Note: This is a SUMMARY of the Commissioners Meeting for the purposes of a Press Release. These are not the actual minutes of the meeting.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: NORMAN BASSETT
240-313-2130

Review of Actions Taken in the Washington County
Board of County Commissioners Meeting
June 10, 2003

The Commissioners held a joint meeting with the Board of Education to discuss Third Quarter Budget Adjustments, The Fountaindale Magnet Program and Sharing of Resources and Services.

PUBLIC HEARING: EXCISE TAX
Commissioners' President Greg Snook and County Attorney Richard Douglas brought this Public Hearing before the Board in order to permit any resident of Washington County to appear and testify concerning the proposed enactment of an ordinance entitled "An Ordinance to Provide for a Building Excise Tax in Washington County, Maryland," pursuant to Chapter 468 of the 2003 Acts of the General Assembly. If enacted, the ordinance would impose an excise tax of $1.00 per square foot on the construction of all multi-family units including semi-detached, two-family, townhouses, and multi-family units, and a graduated multi-year rate beginning on single-family homes of $0.25 per square foot for fiscal year 2004, $0.50 for fiscal year 2005, and $0.75 for fiscal year 2006. Revenues from the building excise tax may only be used for school renovation and construction, public safety capital expenditures, public infrastructure projects, and debt reduction. Debbi Turpin, representing the Association of Builders and Contractors spoke in opposition to the tax, citing negative impact on the homebuilder industry. Jim Laird and Denise Troxell, representing Citizens for Protection of Washington County spoke in favor of the tax for growth control. David Herbst of the Agricultural Land Preservation Board and Priscilla Harsh of the Washington County Farm Bureau spoke in favor of the measure as an asset to preservation of agricultural land in the County. Commissioner Snook told the group that the public record will remain open for 5 days in order to allow for written comment, during which time the Board will take the comments under advisement. A vote on the issue could come at next week's meeting, Snook said.

PUBLIC HEARING: TRANSFER TAX
Douglas also brought to Public Hearing the proposed enactment "An Ordinance to Provide for a Real Property Transfer Tax in Washington County, Maryland." If enacted, the ordinance would impose a tax of .5% on transfers of residential properties with an exemption for the first $50,000 of consideration. Each fiscal year, at least $400,000 of the revenues from the transfer tax shall be used for agricultural land preservation and other measures to enhance the viability of agriculture in Washington County. Remaining revenues from the transfer tax may be used only for school renovation and construction, public safety, including grants and loans to volunteer fire and rescue companies for capital expenditures, transportation projects, and debt reduction. Clerk of Courts Dennis Weaver spoke on a neutral basis, advising the Commissioners on the impact of the tax on collections and exemptions handled by the Clerk of Court Office. The Title industry would need about three weeks to prepare for the changes, Weaver said, and the State of Maryland would not receive a 5% Commission for collecting the tax, per the enabling legislation. Roger Fairborn and Clarence Herbst, representing Realtors, spoke against the measure as adding to closing costs and impacting on amounts sellers would recognize from sale of property. Fairborn recommended an exemption for first-time homebuyers and senior citizens. Priscilla Harsh, and David Herbst, representing agricultural interests spoke in favor of the measure, as an asset for preservation of farmland in the County. Denise Troxell of Citizens for Protection of Washington County spoke in favor of the measure as an aid to preservation issues in the County. Commissioner Snook told the group that the public record will remain open for 5 days in order to allow for written comment. The Commissioners will consider the comments, and a vote on the issue could come at next week's meeting, Snook said.

CITIZENS PARTICIPATION
Each week the Board of County Commissioners sets aside time to hear from the Citizens of Washington County on matters of community interest.
Scott Frey of Hagerstown detailed problems caused by a badly constructed storm water management pond in the Brightwood acres area. Commissioners' President Snook said that the Public Works Division will address the issue and if necessary, stop permits for further construction in that area. Developers are responsible for construction of storm water management ponds to state standards.
David Grier, owner of Yingling's Golf Center told the Board about flooding issues at his business brought about by recent heavy rains, and a poorly constructed storm water management pond in the area. Although the site is located in a 100-year flood plain, the owner said problems have occurred in 6 of the 13 years he has run that business. Commissioner Snook said the County will do the best it can with the situation and review it again.
Sandy Sholtz of Hagerstown also registered a homeowner complaint about storm water management issues in that area.
Henrietta Lidelsberger of Citizens for Protection of Washington County commented against grandfathering eight developments now on hold due to the moratorium against large residential developments outside Urban or Town Growth areas. That measure was slated for discussion later in the meeting.
Elizabeth Vahey of Rohrersville also commented against the grandfathering of residential developments due to water quality issues in the Southern portion of the County.
Dominic and Paul Perini spoke in favor of the grandfathering issue, stating that their property off Marsh Pike will have access to water and sewer lines. The development would be slow growth-high end homes, Perini said.
Denise Troxell of Boonsboro spoke to enforcement of storm water management and forest conservation issues, citing the need for additional personnel in the Engineering Department.

ENGINEERING REVIEW FEES
Public Works Director Gary Rohrer and Chief County Engineer Terry McGee brought a request for approval of adding two positions to the Engineering Department to handle growth-related workload. Residential growth and development has generated a heavy workload on the Engineering Department. Rohrer called for addition of a second Plan Reviewer and a third Field Inspector in the Engineering Department, to be supported by an adjustment to the County Engineering Review Fees. Turnover in the department has also contributed to the backlog. A list of projects submitted for Engineering review between June 2002 and May of 2003, contained 83 commercial and 247 residential actions. Rohrer said Chief Engineer McGee has been averaging 10-12 hour workdays due to the backlog. McGee told the Board that in the two years since inception, review fees have been successful, and have generated $57,759 in the first 11 months of the current fiscal year. Increasing the fees would pay for the proposed positions. Economic development could be impacted if the department does not get relief. McGee presented a spreadsheet detailing fee increases for a one-acre residential lot, and revenue that would be generated. Currently Washington County has total review fees of about half those charged by the City of Hagerstown or Frederick County. The Engineering review fee itself is currently $130.00. If that fee were raised to $300 at a minimum, the total fee would remain at a competitive level. If the fee were raised to $400, the total would still be less than the City or Frederick County. A fee scale for commercial sites would also be put into place. Rohrer cited the large amount of time spent in the field, and the number of inspections that Engineering must perform before a site can receive final approval. Traffic impact studies also take large blocks of time. Rohrer told the Board that both positions should be filled for maximum efficiency, and requested ability to advertise the positions immediately, while bringing a funding formula back to the Board for discussion. The Board gave consensus for advertising the positions.

PROPOSED CLOSING OF STARLIPER AND HART ROADS
Postponed.

FIRST HOSE COMPANY OF BOONSBORO
Action Postponed.

The Board attended the grand opening of Rider Jet Center at Hagerstown Regional Airport at the noon hour.

OTHER BUSINESS
County Attorney's Issues: County Attorney Richard Douglas introduced Jessica Finch, part-time law clerk, in her third year of law school at the University of Virginia, who will be assisting that office until September.

ST. JAMES SPECIAL TAXING DISTRICT
Douglas, County Bond Counsel Timmy Ruppersberger and Mack Davis of Davis, Renn and Associates brought this measure before the Board. In 2000 the County Commissioners created a special taxing district at St. James composed of 443 acres of land off Maryland Route 65 at Lappans Road. If no bonds were issued by November 2001, the resolution would be revoked. An extension was requested and granted in September 2001, extending the time limit to June, 2002. In May, 2002, the limit was again extended, to June, 2003. On June 3rd, an extension was granted through June 10th. A fourth extension request of an additional year was submitted by the owners of St. James Park, LLC. Davis told the Board that the development would now be called Westfields, and was redesigned last year after nearby homeowners objected to a planned Golf Course. At the time, the severe drought was underway, and the owners decided to remove the course from the plan, because of water usage issues. The new plan contained 160 acres of open space and forested areas. Planning and Community Development Director Bob Arch said that the development would not grant any unique benefit to the County. Commissioner Bill Wivell said that the current moratorium on large residential development is in conflict with a special taxing district of this type, and moved to deny the extension. The measure, to deny the extension, was approved by a 2-1 vote with Commissioner Nipps voting "no". Commissioner John Munson was away on this date.

EARLY ACTION COMPACT
Planning and Community Development Director Bob Arch brought this request, to approve submittal of an "Early Action Compact" before the Board. The County is required by the Environmental Protection Agency to make the submittal by June 16th. Arch presented a document prepared in cooperation with the Maryland Department of the Environment, the Maryland State Highway Administration and the air quality consultant Michael Baker. Inc. The document identifies potential strategies to address air quality issues. A new "8-hour ozone standard" will be put into effect in 2004. The measure was approved by unanimous vote.

OTHER BUSINESS
County Administrator's Comments: County Administrator Rod Shoop invited Commissioners' participation in the United Way Day of Caring, set for August 27th. The event will cleanup and paint Girls' Inc., and County staff will participate.

COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS AND COMMENTS
Commissioner Dori Nipps reported on meetings of the Historic District Commission and the Historic Advisory Board. The Commission is providing consultation on plans for a development off Robinwood Drive. An historic house and outbuildings lie on the site of the development, and the Historic District is requesting incorporation of those buildings into that development. The Recreation and Parks Board will soon receive recommendations from the Board of Education on increases in facility fees. Some Recreation programs are housed in school buildings. The Rec/Park Board will review the recommendations and pass them on to the Board of County Commissioners for approval.
Commissioner Bill Wivell commented on a meeting of the Pen-Mar Board of Directors that discussed Department of Defense conveyance of a parcel of land that would be purchased by the International Masonry Institute. Wivell commented that the entire conveyance should take place at once. There are still unexploded ordnance issues at Fort Ritchie. The Army will pay to move families who rent housing to another part of the base while cleanup of the contaminated area takes place, Wivell said.
Commissioner Jim Kercheval reported on the Western Maryland Boards of County Commissioners meeting held last week in Frederick. Maryland Association of Counties' representatives at that gathering reported that there is no desire on the part of Governor Ehrlich to raise the gasoline tax at this time, and there could be further cuts in state funding on the way. Frederick County will add $76 million to its debt capacity in the next year, Kercheval said. At the recent Planning Commission meeting, an increased role of the Historic District Commission in advising on areas of the County with historic designations was discussed. Statistics from the proposed Airport Runway Extension were run through Economic Development software used by the EDC and the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development. The resulting benefit projection showed that $15.9 million in direct impact on the County Economy would be felt from 390 jobs created as a result of the construction phase of that runway, Kercheval said.
Commissioners' President Greg Snook told the Board that expansion will take place at the Engineered Polymer Solutions plant on Governor Lane Boulevard. The company will install two new resin systems. A meeting with Maryland Secretary of Agriculture Lou Riley last week discussed possibility of additional land being given to the Ag Center for future expansion. A Letter from the state Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services announced a $1,400.00 mini-grant for the State's Attorney's Alternate Sanctions Office, Snook said.

REPORTS FROM COUNTY STAFF
Planning and Community Development Director Bob Arch requested approval from the Board for two applications for Community Development Block Grant funds for Economic Development and Housing issues. A Public Hearing will be held on June 24th on these applications. The submissions were approved by unanimous vote.

CITIZENS OF THE MONTH
Commissioner Dori Nipps introduced Brian and Christine Stoops of Keedysville to the Board, as Citizens of the Month for May, 2003. (See Photo)  The Stoops devote much time to helping students who are unable to attend regular classes due to physical illness, psychological problems or disabilities. Part of the Board of Education's Home and Hospital Program, the Stoops provide one-on-one instruction in Math and Foreign Languages. In addition, the teachers provide tutoring to girls at San-Mar Children's Home in Boonsboro.

PRELIMINARY CONSULTATION STATUS: NON-GROWTH AREAS
Planning and Community Development Director Arch also brought a report to the Board dealing with preliminary subdivision consultations in the rural area that have not progressed due to the moratorium on major subdivision activity in non-growth areas. 8 subdivisions containing 313 lots are not being processed due to the moratorium, invoked last October. In all cases, the plans were submitted before the moratorium took effect, and Preliminary Consultation was performed prior to that ruling in all but one case. Arch told the Board that an alternative would be to grant exemptions for moving the preliminary consultations forward, as allowed under the Moratorium Ordinance. Arch presented a timeline of meetings and adoption dates relevant to the revised Comprehensive Plan. Commissioner Snook asked about the impact on the Permits and Inspections Department if the Grandfathering, allowing exemptions for the properties, were to take place. Arch said that none of the developments affected have submitted a subdivision plat to the Zoning Commission. At least 6 months would elapse before the first of the plans hit the permitting stage, Arch said. Commissioner Kercheval commented that the date of the moratorium on subdivision development, October 29, 2002, should be the cutoff date for developers seeking to be Grandfathered, and if removed, preliminary plats for the 8 would have to be filed by that time this year. A motion, to allow the 8 subdivisions in question to be Grandfathered provided plats are in place by Friday. October 31, 2003 was approved by a 3-1 vote, with Commissioner Nipps voting "no".

 

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