Vote September 10 in The City of Frederick Primary

George Wenschhof

The City of Frederick, Maryland primary election is tomorrow September 10.  Scheduled in an off year election cycle, few voters go to the polls.  The 2009 primary election had under 20% voter turnout.

The primary election is important to participate as this is the process the political parties use to determine their candidates to move on to the General Election to be held November 5.

There are 3 Democratic candidates and 3 Republican candidates running for Mayor.  The winner of each will advance to the general election. The general election for mayor will include unaffiliated candidate Jennifer Dougherty, who did not face a primary challenge.

There are 8 Democratic and 7 Republican candidates who are running for the city Board of Aldermen.  The top five finishers, from each party will advance to the general election.

Below, for your convenience, are links, in no particular order of significance, to interviews I conducted with all of the mayoral candidates and some of the alderman candidates.

I have included a few links to some relevant articles at the end.

Please remember to vote September 10!

Democratic candidates for mayor:

Karen Young: Young Focused on Issues, Expects Highly Competitiv...

Galen Clagett:  Clagett Stresses Vision and Management Experience ...

Carol Hirsch: Hirsch Focused on the Environment

Republican candidates for mayor:

Randy McClement: Mayor Proud of Keeping Taxes Level without Sacrifi...

Shelley Aloi: Aloi Wants To Get Fiscal House in Order

Jeff Holtzinger: Holtzinger Wants to Return as Mayor

Unaffiliated candidate for mayor:

Jennifer Dougherty: Dougherty: “Government is not the enemy”

Democratic candidates for alderman:

Josh Bokee: Bokee Enjoying Meeting Voters 

John Daniels: Daniels Supports Aquatics Center for Frederick

Kelly Russell: Kelly Russell Loves Frederick

Michael O'Connor: O’Connor: “It’s an Honor to Serve”

Jack Lynch: Lynch Wants More Citizen Involvement in Planning P...

Donna Kuzemchak: Kuzemchak runs for reelection

Derek Shackelford: Strong Field of Democrats Emerge in Aldermen Race

Articles:

City of Frederick Election for Mayor Underway

Frederick Democratic Primary Race for Mayor Heats ...

Who will be the next mayor?

Young Calls Foul on Frederick News Post Mayoral Po...

Should City Provide Funding for a Downtown Hotel?

Clagett Signs on Yellow Cabs Stirs Controversy

Will Wal-Mart Vote Impact City Election?

Clagett, Young lead in fundraising among mayoral c...

Clagett Defends $30,000 in Contributions from Aush...

Bokee Wins Straw Poll at Frederick Young Democrats...

Democratic Aldermen Contest Promises to be Close

Democratic Mayoral primary: a "pick-em” race

McClement Facing Strong Challenge in Republican Pr...

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McClement Facing Strong Challenge in Republican Primary

George Wenschhof


Randy McClement

Shelley Aloi

Randy McClement, who is running for reelection for mayor of The City of Frederick, has drawn a record number of challengers for the seat.  A total of seven candidates are running for mayor; 3 Republicans, 3 Democrats and 1 Unaffiliated.

Getting past the primary election held on September 10 will not be easy for the first term mayor, who has the reputation of being a nice guy.  Randy will first have to get past former mayor Jeff Holtzinger and alderman Shelley Aloi in the Republican primary before he would face the winner in the Democratic primary and unaffiliated former mayor Jennifer Dougherty.

One of the main reasons cited for the multitude of candidates opposing Randy is that, putting aside he is a nice guy, the rap on Randy is he is a weak leader with no vision for the city.

Jeff Holtzinger

Holtzinger put it more bluntly in a recent interview when he told me the mayor is letting the alderman run the city and that is not the way the city charter is set up.  Often silent on issues that come before the mayor and board over the last four years, Randy rarely offered his opinion on matters presented at public meeting or workshops.

In my interview with McClement, he touted his fiscal stewardship during a time of economic uncertainty as the main thing he was proud of during his first term in office.

However, as a result of a lack of vision and a seemingly unwillingness to provide direction, Randy has been stuck with the moniker of being a “caretaker mayor”.  That is, during his watch, nothing great happened and nothing really bad happened.

Former one term mayor Jeff Holtzinger can’t say the same, as it was during his administration two costly decisions were made.  One, was the early retirement buy-out program and the other was the decision to purchase the Hargett farm for a park.

Both decisions are still costing the city money.  Holtzinger sticks by the Hargett farm purchase, telling me the cost to develop the farm will be considerably less per acre than the city is paying to develop Carroll Creek.

Holtzinger, who is also an engineer by trade, wants to get back to building infrastructure for the city to provide relief from the congestion city residents currently face.

Alderman Shelley Aloi is also frustrated with the lack of leadership exhibited by Randy and told me when she announced her run for mayor “the city can’t take four more years of him”.

She is angry the city hasn’t done more to reduce the underfunded liability of the pension and other post employment benefits programs.  She was especially incensed over the negotiated contract the mayor did with the city police union, saying it will cost the city millions.

The talk around town has Randy surviving the primary election, resulting from Holtzinger drawing votes away from Aloi.

But, don’t discount Aloi, who was the only Republican elected to the board of alderman in the 2009 election. In that election, as well as this one, she has displayed a strong closing campaign effort as voting day nears.

The real fireworks will begin following the primary when city voters will have a choice between the Democratic, Republican and Unaffiliated candidate for mayor. 

Stay tuned.

 

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Clagett, Young lead in fundraising among mayoral candidates

George Wenschhof

The first campaign finance reports were filed Monday by the candidates for mayor and aldermen in The City of Frederick election. The city website has them here.

As, one might have expected, Democrats; Maryland state delegate Galen Clagett and alderman Karen Young raised the most among the mayoral candidates. 

Clagett raised $60,425, spent $56,083.34 and had $4,341.66 cash on hand.  Young reported raising $49,351, with expenditures of $27,218.20 and with some carry over funds; she has a balance of $25,751.98 in the all important cash on hand.

Democratic mayoral candidate Carol Hirsch did not file a report.

On the Republican side, incumbent mayor Randy McClement raised $10,960, spent $7,890 with a balance of $3,070.

Alderman Shelley Aloi, who also had carry-over funds from her previous campaign, raised $3,532 and spent $5,064, leaving her with a balance of $3,077.  Former mayor Jeff Holtzinger reported $740 raised, $42 spent with a balance of $698.

Unaffiliated candidate Jennifer Dougherty reported a total amount of funds raised of $6,027.01, expenditures of $4,839.52 and a balance of $1,187.49.  Jennifer contributed the bulk of her contributions with a total of $4,631.

While, the amount of money raised by a candidate certainly signals financial strength, it does not always predict a winner.  In the 2005 election, Democratic candidate Ron Young raised over $135,000 and while he defeated incumbent Democratic mayor Jennifer Dougherty in the primary, he would lose the general election to political neophyte Republican Jeff Holtzinger.

With the first finance reports filed, you can bet campaigns will be pouring over other campaign reports, reviewing contributions and expenditures, looking for anything that may jump out and impact the primary election held on September 10.

Leading all candidates with $60,425 in contributions, you can expect Clagett’s report to be eyeballed closely.

A quick glance shows he received a total of $10,000 from five different entities with the same address of 24024 Frederick Road, Clarksburg, Maryland, and he received a total of $20,000 from nine different entities who shared the same address of 7420 Haywood Road, Ste 203 Frederick, Maryland. 

The campaign limits per entity is $2,500 and none of the entities exceeded that figure.

Karen Young sent me an analysis (you can read here) of the Clagett campaign fundraising and expenditures where she identifies the $10,000 coming from entities associated with Pleasants construction and the $20,000 coming from entities associated with Marvin Ausherman. 

Overall, her analysis shows the Clagett campaign received 67.3% from Developers/Real Estate, 17.8% from Individuals, 10.3% from political campaigns/PAC and 4.6% from Business.

 

Young shared with me "I am pleased with the results of my fundraising to date.  My fundraising goal was to raise money from a broad and diverse group of constituents.  To date, my contributions are 64% from individuals and 36% from business."

Interestingly, Young herself also received contributions with the same address of 114 Baughmans Lane Frederick, Maryland from three different entities totaling $7,500.  The business at that address is Fitzgerald.

With $25,751 cash on hand, Karen Young is positioned best for the home stretch prior to the primary election, among all of the mayoral candidates with Clagett having $4,341 and Republican candidates Mayor McClement ($3,070) and alderman Shelley Aloi ($3.077) lagging far behind.

The Democratic and Republican primaries for mayor promise to be tight. With Karen Young having six times the cash on hand that Galen Clagett has, you can expect the Clagett campaign to be actively raising funds over the next four weeks.  Look for a close race in the Democratic primary.

The Republican mayoral primary also looks too close to call between Aloi and McClement.  Don’t underestimate Aloi, who surprised many with her strong alderman showing four years ago.

Republican Phil Dacey ($10,066) led all alderman candidates in funds raised, followed by Democratic candidate John Daniels ($8,145).

 

When I asked John Daniels how he felt about raising the most money among Democratic alderman candidates he said "I am really appreciative of the financial contributions and encouragement I have received through out this campaign. I will continue to work hard, spend those contributions wisely and, when elected, I will work hard for all residents of Frederick."

Other alderman candidates who were top fund raisers were Republicans Katie Nash ($7,225) and David Schmidt ($7,035) and Democratic candidates Josh Bokee ($4,460) and Derek Shackelford ($4,029).

The primary election is only four weeks away when Republican and Democratic voters will determine their mayoral candidate and five alderman candidates to move on to the general election on November 5.

Stay tuned.

 

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Aloi Wants To Get Fiscal House in Order

George Wenschhof

Shelley Aloi

Republican Shelley Aloi told me The City of Frederick is her hometown and that as mayor she would focus on “public safety and getting the fiscal house in order”.

Shelley said she had traveled around the world and had come back because Frederick is so great she wanted to ensure it continues to be a wonderful hometown for other families for generations to come.

Shelley shared with me she never thought she would be in politics and that prior to running and being elected alderman, she had traveled the world helping people in need.

She had worked in a soup kitchen in Atlanta, a para church organization “Christmas of Service” in Amsterdam where she helped homeless, drug addicts and prostitutes, and had spent three months in Germany providing humanitarian aid.

Upon returning home, Shelley attended the 2008-2009 Leadership Frederick County” class and it was during the state and local government day portion of the class, she decided “this would be a natural next step in serving people”.

She ran for alderman in the 2009 city election and came in third of the five aldermen elected.  She was most proud of the way the board of aldermen, on the most part, have worked well together and although they often have different viewpoints and perspectives, they have been respectful of one another.

As Mayor, Aloi intends to focus on everyone from children to senior citizens to provide a quality of life everyone enjoys.

When it came to public safety, Aloi said she intends to provide adequate resources for police technology, educational initiatives to support strategic policing and promote community policing.  Newly hired Police Chief Thomas Ledwell would also be retained under her administration.

Aloi was especially critical of Mayor Randy McClement on his handling of the underfunded city Pension and Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) programs.

Shelley felt the mayor did not have this as a priority and as a result, the city unfunded actuarial accrued liability for the pension, grew from $62.5 million in fiscal year 2010 to $100 million in fiscal year 2014.

With OPEB, Aloi said the city changed the way calculations were done, resulting in a reduced unfunded liability “on paper” from $128 million to $104 million.

Aloi sent me a follow up email after my interview where she said “I also fault Randy McClement for his negotiations along with Kelly Russell, Michael O’Connor and Carol Krimm for their votes obligating city taxpayers to cover 100% of retiree healthcare costs for all sworn employees hired before January 1, 2010. This is a future cost for which no financial projections were completed. A straight line estimate without an actuarial analysis makes this as much as a $44 million dollar obligation. We do not have the money to pay for this promise.”

In addition, Aloi said the mayor has touted the city reaching a level of 80% funding in twenty years, but left out the city would be contributing $7.5 million each year (for the amortization portion only) over the next twenty years.

Economic development would be another focus for Aloi, as mayor, and she quickly pointed to the importance of the city moving to Phase II of the Carroll Creek project.

She again criticized Mayor McClement for almost letting $3 million in state funding go away because he had not secured local matching funds.  Aloi said she, aldermen Carol Krimm and Karen Young scrambled to first; urge the mayor not to send the money back and second; secure the necessary matching funding for the project.

Aloi said the lease negotiation of city owned Harry Grove Stadium was also handled poorly by the mayor.  She did not understand why one of the most valuable parts of the contract “the naming rights for the stadium” was not included in the original negotiation.

Aloi would also like to help the growth of small business in the city which she feels is hampered by rules that are too onerous and costs too high to do business in the city.

Alderman Aloi will face Mayor Randy McClement and former mayor Jeff Holtzinger in the Republican primary.

The Democratic mayoral primary will include alderman Karen Young, Maryland state delegate Galen Clagett and Carol Hirsch.

Former mayor Jennifer Dougherty is running as an unaffiliated candidate and will not have an opponent in the primary election.

The City of Frederick primary election will be held on September 10.

Stay tuned.

 

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Should City Provide Funding for a Downtown Hotel?

George Wenschhof

 

Republican Mayor Randy McClement has promoted a downtown hotel/conference center since being elected and had previously expressed desire to have broken ground on the project by now.

 

Wednesday, during a City of Frederick mayor and board of aldermen workshop, a real estate consulting firm hired by the city, said there will be a funding shortfall between $10-12 million.

 

Frederick News Post reporter Jen Bondeson in an article published Thursday wrote, in part, “Developers say that when the proposed hotel comes to fruition, room rates will not be high enough to support the added features, said John Gibb, managing director of Jones Lang LaSalle, a real estate consultant firm.”

During tough economic times and a heavy debt service already existing with The City of Frederick, I asked mayoral candidates “whether they would support taxpayers funding the anticipated shortfall or an amount of the shortfall and if so, why and if not, why?”

 

Former mayor and unaffiliated candidate Jennifer Dougherty responded with "I don't think it makes sense from what I know today. Government services - police, trash, snow plowing, etc. have to be our priorities.

Government would be going into competition with private enterprises in the scenario described...that's a tough one to accept.

If the private sector cannot afford it, we should be careful about government getting into it. I think it's premature to commit or expect City taxpayer funds on this project."

Alderman Karen Young, who is one of three Democrats running for mayor sent me an email saying "I don't see the city filling that wide a gap. I have never been in favor of a cash supplement. I can see the city providing parking as long as it would benefit the overall community. I might also consider the city's participation in providing land under very specially defined conditions."

When I pressed her for a level of funding by the city she would support she said "That is premature. I'd have to see the total plan."

Former Republican mayor Jeff Holtzinger sent me an email saying "If a private hotel/conference center operator can make it work that would be a nice asset for downtown. I do not think the City should be in the hotel/conference center business.

There is a hotel with conference space in the City limits at the intersection of Opossumtown Pike and Thomas Johnson Drive. I do not think the City should be looking to compete with this privately owned hotel/conference center.  

The private sector will have much better insight as to whether such a facility is feasible in a downtown location and that is who should be calling the shots on this not City Hall. If a private developer does have an interest in a downtown site, the City's proper role would be to provide a predictable, consistent and fair regulatory process.  

No I do not think the City should fund any part of this shortfall. In my opinion that is not a proper role of local government to be the lending institution for a private enterprise." 

In an email, alderman Shelley Aloi, who is one of three Republicans running for mayor, said "I want to assure City taxpayers that under my leadership the City of Frederick will not pay for a downtown hotel, nor will we pay the debt service for a hotel. Instead, I see the role of City government as creating an environment that allows the private sector to flourish. The City's Department of Economic Development in cooperation with our consultant will continue to work with local partners (The Chamber of Commerce, Major Employers Group, etc.) to develop a plan of action that opens the possibility for a full-service hotel with large meeting space.

Today, large groups must travel to Washington, Baltimore and even Hagerstown to host functions. Frederick should have a share of this market and we can work toward this end in many ways that do not use City taxpayer dollars. For example, the City of Frederick already has plans for an additional parking deck. A partnership in which hotel occupants can use and pay for parking in a City owned deck would be a win-win situation.

Another scenario might be securing the use of State funding. To be clear, most State dollars are spent in other areas including Baltimore City and County, Prince Georges County and Howard County. Why should the taxpaying citizens in the City of Frederick support programs in these much larger areas? I submit that we should not. Since the State government will spend our money either way, the City of Frederick should work on behalf of citizens to bring the benefit of these State programs home to Frederick. If not, we will continue to send our money down the road to other communities."

At time of publication, Mayor Randy McClement and Carol Hirsch (D) had not responded to my inquiries.

Update: 8:00 AM - Mayor Randy McClement responded with the following: "I have said in the past and continue to say, the City will NOT build a hotel or conference center. We are facilitating in the discussions along with the private sector on the feasibility of having one in Downtown Frederick. The Hotel Advisory Group continues to move forward with examining this possibility and I look forward to their final recommendation.

I have said that if public infrastructure, such as a parking deck, was needed to help bring a facility like this to downtown AND that public infrastructure helped to serve the greater good of that service area, I would look at possibly moving that infrastruture up in the process."

Maryland state delegate Galen Clagett's office informed me he was on vacation with his wife and will respond upon returning home next week.

The manner in which the city proceeds with this project and the level of funding provided is likely to have an impact on the upcoming City of Frederick election. 

Stay tuned.

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The City of Frederick Primary Election Online Mayoral Poll

George Wenschhof

The City of Frederick primary will be held on September 10, less than six weeks away. Three Republicans and three Democrats will face off that day to determine who will move on from their political party to the general election held on November 5.

The three Democratic candidates are Maryland state delegate Galen Clagett, alderman Karen Young and Carol Hirsch.

The three Republican candidates are incumbent mayor Randy McClement, alderman Shelley Aloi and former mayor Jeff Holtzinger.

The general election will include unaffiliated candidate Jennifer Dougherty, who does not face opposition in the primary.

Over the next three days, I will be running Democratic and Republican mayoral candidate polls; located in the right hand margin.  You can only vote once and the polls will close on Monday August 5 at 6:00 AM. 

Enjoy!

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Who will be the next mayor?

George Wenschhof

City Hall

The City of Frederick primary election is only six weeks away and with the off year election promising a dismal voter turnout of less than twenty-five percent, the likelihood of an unaffiliated mayor being elected is higher than one would initially expect.

It is possible, disgruntled voters who were supporters of a losing candidate in the primary election, will turn to the unaffiliated candidate, instead of their party nominee in the general election.

With such low voter turnout and city voters having a choice between three candidates for mayor in November, anything can happen.

Republican mayor Randy McClement has drawn, what is believed to be, the most crowded field of candidates for mayor ever in a city election.

Another first is three women running for mayor with the possibility they could face each other in the general election held on November 5.

The prevalent explanations one hears for such a large field of contenders for mayor is; McClement has shown little leadership, provided no vision for the future of the city and in general acted more like a “caretaker” while serving his first term in office.

A total of seven candidates are vying to be mayor; three Democrats, three Republicans and one Unaffiliated.  The Republican and Democratic candidates will face a primary on September 10. 

While many believe the winner who emerges will be the candidate who is stongest on the issues, often in local political contests, it is personal history that influences voters. 

Former Democratic one term mayor Jennifer Dougherty, is running for the fifth time for mayor and this time it is as a unaffiliated candidate.  She will not have a primary and will face winners of the Republican and Democratic primaries in the general election.

The number one question I receive from city voters, which I hear numerous times a day, is; “who do I believe is going to win?”

My reply is typically the same; “there are too many moving parts and different scenarios that could play out to pick a winner” – the bottom line is it is hard to call at this point.

The Republican primary will include another former one term mayor; Jeff Holtzinger and alderman Shelley Aloi running against McClement.

Holtzinger is sure to be battered with the questionable decisions made during his administration to approve the costly and dubious “employee buy-out” and purchase of the Hargett Farm for a municipal park. 

In addition, the manner in which he claims to meet the city mayoral candidate residency requirement, has received scrutiny from many Republican voters, who do not support him.

Holtzinger has been critical of the slow pace McClement has taken in moving forward on pivotal infrastructure projects, such as the completion of Monocacy Boulevard.

His entry into the Republican primary may help McClement survive a three way primary that includes Aloi.  Alderman Aloi has made no secret of her distain for the manner McClement has conducted himself during his first term, telling me “the city cannot take four more years of him”.

Throughout her first term as alderman, Aloi was critical of McClement, most recently, over his reaching agreement with city police on pension funding she believes the city cannot afford.

On the Democratic side, their primary is shaping up to be a battle between two strong local political families with alderman Karen Young facing off against Maryland state delegate Galen Clagett. 

Interestingly, in what promises to be a close race, votes pulled by newcomer Carol Hirsch, may determine the winner in the Democratic primary.

Many have opined it was Democratic infighting that led to wins by Republican mayoral candidates in the last two elections, even though there is a Democratic voter registration advantage in the city.

In 2005, it was Ron Young who challenged and beat incumbent Jennifer Dougherty.  He would go on to lose a close race to Jeff Holtzinger, with many saying it was angry Dougherty supporters who enabled Holtzinger to win.

Four years later, Jennifer would lose again in the primary, this time to newcomer Jason Judd who received the support of Ron Young. In the general election, Judd would lose another close contest to Randy McClement, who many believed received the support of unhappy Dougherty voters and from Galen Clagett, who did not support growth policies espoused by Judd.

Tom Slater, former long term chair of the Frederick County state Democratic Central Committee shared with me his thoughts on what was shaping up to be a close contest between Karen Young and Galen Clagett.

Slater told me "based on his record in Annapolis, Galen has been a progressive and a strong supporter of the Democratic party. I would also add that he has strong management skills."

Slater, who is supporting Clagett for mayor, said there is certainly a split among some Democrats and in a broad sense is centered on growth issues. He also felt there remains bad feelings among some Democratic voters from the last city election who perceived Galen did not support the Democratic candidate for mayor; Jason Judd, who lost in a close race to Republican mayor Randy McClement.

He added it was well known there have been long standing issues between Galen and former county commissioner Jan Gardner (D) and former state delegate Sue Hecht (D), both of whom are expected to support Karen Young for mayor.

Clagett detractors often bring up to me it is also no secret that Clagett Enterprises, owned by Galen, contributed to Republican Blaine Young’s Frederick County commissioner campaign in the 2010 election.

When I asked Clagett about the donation, in a recent interview, he said “… it was a business decision made by the corporate board and the discussion was centered on improving the business climate of Frederick County.”

Many believe Karen Young has been running for mayor ever since winning the most votes for alderman in the 2009 election.

Karen's supporters say she works harder than anyone they know, will thoroughly research an issue before taking a position, has a strong financial background and would be a good manager.

Her constant disagreements with Mayor McClement often led her to align her votes with Republican alderman Shelley Aloi, leaving her at times in disagreement with her fellow three Democrats on the board.

In addition, some voters believe Karen developed a reputation of being somewhat caustic when discussing her opinion on the issues.

The lone unaffiliated candidate; Jennifer Dougherty, another candidate who has received the “caustic” label from some voters, is receiving a free pass to the general election, which is both a positive and a negative.

The positive is she faces no opposition until after the primary election and can save her campaign funds for when it is needed prior to the general election.

The negative for Jennifer is this is the fifth straight election she has run for mayor and outside of the uniqueness of her running as an unaffiliated candidate; she has received little media attention due to her not participating in the primary election. (Editor correction: this marks her fourth straight city election.  Dougherty ran in 1993, 2001, 2005, 2009 and 2013, but not in 1997.)

She will have her loyal supporters, but in order to win, even in a three way race, she will need to pull from Democratic and Republican voters.

So far, I have interviewed mayoral candidates; Republican Mayor Randy McClement, Maryland state delegate Galen Clagett (D) and alderman Karen Young (D).  Next up is Jennifer Dougherty as I hope to interview all the city candidates prior to the election.

As one can readily see, there are many moving parts to this mayoral election, with past history and interpersonal relations likely to have as much impact on the outcome as a candidate’s position on current issues most important to voters.

Voters would be well served to read candidate interviews, visit their websites and attend forums prior to casting their vote.

Stay tuned.

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Will Wal-Mart Vote Impact City Election?

George Wenschhof

Last night, The City of Frederick board of aldermen voted 5-0 to rezone the Fredericktowne Mall property to general commercial allowing a third Wal-Mart to be built in the city.

The controversial decision followed a previous city rezoning of the property allowing for high density residential use following an argument by property owner attorney David Severn that economic conditions had changed.

Several years after that rezoning without the construction of any residential component on the property and a now vacant Mall, the property owner and his attorney were back before the city, once again claiming economic conditions had changed and requesting a zoning change back to general commercial.  This time, touting that Wal-Mart; their buyer for the property would be the savior for the community.

Along the way and prior to this request, city officials, community leaders and business owners formed the Golden Mile Alliance and together developed what they believed to be a guide for the redevelopment of the area.  This guide was dubbed the small area plan.

Amidst cries from Wal-Mart supporters that something had to be done to the mostly empty former Fredericktowne Mall and a previous denial from the city planning commission, city aldermen looked to require conditions to the rezoning to help to ensure capatibility with the previously approved small area plan.

Michael O'Connor was the lone alderman last night asking the hard questions pertaining to the inter-connector road, a pivotal component of the small area plan.  He asked attorney David Severn why the property owner had not secured legal approval to build the road across two adjacent properties. A question that was asked and never answered to satisfaction.

Redevelopment of areas of cities affected by economic and social demographic changes will always be a challenge for city planners and elected officials.  Looking outward to discover what other cities across the country have done successfully in similar circumstances is a must.  Having the courage and conviction to develop a vision and implement it is paramount.

It remains to be seen if the Wal-Mart will be built and if so, what long term impact it will have on the area.

Meanwhile, the city election nears, with two of the current aldermen; Kelly Russell (D) and Michael O'Connor (D) running for reelection, two running for mayor; Karen Young (D) and Shelley Aloi (R) and one; Carol Krimm (D) intending to run for Maryland state delegate next year.

Will their vote on this issue influence voters when they go to the polls this Fall?

Stay tuned.

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Young Calls Foul on Frederick News Post Mayoral Poll

George Wenschhof

Karen Young

Democratic Alderwoman Karen Young, who is running for mayor of The City of Frederick, expressed dismay to me yesterday over the manner a recent poll was conducted by the Frederick News Post (FNP).

 

Democratic Galen Clagett (D) won the poll with 40.9% and Young received 23.5%.

In an email to me Karen said “The FNP poll has been totally contaminated.  I believe that at least one person, if not more, is erasing cookies and voting multiple times.

I did a professional Voter I.D. survey about 10 days ago. The FNP results are WAY off.  My Voter I.D. was done by Chism Strategies and 2055 calls were made."

When I asked her; “who were called and the results”, Young said “Democrats with a voting history. Results had me slightly ahead.”

The online Frederick News Post website conducts daily polls, covering various issues and does not, to my knowledge, vouch for the authenticity of the results.

 

Below, are the results from the FNP poll, challenged by Young.

 

"Now that all the candidates have filed, who would you vote for to be Frederick's next mayor?"

Total Votes: 1232

16.2%

Shelley Aloi 56 - 4.5%

Carol Hirsch 90 - .7%

Jeff Holtzinger 65 - 5.3%

Randy McClement 199 - 16.2%

Galen Clagett 504 - 40.9%

Karen Young 290 - 23.5%

Jennifer Dougherty 64 - 5.2%

None of the above 45 - 3.7%

Young also forwarded me an email she sent to FNP city reporter Jen Bondeson, where she said, in part, "While I recognize that your poll is informal, it is also misleading. The danger is that the results are being used to predict outcome. This is an inappropriate use of information that is more the result of "working the poll" rather than obtaining findings from a scientific measurement."

The City of Frederick conducts a closed primary election where voters of a registered party elect their candidate(s) to move on to the general election, when all registered voters take part.  

This year, on September 10, for mayor, Democratic registered voters will choose between Galen Clagett, Karen Young and Carol Hirsch.  Republican registered voters will choose between incumbent Randy McClement, Jeff Holtzinger and Shelley Aloi.

Republican and Democratic registered voters will also vote on September 10 to determine five aldermen who will move on to the general election. 

On general election day, held on November 5, all registered voters will choose between the winner of the Republican and Democratic mayoral primaries along with unaffiliated candidate Jennifer Dougherty, who does not face a primary.

Also, on Novemeber 5, all registered voters will choose five aldermen between the five Republican and five Democratic candidates who won their respective primaries.

Earlier, alderwoman Young complained of what she called a negative push-poll conducted by Galen Clagett, that she said made her look bad.

Both the Republican and Democratic mayoral/aldermen primaries promise to be hotly contested.

Stay tuned.

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On last Day of Filing, Aloi and Hirsch File for Mayor

George Wenschhof

Alderwoman Shelley Aloi

Republican alderwoman Shelley Aloi, who kept voters wondering what office she would be running for, made her run for mayor official on the last day candidates could file to run for office in The City of Frederick election.

Carol Hirsch, a Democrat, also filed for mayor.  With, the additions of Aloi and Hirsch, there are now four women and three men running for mayor.

The possibility now exists three women could face each other in the General Election in November, which would be a first for the city.

Aloi, who has been critical of Mayor Randy McClement during her term as alderwoman, continued her derisive comments of the mayor telling me, in an interview, “The City of Frederick cannot take four more years of the mayor”.

She added McClement had not made the tough decisions in regard to the underfunded city employee pension and other post employee benefit (OPEB) programs. 

Estimates are the city pension plan is underfunded by $78 million and OPEB is underfunded by $104 million.

A total of seven candidates filed for mayor and 15 for alderman.  The City of Frederick website has a list of the primary election candidates here.

Only two incumbent aldermen filed for reelection.  They are Democrats Michael O’Connor and Kelly Russell.

 

Incumbent alderwoman Carol Crimm (D) did not file for reelection and is heavily rumored to be running for state delegate.  Delegate Galen Clagett (D-district 3-a) is running for mayor and has already announced he is not running for reelection for delegate. 

 

Incumbent alderwoman Karen Young (D) joins Shelley Aloi (R) in challenging McClement for mayor.

Voters will elect a mayor and a five member board of aldermen.  The primary election is September 10 and the general election is November 5.

Stay tuned.

Two More File for Alderman as City of Frederick Candidate Deadline Nears

George Wenschhof

Alan Imhoff

With The City of Frederick candidate July 2 filing deadline only days away, two more filed for the board of alderman.

Former, one term alderman, Republican Alan Imhoff and Democrat Kevin Greene made their entry into the race official on Friday.

Imhoff’s entry makes it six Republican candidates, ensuring a contested primary for Republican voters, who will choose five to move on to the General election.

Greene is the eighth Democratic candidate to file for alderman.  At the time of publication, Geene had not responded to my inquiry as to why he was running for office.

I asked Alan Imhoff, in an email exchange for publication, why he was running and “Do you feel your votes on the acquisition of the Hargett farm or the city buy-out will impact voters in this election?”

Imhoff responded with “Yes decided to run again to hopefully be a catalyst in moving a number of projects along that were started a long time ago, i.e. completion of the multi-use path system as outlined 8 years ago. Also to provide my knowledge and continuing work on long-range planning from a regional perspective both from Washington Area Council of Governments and the Western Maryland Local Government Exchange. Add to that my involvement for over 9 years on the county’s Workforce Develop Board which will tie into my main focus for the next years – jobs.

As to the Hargett Farm and buy-out impact on voters, it is too early for me to gauge what the average voter is currently thinking. Until I get out and talk with our residents I do not think it is high on their list of concerns as other issues, but with some folks it will always be.

Personally, as a long-range planner I do not view the purchase of the Hargett Farm as being a bad one for the City. For me it was purchased to provide sufficient green space for the future, an opportunity to develop better recreational facilities and to minimize increased housing in an area where the road system is not designed to handle that increased housing. I believe that given a 10 to 20 year time frame the City can realize those most of those expectations. Baker Park as we know it today did not appear over night.”

Incumbent Republican alderman Shelley Aloi, has been rumored as running for mayor, reelection as an alderman and also for state delegate next year.

Responding to my inquiry as to what she intended to do, Aloi informed me in an email “I will be making an announcement at City Hall, Tuesday 3 pm.”

The City of Frederick primary election will be held on September 10 and the general election follows on November 5.  Voters will elect the mayor and a five member board of aldermen.

Stay Tuned.

 

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