Land Use

-Create a public/private partnership to bring water and sewer service to the County Growth Corridor. 

 “As your Cecil County Commissioner I will work tirelessly for infrastructure in the corridor as this is the key to better managing our growth problems.  I have worked on land use issues for a long time and I know it is now or never for Cecil County to prepare for growth in a constructive way.  I will not tolerate quarreling between town and county factions.  I believe in results and will call for immediate dialogue between town and county officials.  We must encourage town and county officials to resolve differences, work together, and formulate regional cooperation on our infrastructure problems.  I will bring the stakeholders to the table so that we can broker positive results for the county in a timely manner.”

-Extend and Strengthen Commuter Rail Service

“In order to propel Cecil County into the future we need a vibrant transportation network that transforms the growth corridor into a highly efficient economic sector of our county.  Cecil County is the only place not linked into the vast commuter rail network extended from below Washington DC to north of New York City.  This is unacceptable.  If we want to grow a high-tech, productive economy we must bring mass transit to Cecil County.”

-Promote Agricultural Viability and Profitability

“Farmland is best preserved through the existence of a healthy and profitable agricultural industry.  As a supporting member of the Chesapeake Fields Institute and the Maryland Center for Agro-Ecology I have been involved in strengthening our agricultural industries.  As your Commissioner, I will work with the local Farm Bureau, the Young Farmers, our cooperative extension service, and other agencies to help strengthen agricultural industries in Cecil County.  We should expand the allowed uses for land zoned for agriculture so that our farmers have more options to increase the profitability of their operations.  We can do more to connect our local agricultural producers with local consumers.  By working with local farmers we can preserve our rural heritage while also sustaining the growth of our agricultural industries. ”

-Create an incentives-based system for development

“If the goal is to create conditions for high density development in the growth corridor then our government should give incentives to developers that want to develop in the growth corridor.  If the developer is willing to build lasting, walkable, sustainable communities in our county shouldn’t we give them incentives to do this?  If developers know what we want and they know what we are willing to give we can create great communities without negatively impacting current residents.”

-Establish Design Expectations

“Cecil County is a unique place.  Our history and culture are important.  As we move forward to address growth challenges it is important to define what exactly we want new growth to look like.  To do this I would propose we create Design Expectations.  Design Expectations are guidelines defined by County government that engineers, developers, and architects can use as a reference when building in Cecil County.  Design Expectations can consist of anything from building styles to lighting types.  By creating Design Expectations our builders have a better idea of what the citizens want the county to look like in the future.  As your Commissioner I will form an ad hoc committee consisting of various stakeholders that will work to create Design Expectations protocol.  I would also recommend that at the beginning of each year the Design Expectations be reviewed.  This would allow for the citizens to annually evaluate whether or not the protocol still reflects how they would like Cecil County to look in the future.  It would also be useful to explore what types of incentives packages County government could give builders who use the Design Expectations protocol.”

-Create and Implement an APFO

“Many schools in the county are currently over capacity, roads are in need of repair, and emergency services are stretched thin, all because of increased growth pressure.  In order to combat the negative effects of development while also benefiting from the good effects we need a way to inventory and assess what development our county can absorb.  We need to set limits and standards so that our resources are not compromised.  As a Commissioner I will call for town and county cooperative work sessions where stakeholders can hammer out compromise and broker positive solutions for the people of this county.  We cannot afford to cower away from the responsibility of managing growth in a constructive and effective way.”