spot for his hometown.

"An objectively thinking taxpayer and resident of the state says to themselves, 'As goes Baltimore, as goes Rockville, so goes the state,'" Mathias said. "And if you have a leader that is putting those tax dollars at work, they give that person a chance."

Karen Reaver, 47, a registered Democrat from Carroll County, likes what she sees of the mayor from afar: "I like his style. I like what he does," she said.

A retired small-business owner, Reaver moved to Maryland three decades ago from the mountains of North Carolina and relishes in her peaceful lifestyle.

"I would not want to work in the city, and I would not want to live in the city," she said.

But still, she would vote for O'Malley in the primary, and, if he gets that far, against Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.

"I think he's made improvements," she said. "Because of that, as far as a governor, he would work for the state as well as he's worked for the city."

That's why school and crime statistics such as those released this week are so crucial, because O'Malley must do what he can to show voters that he manages a well-functioning metropolis. And that's why O'Malley tried so hard to cast the statistics in the best possible light.

Baltimore's schools may be the worst in the state, but their improvement constitutes "one of the biggest turnaround stories of any urban school system in the United States of America," the mayor said in a burst of hyperbole that he could not immediately prove.

Violent crime rose 4 percent last year, but it has dropped nearly 40 percent since the mayor took office, he said.

O'Malley said he is willing to stand behind statistics that show the city's progress, even if he hasn't been able to meet all his goals, such as reducing the homicide count to below 200 yearly.

"We're not successful every week. And we're not even successful every year. But over the course of six years, we've been more successful than any city in America in reducing violent crime," O'Malley said.

In an attempt to emphasize the city's momentum, Jonathan Epstein, O'Malley's campaign manager, sent out a packet this month that included feel-good clippings from the past several weeks, including a Wall Street Journal article about the city's real estate boom. Epstein said he simply wanted to note the city's progress.

The most recent poll conducted for The Sun, taken in mid-April, revealed little anti-city backlash against O'Malley.

The poll showed the mayor ahead of Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan in a Democratic primary, 45 percent to 25 percent; and leading Ehrlich, 45 percent to 39 percent statewide.

Still, O'Malley, a Democrat, seems less popular than the governor in many areas of the state outside Baltimore.

In Baltimore County, a critical swing jurisdiction that surrounds the city, Ehrlich led O'Malley, 46 percent to 40 percent, the poll showed. But in another measurement, Baltimore County voters were just as likely to have a favorable impression of the mayor as they were the governor, who represented the county in the state legislature and in Congress. Sixty-three percent of county voters surveyed said they felt favorably about Ehrlich, and 61 percent said they had a favorable impression of O'Malley.

In Anne Arundel and Howard counties, the governor led, 50 percent to 46 percent; and in rural areas, Ehrlich was ahead, 51 percent 30 percent.

O'Malley, who has not declared his candidacy, is traveling the state, trying to build support. But as he embarks on a campaign, he must always keep an eye on Baltimore, where some headline-grabbing crime or crisis of the week will always await.

"It presents a particular problem for mayors to govern and run at the same time," said Goldsmith, the Harvard professor. "Helping a city succeed and helping it avoid catastrophe are not an automatic-pilot deal. The chances of something going wrong are not inevitable but significant."

Copyright © 2005, The Baltimore Sun

20050615 Westminster Eagle: Pecoraro returns to council by Alex Gayhart

Westminster Eagle: Pecoraro returns to council by Alex Gayhart

June 15, 2005

The other night at the Westminster Common Council meeting, the Council appointed former Westminster Common Council member – and arguably one the brighter public policy analysts and political scientists in Maryland – to fill the seat vacated by Tom Ferguson when he took the office of mayor.

Councilman Pecoraro is almost a necessary decision – to join a council that, with exception of Councilwoman Suzanne Albert, has little institutional memory or municipal public policy experience. Whether the balance of the Common Council has the skills and abilities to continue a tradition of excellence in governance in Westminster remains to be seen…

Pecoraro returns to council 06/15/05 by Alex Gayhart

Monday night saw the end of Westminster City Council's election season.

Sure, the votes had been tallied back on May 9 - putting Roy Chiavacci back in office, Kevin Utz on the council for the first time and placing Tom Ferguson in the mayor's seat.

But Ferguson's move from the council to the mayor's position left a hole - that is, until Monday evening, when the four council members unanimously voted to put Greg Pecoraro in that seat.

Pecoraro ran in the May 9 election, one of five candidates for two seats, but came up just a bit short.

In fact, he was just 69 votes shy of the second place vote-getter.

"I plan to work as hard as I can to justify your confidence in me," Pecoraro told the council Monday night, shortly after being appointed and sworn in.

He called the experience humbling - humbling enough to have put himself on the line in an election, not to mention having to go through it again a month later for the appointment process.

Last week, the council held a special meeting where members "interviewed" the seven candidates who applied to fill Ferguson's vacant seat. Pecoraro was unable to attend that meeting due to a business trip.

He did, however, send a letter, which was read by Westminster City Clerk Laurell Taylor, expressing his desire to be on the council and his qualifications to be chosen.

Pecoraro, 45, served on the Westminster city council from 1994 until 2003.

During his campaign, Pecoraro discussed the issue of growth in Westminster and the need for the city to grow wisely while ensuring that adequate facilities are provided.

Monday evening saw Pecoraro's appointment not only to the council, but to the position of chairman of the public works committee.

"Which is the one committee that I haven't served on," Pecoraro said after the meeting, expressing amusement in the fact that he will have served on all of four standing committees between his last tenure on the council and the next two years.

Before a motion was made to appoint Pecoraro Monday evening, Councilman Robert Wack made comments on the difficulty of his decision in choosing an appointee.

"I seriously considered abstaining from this vote," Wack said. "(But) we are elected to these positions to make these types of decisions."

Wack called attention to discussion outside of public meetings, which suggested the need for racial and/or ethnic diversity on the council.

"We need to be sensitive to racial, cultural and ethnic issues," Wack said. "We do have some folks (of) various backgrounds in leadership positions in this county, but we don't have enough."

That being said, however, Wack said race and ethnicity did not play a part in his decision.

"All of our candidates are excellent candidates and stand on their own (regardless of race and ethnicity)," he said.

He then made a motion to appoint Pecoraro.

After the meeting, Wack went on to discuss his reasoning. "Because all the candidates ... were all so qualified - it sort of took ethnicity off the table for me," he said.

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20050615 Westminster Eagle: Pecoraro returns to council by Alex Gayhart

20050612 Seattle Coffee Shop Turns Off Weekend Wi-Fi

Digital Culture: Seattle Coffee Shop Turns Off Weekend Wi-Fi by Jennifer Ludden

All Things Considered, June 12, 2005 · A Seattle coffee shop pulls the plug on its wi-fi network. How have the caffeinated Internet-junkie customers reacted? David Latourel, the manager of Victrola Coffee, fills Jennifer Ludden in on the details.

Web Resources: Victrola Coffee Web Site

From the Victrola Web site:

Apparently it's one of those sign of the times stories and is inspiring ridiculous amounts of attention from the press. We're not the first cafe to do it (our friends at Joe Bar started limiting wi-fi hours some time ago). Victrola has always been a tough place to find a table, especially on weekends, so limiting the wifi is pretty much a no-brainer.

Nonetheless, the news stories we're seeing are full of controversy and hand-wringing about the demise of cafe culture and the menace of wi-fi zombies. It's all pretty overblown. All this attention for something other than our awesome coffees is rapidly losing its charm. Reporters keep calling, emails are flooding in, and people are getting into some mean spirited debates in online forums.

Isn't there a war going on or something more important we should be worrying about…? Like coffee…?

Victrola Coffee is located on Seattle's Capitol Hill. Victrola Coffee

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4700256

Wi-Fi, Washington State – Seattle, Information Technology, Media Commentary

20050610 Comparing the academic record of Al Gore, John Kerry and George W. Bush

Comparing the academic record of Al Gore, John Kerry and George W. Bush

Kerry’s grades shed new light on campaign

SpokesmanReview.com

http://www.spokesmanreview.com/breaking/story.asp?ID=4149

Commentary By Richard Benedetto, Gannett News Service, June 10, 2005

WASHINGTON - While the general impression during the 2004 presidential campaign was that Democrat John Kerry was the intellectual superior to President Bush, it turns out that their grades while undergraduate students at Yale were remarkably similar.

In fact, Bush’s were a tad higher. His four-year average was 77; Kerry’s 76. Both were C students. Kerry graduated from Yale in 1966; Bush in 1968.

[…]

… Bush’s mediocre college record was trumpeted by Gore backers as proof that the Republican candidate was a dummy. But in the spring of 2000, The Washington Post published Gore’s college grades at Harvard. Like Kerry, he was hardly an honor student, either.

Nonetheless, Gore backers kept up the “dumb Bush” mantra…

[…]

Kerry’s grades were made public this past week by the Boston Globe… During the campaign, Kerry refused to waive privacy restrictions for the full file… The transcript showed that he got four Ds in his freshman year, Bush received one D in his four years, in astronomy. At the time, Yale considered grades between 70 and 79 a C and 60 to 69 a D.

And there’s more. Read the rest of Mr. Benedetto’s commentary here: Kerry’s grades shed new light on campaign

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