Governor Martin O'Malley Announces Appointments to Various Boards and Commissions
ANNAPOLIS, MD (August 6, 2010) – Governor Martin O’Malley today announced appointments to the Maryland Council for Educator Effectiveness; the University System of Maryland Board of Regents; the Blue Ribbon Commission on Transportation Funding; the State Health Services Cost Review Commission; and the Task Force to Study Nanobiotechnology.
“I am proud to announce the appointments to the various Boards and Commissions across the State. Each appointee brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise that will serve as an asset to the Boards they will serve on,” said Governor O’Malley. “We have worked hard to compile a list of individuals from across our State with diverse educational, career, geographic, gender and ethnic backgrounds to continue to help protect Maryland’s priorities.”…
R. Lamont “Monty” Pagenhardt is being appointed as a representative of rural areas in Maryland. He is County Administrator for Garrett County and is a former Director of Human Resources and Personnel Services for Allegany County. Mr. Pagenhardt is a resident of Garrett County.
Garrett College unveiling training center to public
Facility will offer work force prep programs
From Staff Reports
Cumberland Times-News
— ACCIDENT — Public tours of the Career Technology Training Center located in the Northern Garrett Industrial Park in Accident, the newest facility of Garrett College, will be offered Aug. 17 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Continuing Education/ Workforce Development staff members will answer questions about the center and its program offerings and the new occupational scholarship.
The tour will include refreshments. For directions or more information, call 301-387-3069.
Courses and programs offered at the CTTC will be primarily work force preparation and work force development, according to Julie Yoder, interim dean of Continuing Education and Workforce Development.
“Many of the courses will lead to industry-recognized certification. Classes to be offered at the CTTC this fall include Welding I, Welding II, Welding III, Adult Basic Education and GED preparation, Introduction to Lab View, Lab View II Rookie to Robotics, AutoCAD, Certified Nursing Assistant and Residential HVAC System Design,” Yoder said.
The renovated 16,000-square-foot space in the former Phenix Technology building houses a welding lab, electronics and automation lab, three classrooms, a conference room and administrative space.
A second phase of the project is scheduled to begin in the fall with classrooms to accommodate alternative energy, technology and automation, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, carpentry and masonry courses. The courses will be implemented on a cyclical basis based on work force demand and interest.
Employers will be able to use the space to conduct in-house training programs.
The new occupational scholarship is for students pursuing training opportunities that lead to an industry-recognized certification rather than a degree.
Students in the 2010 graduating class of Northern or Southern high schools are eligible as well as students who completed a home-school program approved by the Garrett County Board of Education or adults earning a GED during the current year.
To apply for a scholarship, call Garrett College at 301-387-3069 or log on to www.garrettcollege.edu
July 2010 Real Estate Market Update - Residential
The average list vs. ORIGINAL sales price was 82.50%, down from last month (88.88%).
The ADJUSTED list vs sale price is 89.53% – also down from last month (93.22%).
The current number of active/for sale residential listings (minus timeshares) is 791 as of today, up from last month. We are still gaining more inventory than we are selling and this will continue to drive down prices from a supply and demand standpoint. With current state of affairs, this is a number that is unlikely to come down anytime soon. That’s a 30 month supply of homes available, which is a very challenging stat to overcome. Looking beyond those numbers will lead you to the understanding that we are at least a 50% or so vacation home market and our sales are seasonal, unlike Florida or Arizona where the weather is nice almost all year long. But still, 30 month supply is a lot.
Average Sale Price: $321,685 (last month $448,350) – the $3.5 million dollar sale tweaked this last month
Average Days on Market: 150/302 (last month 177/241) (days on market with current broker/total days on market)
Community Calendar - weekend of August 6, 2010
The fair is coming to town! I saw the ferris wheel today – setup and ready to go. Funnel cakes, Lions Club chicken dinners and Rotary fries can’t be far behind….stop by and visit me at the Railey Realty booth Wednesday night, I’ll be there from 6-9pm!
Here are some happenings for this weekend:
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Friendsville Days
Town of Friendsville
08/06/2010 – 08/07/2010
Friendsville MD. Fri. 6:00pm-10:00 pm, Sat. 12:00 pm-10:00 pm. Friday: food, games and music. Saturday: noon parade, day long activities, food entertainment, car show, fireworks and crafts. Contact 301.746.5933.
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Glass, Glorious Glass… An Art Tour of Garrett County
Snowbird Creations Glass Studio
08/06/2010 – 08/08/2010
Garrett County, 10 am – 5 pm. 3 glass studios, Galleries: Snowbird Creations Glass Studio- Fused Glass, Simon Pearce- Blown Glass, Lou DiCarlo – Stained Glass. www.snowbirdcreations.com , 301.387.4624
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Open Canoe Slalom National Championships
Adventure Sports Center International
08/06/2010 – 08/08/2010
Adventure Sports Center International. www.adventuresportscenter.com , 301.3873250.
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Little Yough Summer Music Festival
Town of Oakland
06/18/2010
7 pm, Oakland Town Parking Lot/ Mountain Fresh Farmers Market. Bring a lawn chair and listen to the tunes!
August 6 Mateo Monk
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Annual Sidewalk Sale
Town of Oakland
08/06/2010 – 08/07/2010
Annual Sidewalk Sale – Downtown Oakland – Huge Discounts and Bargains!
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5th Annual Deep Creek Chili Splash
Wisp Resort
08/07/2010
Wisp Resort, Chili heads unite, live music, official games of chili, prizes and giveaways. This Year will be hotter than ever. 301.387.4911, www.wispresort.com .
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Garrett County Fair
Garrett County Agriculture Fair
08/07/2010 – 08/14/2010
Garrett County Fairgrounds, McHenry. Truly an agricultural fair! Nightly musical entertainment; tractor pull, mud bog, demo derbies, 4-wheel pickup pull. Carnival rides and games-something for everyone. $. www.garrettcountyfair.org .
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Mountain Fresh Farmers Market – Oakland
Mountain Fresh Farmers Markets
07/07/2010
Join us in downtown Oakland for a homegrown farmers market including fresh produce, baked goods, jams & jellies, crafts, personal care items, goat cheeses, and more!
Wednesdays & Saturdays 10 am to 1 pm
Aug 7th
Starts at 10:00 am , Lasts 3 Hours
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Lakeside Grill Menu
Lakeside Grill. I’ll have to check it out and report back to you, but if
Smiley owns it, you know the food is going to be great!
Western Md. Hosts N. American Canoe Championships
MCHENRY, Md. (AP) ― Some of the best paddlers from the United State and Canada are squaring off in the North American Open Canoe Slalom Nationals and North American Championships in western Maryland.
The event runs Friday through Sunday at the Adventure Sports Center International near McHenry.
Open canoe racing involves boats that resemble traditional canoes instead of the kayak-like vessels used in Olympic canoe slalom events.
This is the first open canoe race at the whitewater complex near Deep Creek Lake. The center hosted Olympic-style slalom canoe and kayak national championships in 2007 and 2008.
Residents concerned about Deep Creek Lake's future
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MCHENRY — — Something’s killing the fish at Deep Creek Lake. The die-off appears to be weather-related, but some people wonder if it’s an omen for the future of this mountain resort, as the “crown jewel” of rural western Maryland becomes increasingly crowded with vacation homes, boaters and tourist attractions.
Over the past couple of weeks, about 1,000 yellow perch, walleye, northern pike, smallmouth bass, catfish and bluegill have been found floating belly-up on the 3,900-acre manmade lake. Though the fish kill is small compared with die-offs around the Chesapeake Bay, it’s the largest here since the state Department of the Environment began keeping track.
“This is too depressing,” said Barbara Beelar, 68, as she piloted her outboard boat among dead perch scattered across the water near her lakefront home. A retired community organizer who began summering here in her childhood, she worries that the dead fish are “canaries in the coal mine,” harbingers of an ecosystem increasingly stressed by all the people drawn to the lake to live, work and play.
Two years ago, thick mats of bright green algae formed on the southern end of the lake, prompting Beelar to form the Friends of Deep Creek Lake. She and other residents say they’re concerned about polluted runoff from farms and vacation homes, about leaking septic tanks, sewage leaks and about shoreline erosion muddying the water and filling in the coves. The number of homes there has grown by 50 percent in the past 25 years and is projected to nearly double in the next two decades.
Garrett Cooperative Ministry, Inc. - Christian Crossing Thrift Shop
Christian Crossing Thrift Shop Phone: (301) 334-6339
Paul Shogren, President
2 West First Avenue E-mail: shogren@verizon.net
Loch Lynn, MD 21550
http://www.ilovedeepcreek.com/blog/index.php/site/garrett_cooperative_ministry_christian_crossing_thrift_shop/
Christian Crossing Thrift Shop meets various needs of residents of the Garrett County community by operating a facility to collect and distribute donated furniture,
furnishings, appliances, clothing and housewares.
Deep Creek Lake Law - Gary Sabo - Attorney
Gary received his bachelor’s degree from the Pennsylvania State University, and his Juris Doctor from the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Law, where he served as managing editor of the Law Review.
Gary began his legal career at a large Pittsburgh law firm, where his practice concentrated in areas of corporate litigation, business law, and real estate.
In 2006, Gary moved to Deep Creek to open the Deep Creek Branch of Sage Title Group, LLC which covers western Maryland, southern Pennsylvania, and northern and eastern West Virginia where Gary serves as Managing Attorney. Gary also serves as regional counsel to Sage Title and services branch offices in western Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Gary frequently lectures to real estate agents on topics related to the real estate and title industry. Gary is approved by several education providers to instruct continuing education classes to agents.
Gary is a member of the Maryland Bar Association, Pennsylvania Bar Association, and West Virginia Bar association. In his free time Gary is also an active wake boarder and head snowboard coach of the Deep Creek Winter Sports Team.
24449 Garrett Hwy. Unit 4
McHenry, MD 21541
Phone: 301-387-7380
Fax: 301-387-7381
Email: gary@garysabo.com
www.deepcreeklakelaw.com
If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for aill of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350
Tree falls, killing bicyclist
Strong winds move through area causing fatality, widespread property damage
Bob Likens
Cumberland Times-News
— CUMBERLAND — High winds swept through the area Wednesday evening, resulting in the death of a 49-year-old woman who was riding a bicycle on a paved portion of the Great Allegheny Passage in the city.
She was struck and fatally injured by a tree that reportedly was brought down by the severe storm.
Cumberland Police officers responded to the popular hiker/biker trail near the Valley Street intersection after first being alerted to the incident at 6:14 p.m. Officers found the victim under an 18- to 20-inch locust tree, immediately began to render aid and requested the city fire department and its emergency medical services personnel to respond.
The victim was freed from beneath the tree and transported to the Western Maryland Regional Medical Center where she died of her injuries, said police.
Local law enforcement was at the scene of the accident after 7 p.m. Wednesday, keeping residents out of the area because of live power lines that were down. The identity of the victim was withheld, pending notification of family members.
From Garrett County to neighboring counties in West Virginia, numerous trees were reported down, keeping emergency dispatchers hustling by calling out fire departments to clear away debris and preventing people from getting close to any live wires. Also, trees were reported across power lines and into houses at a number of locations throughout the area.
Hundreds of residents were without power for a variety of problems ranging from blown fuses, overhead wiring or equipment problems, underground wiring, transformer fires and a host of related problems.
Around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, Allegheny Power reported about 4,000 customers were without electricity in Allegany, Garrett and Mineral counties.
Bryan Miller, shift supervisor for Allegany County 911 Center, said things began going downhill shortly after 6 p.m. when the storm starting moving through the area.
“We handled more than 200 calls,’’ Miller said. He said there were numerous calls about tree and power lines down “throughout the county.’’
Miller also said off-duty dispatchers were called in to handle the large amount of calls.
“We started with a normal shift of six and went up to 10. We have eight in here now,’’ he said, that being about 9:45 p.m.
“We have about four to five units out right now,’’ he said, “and we’re looking at the weather maps because it looks like we’re going to be in for more severe weather Thursday.’’
And on top of it all, Miller said, Orleans firefighters were sent to Morgan County, W.Va., to assist with battling a house fire there.
Residents and business employees were working Wednesday evening, clearing up the damage brought by Mother Nature.
Frank Lynch, a driver for NAPA Auto Parts, 446 N. Mechanic St., and Floyd Friend, NAPA store manager in Keyser, W.Va., were busy putting cardboard up to replace a large store window that was blown out by the wind.
“I heard about it on my scanner,’’ Lynch said. He said he heard Cumberland Police needed some help at the location because of glass all over the sidewalk. “That was about 6:30 p.m.,’’ he said, “so I came in and yelled for help and Friend came down.’’
At 200 Maple St., Janet Stegmaier was sitting on her porch looking at the tree that was down across the road from her house.
“I heard a crash, then thunder and the wind was very strong,’’ she said. Stegmaier said her home did not sustain any damage and she was told by a Cumberland Police officer who showed up at the scene that someone would be there some time during the evening to clear the tree from the road. As Stegmaier sat there she did say she was enjoying the beautiful rainbow that was over the city.
A dispatcher at the Garrett County Emergency Center said Friendsville, Accident and the Deep Creek Lake area were the hardest hit.
“We have a lot of trees down, a lot of lines down, a lot of utility poles down, but there are no injures,’’ the dispatcher said.
The dispatcher also said that two Garrett roads were closed due to high-tension lines being down.
A dispatcher for Hampshire County (W.Va.) Emergency Services said the storm started moving through about 6:30 p.m. and the area had a lot of trees and power lines down. Around 9:30 p.m., she said a handful of emergency personnel were still on calls, but they were beginning to clear and return to their stations. She also reported no injures caused by the storms.
Mike Pigott, a meteorologist with AccuWeather, told the Times-News Wednesday evening that the region had been placed under a severe thunderstorm warning and a squall line of strong storms moved through the area with winds gusting to 40 mph at the Garrett County Airport.
“You’re not out of the woods yet,’’ Pigott said. “There is another round of strong storms that is forecast to move through the area Thursday morning.’’
