Fiscal Accountability/Public Safety, Important to Cowell

George Wenschhof

Daniel Cowell

Dan Cowell, who finished fifth in The City of Frederick Republican alderman primary, told me his moving on to the general election was bittersweet to him.  His friend and fellow Republican alderman candidate; Hayden Duke had lost in the primary.

Dan said he and Hayden had helped found the Western Maryland Young Republican Group and had become close friends.

I remarked this was the first time I had seen two candidates using the same campaign literature.  When they both entered the race for alderman, Dan said they decided to campaign together as a team.  They figured they could reach more voters this way and developed handouts that promoted each candidate.

Interestingly, Dan said before he could file for office, he went through a rigorous ethics review to make sure there was no conflict with his employer JP Morgan Chase bank or the city’s ethics guidelines.  The solution to any potential conflicts is that he would need to recluse himself from any vote that may have an interest to his employer.

Dan informed me he wants fiscal accountability in the city and believes city taxes should be comparable to county taxes.  He did not feel the services provided by the city were that much more than the county.

In regard to the debt with the city Pension and other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) programs, Dan wants more contributions by employees on health care and retirement, with the city contributing less on pension.

When I asked him about the city’s current 20 year debt reduction plan, Dan said he would like this moved up to 5 years.  He added at this point the city can’t afford an aquatic center or solar powered energy projects and needs to be focused on paying down the debt, citing his concern of hearing about cities who have declared bankruptcy.

Dan also said public safety was important to him and he was concerned with the homeless, vagrants, and nuisance crimes along Carroll Creek that detract from families visiting and shopping there. 

He also noted the higher incidence of crime in the Key Parkway/Hillcrest area and would like to see a police substation set up in the area to create a presence and for the police to be closer to the problem.

Overall, he wants to see an increase in foot patrols. 

Increasing the voice of business owners is also important to Cowell.  He would like to see a business committee created with a liaison from the City board of alderman, so they could have a mechanism to discuss the problems they face.

Dan says he favors a downtown hotel/conference center, but does not want to use city tax dollars to build it.  However, he does support the city building a parking deck to support a downtown hotel because he felt the city needed new parking.

When it came to the low voter turnout in the city elections, Dan did not believe open primaries were necessarily a solution.  After, hearing different sides to the benefit of nonpartisan elections, he said he doesn’t have a position at this point.

Dan added he was onboard with the development of Phase II of Carroll Creek and the completion of Monocacy Boulevard, providing the financial resources were available.

Dan concluded with telling me he and his wife Amy, who is an occupational therapist, have a nine month old son Grant and he loves the city.  He reiterated the city needs to fix the debt.

 

Registered voters in the City of Frederick will determine their mayor and five member board of alderman on November 5.

Stay tuned.

 

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Imhoff Eyes Return to City Hall

George Wenschhof

Alan Imhoff

Alan Imhoff likens himself as the unofficial ambassador of The City of Frederick.  He told me in an interview, that over the last 13 years, he has represented the city officially and unofficially across the state.

Alan, said the city is the envy of many with its unique blend of historic and new.  He added it is a great story to tell because the city is a great place to work and live.

I've known Alan for over sixteen years and he has always been involved in local politics and community issues. It seems when city elections comes around, he is often found running for office. 

 

A Republican who served one term as alderman, during the Jeff Holtzinger administration, he wants to return to city hall to contribute to future strategic planning that he believes is necessary for the city. 

He came in third in the Republican primary and acknowledged the Democrats have an overall stronger ticket.  However, he believes a Republican or two will be elected as alderman and hopes to be one of them because there is more he wishes to accomplish.

Alan cited the rank and review process initiated under the Holtzinger administration for annexations as one process he was proud to have helped institute. However, he pointed out the annexations that have taken place during the current Republican Randy McClement administration did not include any commercial development.  Alan believes residential/mixed used zoning should be balanced with commercial.

One important area Imhoff would like to see the city do is for the mayor and board develop a strategic plan that will help them prioritize capitol works projects to handle planned development. Similar to the rank and review process he helped initiate for annexations, he believes there is need to develop a process to determine city funding for improvements.

This would help the city in improving the overall quality of life for its residents by balancing new development with redevelopment needs, such as the “golden mile”.

He also wants city officials to “get out of Frederick” and see what other municipalities are doing around the country.  Alan spoke enthusiastically about the downtown mall in Charlottesville, Virginia where a pedestrian mall has many shops and restaurants located in the historic buildings on and around old Main Street Charlottesville.

When I asked him how he felt about the city supporting the building of a downtown hotel/conference center, Alan said he felt it was premature.  He added he did not want the city building a parking deck just for them.

Alan also expressed concern with how Phase II of the Carroll Creek project would be developed, pointing out that it needed to generate foot traffic.  He had noticed the condominiums that were built on Phase I had not contributed to foot traffic along the creek. 

The city debt to the Other Post Employment Benefits Program (OPEB) and the pension is another area Alan wants the city to focus on.  He would like the new mayor and board to review all existing contracts with employees.  A total set amount of benefit dollars per employee is one way Alan has seen work effectively in the private sector and he would like the city to create a task force to review this as an option available to the city.

In regard to the low city voter turnout, Alan said he had long been a proponent to move the city election to coincide with the presidential election.  The change would save the city up to $120,000 and also put the polling locations back in the schools where voters are familiar with going to on Election Day.  He added nonpartisan elections did not improve voter turnout.

Alan also defended his support of the city purchasing the Hargett farm for use as a park, pointing out Baker Park was not built overnight and this was a long term project for the benefit of residents.

City registered voters will choose their mayor and five member board of alderman on November 5.

Stay tuned.

 

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Hirsch Focused on the Environment

George Wenschhof

Carol Hirsch (Middle)

My interview by phone, of Carol Hirsch; Democratic candidate for mayor of The City of Frederick, was a first for me.

Carol, who is deaf, quickly corrected me via the interpreter and asked that I refer to her as an ASL User (American Sign Language User).

I had meet Carol twice briefly, and found her to have an engaging personality. The opportunity to discuss her race for mayor was intriguing to me.

I began by asking her a little about herself and she told me she had lived in New York City, has three children and after divorce, was a single mom.  One of her children Cj, I met at the Neighborhood Advisory Council (NAC) candidate forum held earlier in the week.

Her education included media technology and she liked film and video.  She added she has been working at Wal-Mart for the last nine years.  Interestingly, several friends of mine, when hearing I was interviewing Carol, were quick to say they knew her from shopping at the Rt. 26 store and always found her fun and friendly when they went through her line to check out.

When I asked her why she was running for mayor, Carol quickly answered with “why not? I have strong leadership skills, strong organization background and I’m good at politics.”

The area Carol mentioned she was most interested in was environmental issues and spoke of the need for recycling to become more standardized.

When I asked her if she supported Frederick County government building an incinerator to handle solid waste disposal, she referred to the Al Gore movie “An Inconvenient Truth” and said “a better understanding and more facts were needed before proceeding.”

To help promote environmental awareness, she would propose not using electricity for five minutes one day.

I also asked Carol about blighted properties in the city and she said “the mayor’s task force was a good start and she would want a strong focus on this and get it resolved.”

In regard to a downtown hotel/conference center, she felt government did not have money to help with this now and she would not support any government funding for the project.  She asked “Why do we need it?” She added “there are many other things to work at before this.”

In closing my interview, I informed Carol I had noticed she had not filed the first candidate campaign finance report due on August 12.  She said there had been some confusion and she would get it in on October 7 when the next report is due.

I thanked her for taking the time to interview with me and I also thank the interpreter services who were very helpful throughout the entire interview.

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

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

Jennifer Dougherty, who does not face a primary opponent, is a unaffiliated candidate for mayor.

The City of Frederick primary election is September 10.

Stay tuned.

 

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Lynch Wants More Citizen Involvement in Planning Process

George Wenschhof

Jack Lynch

Jack Lynch, who is a Democratic candidate for alderman in The City of Frederick election, is passionate about wanting to see more citizen involvement in the planning process.

He is concerned the city is on the cusp of growing out in a way that will destroy the identity of Frederick.

Lynch would like to engage residents in planning as he believes everything revolves around planning.  He would like to see the city use form-based zoning and codes that are focused on the form of buildings rather than land use.

He told me "It's not what uses or regulations determine our buildings, it's about whether it looks and feels good to people, if they want to walk around there and like it."

Jack added he sees the Carroll Creek development as being a destructive swath of concrete through historic downtown. He feels it has not returned a high enough return for the taxpayer money spent developing the site.

Lynch is also troubled private investment money is going to the north end of Frederick and not other parts of the city and does not see an overall plan for how the city will grow.

He believes citizens often wait until a public notice is posted before they state their opinion and feels it is often too late at this point.

Strengthening Neighborhood Advisory Councils (NACs) and allowing them to provide even more input into the planning process, is something Jack will support if elected alderman.

Bringing citizens together, perhaps by developing small area plans from all sections across the city to provide a vision of what the city could do, is something he would encourage.

He was especially concerned when he felt residents were not listened to in recent votes by the city board of aldermen when they approved a change in zoning for a proposed Wal-Mart and voted to annex the 97 acre Caidlyn property into the city. 

Mr. Lynch testified against both requests and was disappointed the golden mile small area plan and comprehensive plan were not followed.

Also, receiving thumbs down from Lynch is the proposed downtown hotel/conference center. He said the recent consultant report confirmed what he had been saying all along and that is "the economics did not work."

Another area Jack would like the city to focus on is building a more sustainable community and to develop a green infrastructure plan.  He would like to see N. Market Street become an example of green infrastructure where the curbs, sidewalks, etc. were reengineered and rebuilt to allow more water to be absorbed naturally.

Extending Baker Park eastward to be included in the East Frederick Rising plans is another way the city should move forward.

When the topic of waste disposal came up, Lynch said he would like to see the city require business recycling and for the city to provide weekly recycling pick up. He also would move to reinstate the city bulk trash pick-ups that were discontinued by the current mayor and board.

Furthermore, Jack would like to see the city opt-out of Frederick County government plans to build an incinerator.

Jack Lynch is one of eight Democratic and seven Republican candidates running for the five member city board of aldermen.  The primary election will be held on September 10.

Stay Tuned.

 

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Online Poll on Downtown Hotel/Conference Center

George Wenschhof

Republican mayor Randy McClement has long promoted the construction of a downtown hotel/conference center.

Maryland state delegate Galen Clagett (D), who is also a candidate for mayor, has also supported building the hotel/conference center.

A recent report by the consultant hired by The City of Frederick showed a funding shortfall of $10-12 million.  I wrote about this here.

The poll gives you four options; you can say "Yes", "No", You support the city "building a parking deck" or the city should provide "waivers on taxes, permit fees".

This issue will become a focus of the city election.

Weigh in on how you feel on this issue - the poll will run a couple of days and is located in the right hand margin of the home page.

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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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