AUGUST 2019 Meeting
Town Starts Rain Barrel Program
The Town of Emmitsburg has started a rain barrel program to gain credit towards our stormwater management (MS4) program and to help the environment. The town will purchase the rain barrels from the non-profit Scott Key Center in Frederick. The barrels are manufactured by developmentally disabled adults, and they are made from recycled olive barrels. You can purchase a rain barrel from the town office and attend a workshop to learn to use it properly. The workshop will be help on October 1 at 6:00 p.m. Frederick City Sustainability Manager Jenny Willoughby will be the instructor. For more information, contact the Emmitsburg Town Office.
Emmitsburg Town Election on October 1
Emmitsburg citizens can vote for two open commissioner seats during the town election on October 1. Incumbents Glenn Blanchard and Elizabeth Buckman and Vigilant Hose Company President Frank Davis are running for the seats. Registered votes can cast their ballots at the town building at 22 East Main Street from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Town Selects Poet Laureate
The mayor and commissioners of Emmitsburg selected Francis Smith to serve as the Emmitsburg Poet Laureate. It is a two-year, honorary position. Smith will encourage reading, writing, and the sharing of poetry. Smith taught English and Latin in area high schools for 40 years before retiring. He is also a published poet who writes for The Catoctin Banner.
New Complaint Procedures for Off-Campus Mount Students
The Town of Emmitsburg, Mount St. Mary’s Univeristy, and Frederick County deputies encourage everyone to call the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office immediately if you are experiencing any issues related to noise complaints and/or destructive behavior, as soon as you experience it, with any Mount students. Don’t wait. It is harder to follow up about the problem when there is a significant time delay. Non-emergency number is 301-600-2071 or the emergency number is 911.
Pool House Rehabilitation Approved
The Emmitsburg Commissioners awarded a $66,329 contract to Omega Contracting and Consulting to renovate the pool house. The company specializes in this type of work and will warranty its work for a year. Program Open Space funds will pay 75 percent of the cost with the town matching the rest.
Sign Ordinance Approved
The Emmitsburg Commissioners approved the town’s new sign ordinance on a 3-2 vote. Town staff has been working since February at refining and updating the sign ordinance to include new technologies being used to advertise businesses and events.
Commissioner Joe Ritz, III, said, “If a revised ordinance was really needed, why couldn’t it have been kept simple? Just list what’s allowed.” He also objected to what he called “excessive fines.”
Town Manager Cathy Willets took exception to Ritz’s negative characterization of the sign ordinance. She reminded him that not only was the new ordinance less stringent than the previous one, the EBPA supported the new ordinance. She also said that town staff had worked hard to not only gather community input but to address any concerns raised.
Commissioners Cliff Sweeney, Glenn Blanchard, and Tim O’Donnell voted for the ordinance and Commissioner Elizabeth Buckman and Ritz voted against.
Town Sells Trees
The Emmitsburg Commissioners voted to sell a selected group of trees as part of the town’s forestry management plan recommended by the State of Maryland. Tipton’s will pay $46,000 for the trees and will be responsible for removing them with minimal damage to any of the town’s trails in the area. The vote for 4-1 with Commissioner Joe Ritz, III, voting against the proposal.
