New Blog: Why Our State Needs PlanMaryland in Two Words

Carroll County

I went to the Commissioner’s meeting on PlanMaryland this past Monday night with very low expectations. Unlike the neutral, informative meeting held at the Community College about PlanMaryland a month ago, this one reeked of politics and just as I expected, each Commissioner showed up with their soap box in hand; each with inept statements to make about a need to stall and delay the Plan and how they really know so much more about planning than anyone with a degree in planning.

It was worse than that. They went on for hours with their political vitriol; Robin Frazier had the moderator reserve the last spot for her and she rudely went on with infantile, leading questions that ate into the very patient audience's time.

It wasn't bad enough that they made the audience sit through an inane Power Point presentaion by Richard Rothschild, they had the nerve to make us listen to comments from Frederick County County Commissioner Blaine Young. Then two of the eight Carroll Mayors had something to say. It says lots that six Mayors didn't bother to come or send a Town Manager to speak for them. Taneytown Mayor Pro Tem Jim McCarron gave comments that made absolutely no sense whatsoever for that City. Back in the day, he would never have aligned himself with these Commissioners and put his City at odds with the Governor.

It should have been an entertaining evening since so many of the tinfoil hat gang of Agenda 21conspiracy enthusiasts were on hand to make fools of themselves again with their pro-sea level rise, anti-AlGoreisms, and flat earth theories. We did hear all about how the Constitution was handed down from God to the Tea Party and how those who believe in sustainable practices are Commies, a phrase I haven’t heard uttered since I was last told to hide under my desk to protect myself from nuclear attack in the 1950’s. But then some of these folks are very reminiscent of Senator Joe McCarthy and the red scare tactics he used back in the day too, particularly these commissioners. Frankly they have worn themselves thin with me by trying to push their nutty Agenda 21 documents in my face at forums such as this and even verbally accosting me on trips to the hardware store.

Well, PlanMaryland is really a very simple document despite all the pages in it and the hooey being made over it by our Commissioners. PlanMaryland is about dealing with contemporary fiscal reality and it doesn’t take months to read and digest as the Commissioners suggest. It doesn’t take a genius to understand that the State does not have the abundance of money it once had to spend on roads and schools and water and sewer treatment facilities and lines. And it likely never will again.

Smart people everywhere are saying that the State needs to spend what money it does have for new and expanded infrastructure in places where it makes sense to – not out in perfectly lush green fields in Carroll County. Even if that’s exactly where Carroll County’s Commissioners have plans for its new growth. PlanMaryland does not take that planning authority away from Carroll County; in fact it says go right on ahead, put your growth anywhere you want to – just don’t expect any state funds for new roads, schools, water & sewer lines or treatment facilities.

PlanMaryland says that Maryland is going to spend its limited fiscal resources in places that put growth where it makes good sense. Carroll County’s 8 municipalities and Eldersburg make sense for some of that – and they make no sense at all for some of it. Face it; a new defense plant is probably going to go someplace else in the state. 

Meanwhile, the Governor has to make a decision as to when he will make the executive decision to enact PlanMaryland using the full powers of his cabinet agencies. Given the words and actions of the Carroll County Commissioners in recent weeks about PlanMaryland, I believe they have made the Governor’s choice a simple one: to do it as soon as possible.

That Power Point presentation that Rothschild gave on Monday night provided all the more motivation for the Governor to accelerate enacting PlanMaryland.