Greater Crofton Council

Regular GCC Meeting
14 February 2012

Election of officers of the GCC:
Since the January meeting did not have a quorum, we'll try to do this in February.
Please send nominations to the
election committee

Future Events:

24 January 2012
Anne Arundel County Commission on Disability Issues
1 to 3 p.m.
Chesapeake Room, 2^nd Floor
Heritage Office Complex
2664 Riva Road, Annapolis

14 February 2012
Regular GCC meeting

GCC MEETINGS

When: Second Tuesday Monthly at 7:00 PM
   Where: Village Commons Community Center
          located in The Village AT Waugh Chapel

Meeting Cancellation Policy:  If the Board of Education of Anne Arundel County cancels school activities due to inclement weather, then the Greater Crofton Council's meeting will also be canceled.

Please do not park in front of stores along
Main Chapel Way.

Driving Directions

More Directions and Map

GCC OFFICERS and Committee Chairs 2009

President
Bob Brennan
Contact president

Vice President
Dan Scholfield
Contact vice president

Secretary
Bess Sharland
Contact secretary

Treasurer
Ben La Pointe
Contact treasurer

Election Committee

Contact the election committee

Security & Safety Chair:
Open
Contact Security & Safety Chair

Transportation Chair:
Madonna Brennan
Contact Transportation Chair

Education Chair:
Tom Frank
Contact Education Chair

Environment Chair:
Open
Contact Environment Chair

Webmaster
Jean-Alex Sharland
Contact Web Master

GCC Documents

GCC officers Nomination Forms
Citizen of the Year Nomination Form
Privacy Statement
GCC Bylaws Pdf file, 155 KB
GCC Position and County Reply to Recycle Bins

Community Center Program Needs pdf
Adair Farms - Equestrian Homes
Village at Waugh Chapel South
Concepts for Staples Corner
State of Anne Arundel County pdf
Documents Pertaining to Landfills
Documents Pertaining to Water
A.A. Co. Medicare Part D Info. Form 1.8 MB pdf

Community Links

Arundel Volunteer Fire Department
Arundel Soccer Association
Chapman Farm
Crofton Athletic Council
Crofton Meadows
Greater Crofton Chamber of Commerce
Crofton Valley
Davidsonville Civic Association
Four Seasons Community Association
Greater Odenton Improvement Assn.
Huntingtonwoods HOA
West A. A. County Chamber of Commerce

GCC Links

CroftonPatch
County Zoning Application Review Tool County Web
Crofton Regional Community Center
Growth Action Network
Crofton First
RainScaping.org
StateStat
Focus On Crofton
Suburban Scene
Alliance for Sustainable Communities
Crofton Village Garden Club
West Rhode Riverkeeper link
CEDS
    Community & Environment Defense Services
CEPA Online
    Chesapeake Environmental Protection Association
TREE-MENDOUS MARYLAND link
   Purchase trees for your community
Recycle More
Village Commons Community Center link
     at The Village at Waugh Chapel

About Us

County Links

Contact Your Representatives
Anne Arundel County Government
Anne Arundel County Council
General Assembly
AAC Library
AAC Public Schools
Police Information:
          twitter
          facebook
          Press Releases
County News Links

Environment

Poll: Marylanders support increase to 'flush fee' Capital
Advocates point to NJ law as model for Md. offshore wind Capital
Environmental cleanups aren't automatic job-killers Capital
Environmental regulations help jobs Capital
Jobs and clean water for rural Maryland Capital
Offshore wind issue keeps turning Capital
Bay region officials hunt down non-native invaders Capital
Arundel council to hear debate on storm-water runoff fee Sun
Gas drilling polluting Chesapeake Bay area Capital
Panel punts septic tank limits to governor Capital
Chesapeake Bay's pollution diet plans will be costly Capital
Experts: Bay pollution diet will be difficult and costly Capital
Dueling reports paint different pictures of bay pollution models Capital
Helping the bay ... ... by eating seafood Capital
Rubble landfill draws opposition Capital
State may OK Crofton rubble landfill Capital
Leaders pledge bay cleanup is on track Capital
Conservation yields returns Capital
Home builders sue EPA over bay pollution limits Capital
Watershed Stewards Academy seeks eco-conscious residents Capital
Conservation cuts hurt farms, bay Capital
Learn how landscaping can help control stormwater Capital
Bay lawsuit pits farmers against environmentalists Capital
Oysters: On the brink of recovery? Capital
Riverkeepers decry 'incremental solutions' Capital
AACC parking lot generates electricity Capital
Cleaning up the creeks Capital
Few environment bills survive in Annapolis Capital
Going less green on lawns to help the Bay Sun
Septic issue needs careful consideration Capital
Bill targets limits on lawn fertilizer Capital
Feds appoint new bay adviser Capital
Bay cleanup plans given low grades Capital
O'Malley readies offshore wind power mandate Capital
Feds fast-track offshore wind energy Capital
Green activists join forces in Annapolis Capital
Solar project to cut county's energy bill by $100K Capital
State of the bay: Still poor Capital

More on Fly Ash

Education

Spending plan will continue its review Capital
Senator pushes for elected school board, again Capital
County officials oppose teacher pension shift Capital
Maryland schools ranked 1^st in the nation again Capital
County defends itself in school funding squabble Capital
Schools discuss how to spend $986M Capital
Arundel schools budget encounters support Sun
Legopalooza brings brick builders together at the Crofton library Capital
Maxwell seeks public support for schools budget Sun
Prepare for magnet program lotteries Capital
Back to school Capital
Parents join forces to establish special education academy Capital
Schools launch new plan to close achievement gap Capital
'Back to School Expo' to offer supplies, info to families Capital
Crossing guard gets her job back Capital
24 county schools fail to meet state targets Capital
Maryland approves environmental education requirement Capital
Creating more opportunities for more students more often Capital
Schools, county don't see eye-to-eye on pay raises Capital
No layoffs or furloughs for county schools Capital
AACC staff, faculty to face furlough days Capital
Saga of crossing guard vs. administrator captures public's attention Capital
School board to reconcile its final '12 budget needs Capital
Schools move up in rankings Capital
Arundel council's rocky relationships mar first budget debate Sun
Severna Park High delayed Capital
School funding decisions: A critical balancing act Capital
Schools, county resume funding fight Capital
Arundel councilman and developer butt heads over school plan Sun
Anne Arundel seeks exemption from state education funding requirement Sun
County school board seeks new District 33 member Capital
County: Schools tab too costly Capital
Making students globally competitive Capital
South River junior elected to school board Capital
County educators receive honors Capital
Schools OK with energy costs ... this year, at least Capital
County: No waiver but no money either Capital
School board changes all but dead this session Capital
County tells schools: Cuts coming Capital
Budget concerns worry book lovers Capital
Council learns ABCs of school spending Capital
Libraries shouldn't be targeted for more cuts Capital
House delegation approves elected school board bill Capital
Anne Arundel developer purchases land for school Sun
Officials set meeting on school budget Capital
Conti named leader of school panel Capital
Proponents seek to keep Leopold's school bills alive Capital
Bill eases exemption from school budget increases Capital
School board doesn't trim budget Capital
Anne Arundel Board of Education approves superintendent's budget Sun
Seniority Moment WSJ
Progress on west county school plans Capital
School officials oppose local bills Capital
Leopold seeks grip on school spending Capital
Getting American students to find the goal posts of success WashPost
Can we strengthen the parents' voice in education? Capital

The January 11^th 2012 Meeting

The GCC January meeting did not have a quorum, so the GCC elections were postponed.

The guest speaker was county councilman Jamie Benoit. Since the assembled group was rather small, GCC president, Bob Brennan, and Mr. Benoit agreed to have an informal discussion.

The first question asked concerned county councilman Daryl Jones, who is to report to federal prison on 23 January, to serve 5 months for failure to pay federal income tax.
Mr. Benoit said that the County Charter, adopted in 1965, makes no provision for the removal of a councilman. Mr. Benoit had submitted a bill which would declare Mr. Jones' seat vacant when Mr. Jones enters prison. He said that councilman Grasso had submitted a resolution (almost word for word) on the subject. If this matter goes to court, the bill may be struck down. If that is the case, Mr. Benoit would abide by the judgment even if other councilpersons would seek to defy the court.
Jones removed from County Council seat
County Council Declares Jones' Seat Vacant
Judge rejects Jones' bid to retain seat on council
Arundel council cleared to replace Jones when he enters prison

Mr. Benoit asked the members of the GCC that were present what they thought about the possible extension of Evergreen Road to Strawberry Way in Piney Orchard. The extension would traverse the Cunningham Landfill and the firm would demand that their trucks be allowed to use the road.

Brenda Kragh of Coventry II asked for advise. She said that homeowners in Coventry II cannot sell their residences because too many members of their condominium have not paid their condominium fees. The would be buyers could not get mortgage financing because of this. Councilman Benoit did not know whether this is because of a federal or a state law. He was sure it was not because of county ordnance. GCC webmaster, Jean-Alex Sharland, said that something like this had happened in Coventry I, and that he thought it was because of a federal law that applied to Freddie Mac and the like.

Mr. Benoit said that the previous county council, elected in 2006, had been much better at working together, despite political differences, than the present council. Some of the members of the present council have a "complete lack of sense of how government works." He said that the council "must really write the budget."

Councilman Benoit said that there were many fiscal problems in the county. He said the "sewage fund is going broke." He noted that what sewage capacity the county has is in the wrong parts of the county. Then there is the maintenance backlog on schools. Also the stream restoration funds are seriously short.

County water is also a major concern. He noted that twenty percent of the county's is consumed by six business users, among which are Brandon Shores, Baltimore Washington International Airport, and Arundel Mills Shopping Center. Also the golf courses in the county use millions of gallons of water per day in the summer. Taking into account the infrastructure to deliver this water to these businesses, they should pay a higher rate for the county supplied water, was the councilman's opinion.

Mr. Benoit said that the county is not setting aside reserve funds to cover obligations to cover its obligations to its retired employees. He said that all these problems could lead to a financial disaster for the county in twenty to thirty-five years.

GCC Partnerships

The GCC has cooperated in the following:

Night Out Against Crime 2011

Contributed to the John J. Klocko III Scholarship Fund.

April 29^th West County Leadership Roundtable April 29 2011 Round Table

February 4^th West County Leadership Roundtable February Roundtable Meeting

The John J. Klocko III Leadership Fund Scholarship Awards Ceremony
Dr. Karen Klocko, Benjamin Catterton, Eva Xiao, Forrest Turetsky

Community and School Partnership for Student Safety
Waugh Chapel Community Center, 29 October, 2009

GCC Sponsored, Rock Out Crofton, a Success Climbing Wall

The January 11th 2012 Meeting

The January 11^th 2012 Meeting