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Vital Views
The Severna Park Voice, August 2005
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Council in Action
By Councilwoman Cathleen M Vitale
Well, the summer lull is over. Throughout August, no less than 13 pieces
of legislation will be considered by the County Council. I have outlined
some of the bills, which I think are of public interest and hope that if
you have an interest, you will communicate with my office and voice your
opinion. First, however, a word about Charter Schools.
The County Board of Education approved two charter schools to begin in
the fall of 2005. Each school has gone through a process, set up by and
designed by the Board for compliance with the local and state
regulations. However, as they say, a funny thing happened on the way to
the school... It turns out that under current zoning laws, the Board
could approve a school, but there was no place legally zoned to put one!
Hence, the arrival of Bill 54-05. Emergency legislation introduced by
the County Executive which designated certain areas of the County where
a charter school can be built. The legislation allows a charter school
in each location where a non-traditional private school is permitted.
Those areas include residential, commercial and industrial. Although
some have voiced concern about these requirements, without the emergency
legislation, there would be no charter school at all. There was no
attempt, as has been suggested, to derail charter schools, delay their
opening or "hurt" students, as has been suggested by the more than 50
letters and emails received by our offices. The office of planning and
zoning continues to work with the two schools to assist them with their
opening, and will work to accommodate them as best as possible.
Bed and breakfasts (Bill 55-05) will be up for discussion on August 1,
2005. As you recall, during the subdivision and zoning re-writes, much
discussion was had over the proper locations for bed and breakfasts. The
legislation being introduced permits bed and breakfasts in the lower
portion of the county. It will not permit them in Severna Park or the
Broadneck, as well as other northern sections of the County.
Bill 50-05 is a controversial piece of legislation. This bill,
introduced by the County Executive would give the County the authority
to impose fees for making and re-marking the location of underground
utilities, prior to excavation; and generally relating to construction
activity in County rights-of-way. As I listened to the testimony the
other evening I was stuck with a thought. The goal of contacting Miss
Utility is to protect the underground utilities from being damaged
during excavation. If suddenly a property owner was going to be charged
a fee, would they still call the County or would they just dig. Being
practical, I suspect they would dig. If I fee would dissuade an
individual from having the lines marked, I think I would rather forego
the fee. What do you think?
Bill 51-05 is a bill that has a good purpose, but is probably in need of
rewriting. Currently, if a proper is subject to a private front foot
assessment, and the owner seeks to sell the property he is required to
notify the buyer of the fee, how often it is paid, and who to pay it to.
Unfortunately, in many communities, the utility company has not billed
for several years, and the property owner may not even know there is a
fee. Under current law, the seller would be required to pay the entire
front foot fee on behalf of the buyer (sometimes in excess of $15,000)
even if they never knew there was a fee. Something is clearly wrong with
that principal. Bill 51-05 seeks to relieve a property owner from ever
having to pay the fee if the utility company does not send a yearly
bill. While I like the idea, and I do not think it fair that an
unsuspecting seller could get left holding the bag, the Council awaits a
legal opinion as to whether or not we can erase a private lien against a
property. By the way, for all of you on County services, have no fear,
they never forget to send the bill.
Also pending before the Council is Bill 62-05. If passed, taxi cabs will
be allowed to charge an additional $1.00 per ride and add it to the cost
of the cab ride. The purpose, as suggested by the bill is to cover the
cost of rising fuel rates.
Now, as promised, an additional web site for your review and comment.
Ever wonder who to call if the trash pick up is missed or the collectors
fail to get the trash into the truck but leave it on the street? The
County web site, www.aacounty.org, answers those questions and more.
While most individuals contact their council person for trash help,
direct assistance is a phone call away. 410-222-6100 is a direct line to
the County's Waste Management Office. They will, upon receiving your
call, send someone out to take care of the problem. Also on this site is
useful information regarding recycling, bundling, packaging and a list
of items which are accepted for recycling by the County. Have a problem
with your yellow bin disappearing? Need an additional bin for additional
recycling efforts? Visit one of the five sites listed on the web and
pick up a new or additional bin. Each of the sites has varied hours to
best serve your needs.
Next month???
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