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Garrett state’s only county spraying for gypsy moths

2,530 acres of forest land will be covered

From Staff Reports Cumberland Times-News

— OAKLAND — Garrett County is the only county in the state that is spraying for gypsy moths this spring, according to the Maryland Department of Agriculture.

Spraying began Wednesday and about 2,530 acres of forest land will be sprayed. The county has participated in three major gypsy moth spraying activities, according to Monty Pagenhardt, county administrator.

MDA is keeping the public informed of spraying activities via Twitter and its website.

“We take great care every year to monitor and survey gypsy moth activities and develop appropriate plans with the resources available,” said Agriculture Secretary Buddy Hance in a news release. “When we do spray for gypsy moths, we often get calls from concerned citizens who don’t recognize the helicopters and don’t know what they’re doing. We are using new social media tools this season to help alleviate concerns before they arise.”

Funding for the spraying comes from a cost share with MDA and the county, according to Pagenhardt. For fiscal 2012, about $16,000 was spent by the county on gypsy moth suppression. The county’s percentage of funding for gypsy moth suppression for next fiscal year will increase by about $21,000. The county’s percentage could increase more if federal funds do not come through or if there is additional acreage from the gypsy moth survey, according to Pagenhardt.

The gypsy moth is the most destructive pest of forest and shade trees in Maryland, according to MDA. Large gypsy moth outbreaks have affected hundreds of thousands of acres statewide over the years.

MDA conducts an Integrated Pest Management program to minimize unnecessary losses through monitoring, assessment, information and education, and pest control actions, according to the news release. In high infestation areas where dieback or mortality cannot be tolerated, MDA will conduct aerial insecticide treatments to protect and preserve the forest and shade trees.

For more information on spraying activities, follow MDA on Twitter @MDGypsyMoth or @MdAgDept. To learn more about gypsy moth suppression, visit the MDA website at www.mda.state.md. us/plants-pests/ and click on Forest Pest Management.

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Immaculate Mountaineer log home in Paradise Ridge community. Well maintained inside/out, owner pride is evident. Tongue and groove wood walls, beamed ceilings and loft – spacious master suite. 2 car attached garage, level lawn & unique views from the property – you will never get tired of the mountains & water views this property offers! One of the best lake access areas at Deep Creek Lake!

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Community Calendar – 5/19/2012

It’s getting closer to summer and there are some great events taking place this weekend! I’ll be working at the Garrett County Home & Garden Show tomorrow from 10am-12pm @ the new Exhibit Hall at the Garrett County Fairgrounds – stop by to visit!

Garrett County Home & Garden Show
Date: May 19, 2012 Time: 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM
http://www.hbawmd.org
Event Description

Bringing together businesses, vendors and service providers for the public to visit with, ask questions, gain valuable information and take advantage of services and offerings exhibitors provide.
Exhibitors will be diverse combination of businesses and provide a great array of resources for anyone already or possibly having interest in home ownership, recreation, outdoors, Real Estate, decorating, electronics and numerous other traditional and non-traditional type home and garden products and services.
Event is family oriented, fun and will provide food, activities and prizes.
This is a NO admission cost event.
Interested exhibitors please contact HBAWM office at 301-722-4343 or 240-580-0779 (cell) or email – hbuilder@atlanticbbn.net
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1st Annual Home Brew Competiton
Date: May 19, 2012 Time: 12:00 PM – 10:00 PM
http://www.MountainStateBrewing.com
Event Description

In honor of AMERICAN CRAFT BEER WEEK!

Details: Beers must be registered by May 4th for the judged event. The judged event will begin at noon, and the people’s choice will start at 2:30pm. There is a $5 dollar entry fee to be collected on the day of the event. Get there early to get your beer registered and tagged!

To Register: Bottle identification forms should be sent to info@mountainstatebrewing.com by May 4. You can download the form here.

Prizes will be awarded for both judged and people’s choice events, and all participants get 20% off of any food purchases for the day! We’ll also have a pig roast that starts at noon.
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Oyster Bay Wine Tasting at the Savage River Lodge
Date: May 19, 2012 Time: 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM
http://www.savageriverlodge.com
Event Description May 19, 2012: On May 19 from 3:00 – 4:30 p.m., we will tasting six different wines from Oyster Bay Winery in New Zealand. The cost is $35 per person, including paired appetizers.
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Wisp XC Challenge Cross Country Mountain Bike race
Date: May 20, 2012
http://www.wispresort.com
Event Description Appalachian Bicycle Racing Association Race – long sections of single and double track challenging rock gardens and of course some thrilling descents! We are
putting together an awesome XC loops that we have you asking for more!
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Celebrate the Youghiogheny
Date: May 20, 2012 Time: 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Youghiogheny River Watershed Association
Event Description Art and Photo Contest sponsored by Youghiogheny River Watershed Association and Garrett County Arts Council. Celebrate with us by viewing the local art of “What the Youghiogheny Means to You!” Kids can join the Fisheries Biologist to fish in the lake and make a fish print craft to take home. Also visit us for the Scales and Tales program from 3 to 3:30 pm.
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More details on all of these events here.

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Garrett County, Md., boosts hotel tax

Posted: May 17, 2012 9:42 AM EDT Updated: May 17, 2012 9:42 AM EDT

OAKLAND, Md. (AP) – Garrett County officials say a boost in the local hotel tax will help pay for the county’s recent acquisition of a manmade whitewater course in western Maryland.

The Cumberland Times-News (http://bit.ly/La2wIY ) reports that the county commissioners voted Tuesday to raise the hotel tax from 5% to 6%, effective July 1.

County Administrator Monty Pagenhardt says some of the new revenue will reimburse the county’s $600,000 expense for paying off loans on which the Adventure Sports Center International had defaulted.

Pagenhardt says the higher hotel tax will also fund tourism promotion and economic development.

One event the county is promoting is the 2014 world canoe and kayak slalom championships at the whitewater course near McHenry.

More here.

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ASCI debt will be paid with rental tax

Elaine Blaisdell Cumberland Times-News

— OAKLAND — During a budget meeting on Tuesday, Garrett County commissioners discussed the debt accrued by Adventure Sports Center International and residents questioned the county’s decision to acquire that debt.

The hotel tax rate increase from 5 percent to 6 percent will provide the county with funds for the promotion of tourism and economic development, County Adminstrator Monty Pagenhardt said. “The ASCI debt repayment is also to be paid by the hotel rental tax. That is not in this year’s budget, it’s in next year,” Pagenhardt said.

“The commissioners plan to pay ourselves back our assigned fund balance of $600,000 to pay off the $2.2 million of debt.”

In March, the county took ownership of ASCI, paying $600,000 to secure the assignment of ASCI debts from Susquehanna Bank.

During the public comment portion of the meeting, resident Brian Arnett questioned the decision to acquire the ASCI debt.

“It’s great you didn’t raise the tax, but how about a tax cut and just quit doing pet projects,” asked Arnett.

In response to Arnett, Chairman Jim Raley said the budget didn’t really include many capital projects and further reiterated the fact that some of the hotel tax money would be used to pay the ASCI debt.

“The other projects can be debated. Some of those projects we inherited,” said Raley. “Some of those projects people believed would be an economic boost to the county. It’s our job now to make those things work. I think you will see that we have really cut our capital projects way back.”

The hotel rate increase will also cover promotions of the 2014 World Championship Canoe and Kayak Slalom Races and will provide an extra $5,000 to the Garrett County Historical Society. The $118,000 expenditure in promotions for the races is from seed money, Pagenhardt said.

During Tuesday’s commission meeting, commissioners approved a resolution to increase the hotel tax rate, effective July 1.

During the public comment portion of the budget meeting, Jim “Smokey” Stanton, thanked commissioners for holding a public meeting on the budget. Stanton suggested the county hold back 5 percent to 6 percent of budget in every department, which would amount to a contingency plan.

“So that the managers of that department are managing to that reduction,” said Stanton. “If we find that things are going more down hill than we believe, or we need to have money accrued for next year, we have a mechanism to do that.”

Stanton also said he wasn’t a fan of earmarking and suggested that performance evaluations be required for the Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development.

“Earmarking means that it becomes a birthright,” said Stanton.

“Obviously, that is a good suggestion and one I think we do have to look at,” said Raley. “Especially in light of the fact that not only we can we anticipated the loss of revenues in the property adjustments over the next couple years. We also know that we will be facing a million dollar liability in teacher pensions over the next four years.”

The state will be responsible for the first four years of the teacher pension, leaving the county responsible for the last year, according to Raley.

Contact Elaine Blaisdell at eblaisdell@times-news.com

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Two seek top Garrett schools’ job

Janet Wilson, Jeremy Raley to visit with students, staff, community leaders

From Staff Reports Cumberland Times-News

— OAKLAND — One of Allegany County’s top public school administrators is a finalist for the superintendent’s job in Garrett County, the Garrett County Board of Education announced late Wednesday afternoon.

Janet Wilson, chief academic officer for ACPS since 2010, is one of two finalists for the position, which has been filled by an interim superintendent since Wendell Teets unexpectedly retired last summer.

The second finalist is Jeremy Raley, a 1992 graduate of Fort Hill High School, who works as assistant superintendent for administration and finance for Shenandoah County Public Schools in Virginia.

In the coming weeks, each finalist will be scheduled to meet with community leaders, teachers, support staff, media, elected officials and administrators, a BOE press release said. Each finalist is to spend a day touring the county, visiting schools and eating lunch with students.

The BOE plans to host a dinner for each candidate following their tours.

Wilson, who has worked as an educator for almost 30 years, has a doctorate from Notre Dame University of Maryland in educational leadership for changing populations. She has a bachelor’s and two master’s degrees from Frostburg State University.

Raley has bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Virginia, and earned a doctorate in organizational leadership from Shenandoah University in August 2011.

Garrett County’s search for a new superintendent began last fall and is being coordinated by the Maryland Association fo Board of Educations.

Interim Superintendent Sue Waggoner, who was planning to retire when Teets unexpectedly stepped down last June, did not apply for the position.

More here.

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Garrett balances budget, develops plan for board

Elaine Blaisdell Cumberland Times-News

— OAKLAND — The fiscal year 2013 budget was balanced without having to borrow money or change the tax rate, Garrett County Administrator Monty Pagenhardt said during a review of the budget on Tuesday at Garrett College.

“We have been able to keep the tax rate the same and are able to appropriate monies toward the board of education. It’s a really difficult job they (commissioners) have to balance everything. They spent a lot of time on the budget and know it from top to bottom.”

Even though the budget was presented, it is likely numbers will change due to pending state legistlation in the Maryland General Assembly, said Charmian Jim Raley.

The biggest block of funds the county appropriates is for education, said Pagenhardt.

The proposed budget includes an appropriation of $31.3 million to education for fiscal year 2013, with $25.3 million appropriated to the BOE.

“It is important to repeat that ($25.3 million appropriation) because that is the number the board of education has been told to count on for 2014,” said Pagenhardt. “The board of education knows their operating budget for 2013 and also 2014.”

The total appropriated to the BOE includes $500,000 the county put up to reduce the number of cuts to teachers from 40 to 28.

“The commissioners didn’t really usurp power of the board of education. They didn’t say, ‘Here is how you have to spend the money,’” said Pagenhardt. “But they are very cognizant of the closing of the schools and the loss of jobs.”

The board of education voted to close Dennett Road and Kitzmiller elementary schools during a special meeting in April.

Because of the school closings, the proposed budget also includes an additional expenditure of about $95,745 for operating expenses, utility expenses and contracted services.

“You will see an increase in operating expenses, utilities and contracted services. Those are almost solely a result of the county having to absorb maintenance and operation of Dennett Road and Kitzmiller elementary schools,” said Pagenhardt. “They do become the county’s responsibility.”

During the presentation, both Raley and Pagenhardt stressed that the real property tax rate would remain at $0.9900.

“Next year is the first year that probably anyone can remember that the constant yield is greater than the tax rate,” said Pagenhardt.

In the proposed budget, there is an estimated $975,000 decrease in expenditures overall for the Roads Division for fiscal year 2013, compared to a $17.6 million expenditure in fiscal year 2012.

“We took a long look at that what we were spending in the past,” said Pagenhardt. “That was attributed to having aging equipment breaking down. We feel that we can get by with $250,000 less for next year as opposed to this year.”

Most of the cuts to the budget were from the roads department, because it is the largest department in the county, according to Pagenhardt.

The total projected revenue for the county in fiscal year 2013 is $72,819,058 — about a $13.5 million reduction from fiscal year 2012.

Contact Elaine Blaisdell at eblaisdell@times-news.com.

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Garrett’s board of education sets meeting to talk spending

Superintendent to offer scenarios on how to hold on to employees

Elaine Blaisdell Cumberland Times-News

— OAKLAND — The Maryland General Assembly’s passing of the Budget Reconciliation and Financing Act of 2012 means $1 million-plus for education in Garrett County.

The legislations’ enactment also means the school board needs to meet to decide on the best use of the money, said Charlotte Sebold, the board’s president.

A special meeting of the Garrett County Board of Education is being held Wednesday to discuss possible spending scenarios.

Scenarios that will likely be discussed include retaining more personnel and revisiting the decision to close Dennett Road and Kitzmiller elementary schools, according to Sebold.

“The superintendent will provide scenarios on what the board can do with monies to best serve students of Garrett County and to preserve jobs,” said Sebold. “We are looking at keeping as many employees as possible.”

There are no laws that prevent the board from revisiting the decision made at the April 24 meeting to close the two schools, Sebold said.

The commissioners provided the board with $500,000 for fiscal year 2013 and suggested that the money be used to reduce the number of instructional employee cuts from 40 to 28. In total, the county has appropriated $25.3 million to the board for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

The General Assembly passed an income tax hike on Wednesday that targets six-figure earners and will avoid about $500 million in budget cuts.

Gov. Martin O’Malley emphasized that the special session was needed to protect education, to keep college tuition affordable and preserve public safety.

Leo Martin, mayor of Mountain Lake Park, presented a petition with more than 2,400 signatures to the school board Monday, said resident Elizabeth Hebden.

The petition contained signatures of more than 10 percent of all registered voters in Garrett County, Hebden said.

The petition asked board members for another vote on the April 24 school-closing decision, pending the passage of the revenue bill by state legislators and the receipt of additional funding for Garrett County schools.

The petition was accepted by Sebold but there was no discussion on it, according to Sue Waggoner, interim superintendent of schools.

“It was premature for the board to adopt the school closure policy in light of the Maryland General Assembly special session that opened earlier today (Monday),” said resident James “Smokey” Stanton. “The special session was called in order to adopt a state budget with revised expenditures and revenues, and it is likely that state funds for Garrett County will increase as the result of the special session.”

Stanton said the board didn’t have a contingency plan to maintain Dennett Road and Kitzmiller elementary schools if the legislature approves additional funds for Garrett County schools.

“Small schools are exceptionally important to the economic health of our small towns and small communities, and it does not seem that this essential factor has been adequately taken into account with the proposed closures for this year and the proposals for future years,” said Stanton.

The special board of education meeting will be held Wednesday at 8 p.m. in the Southern Middle School cafeteria.

Contact Elaine Blaisdell at eblaisdell@times-news.com.

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Survey: Most support Md. elk reintroduction

Posted: May 15, 2012 5:08 PM EDT Updated: May 15, 2012 5:08 PM EDT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) – A new survey finds nearly three-quarters of Marylanders support reintroducing elk in the state’s western counties.

The rest were almost equally split among those opposing reintroduction and those who did not have an opinion. The Department of Natural Resources released the survey results on Tuesday.

Elk have already been successfully reintroduced in Kentucky and Pennsylvania, and the DNR is partnering with sportsmen’s groups to study reintroduction in Maryland. However, the proposal has run into opposition from county officials in Garrett County, who said they were not included in preliminary talks.

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Garrett commissioners approve hotel tax raise

Representative asks county for longer transition period

Elaine Blaisdell Cumberland Times-News

— OAKLAND — Garrett County commissioners unanimously approved on Tuesday a resolution to raise the Hotel Rental Accommodations Tax rate from 5 percent to 6 percent, effective July 1.

The commission also voted to discuss the implementation of the increased rate after hearing from a representative from Taylor-made Deep Creek Vacations.

The representative stressed that the company understood the need for a rate increase and asked the commission to allow for more of a transition period, explaining that updates of company software will be necessary in order to compensate for the new increase. The representative also said that the company wasn’t happy with the process of notification.

The commission followed the same procedure of notification in the summer of 2005, when the rate was increased from 4 percent to 5 percent, according to Wendy Yoder, director for the Department of Financial Services.

Because of the hardships of those rental contracts, the county decided to amend the reporting procedure in advance, according to the notification sent to county rental agencies.

“Contracts and confirmed reservations made prior to the receipt of this notification will be honored at the 5 percent tax rate,” said the email notification that the rental agencies received form the county.

“You will be required to submit taxes calculated at the new rate of 6 percent for contracts and reservations made after the receipt of this notification for all arrivals July 1, 2012, and after. What this means is that for any month whereby you are remitting the tax to the county that includes tax collected at both rates, you must remit your gross rental receipt to us broken down by the rate at which they were collected.”

For example, if a gross rental receipts in a given month is $6,000 and charged taxes at the rate of 5 percent on $2,000 and 6 percent on $4,00 then the remittance must be broken down that way, according to the notification. Hotel rental tax collected on the amount would total $340, with $100 collected on the 5 percent rate and $240 collected on the 6 percent rate.

The hotel rental tax is due to the county by the 21st of each month. If it’s not remitted by that date, penalty and interest charges will apply.

The rate increase resolution came about after the requested legislation was passed in General Assembly and was approved by Gov. Martin O’Malley, according to Chairman Jim Raley.

Contact Elaine Blaisdell at eblaisdell@times-news.com

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Author: ilovedeepcreeklakerealestate

Garrett state’s only county spraying for gypsy moths

Just Listed – 630 Paradise Rdige Rd – GA7844475 – $299,900

Community Calendar – 5/19/2012

Garrett County, Md., boosts hotel tax

ASCI debt will be paid with rental tax

Two seek top Garrett schools’ job

Garrett balances budget, develops plan for board

Garrett’s board of education sets meeting to talk spending

Survey: Most support Md. elk reintroduction

Garrett commissioners approve hotel tax raise

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