(3/2022) The Frederick County Council has several issues before it currently. We are working on creating the police accountability board that is required by state law, there is an issue for eclectic vehicles for new residential construction, and we recently voted on a county subsidy for the City of Frederick to purchase the land for a Marriott Hotel downtown on Carroll Creek.

First, the City of Frederick requested $2.5 million from the county general fund to allow the City to purchase land on Carroll Creek in downtown Frederick which would then be utilized to build a hotel conference center to be operated by Marriott. The county’s general fund dollars are the same dollars that are used by the Sheriff’s Department, funding schools through the Board of Education, and repairing roadways. I did not agree with using these taxpayer dollars as a gift to what will be a profitable enterprise. However, this budget item passed by a vote of 5-2 with myself and Council Member McKay voting against. It will now be up to the City of Frederick to purchase the land and work with the developer to get the hotel started.

The County Council heard a bill that would require all newly constructed homes with dedicated parking to include the electrical wiring for charging an electric vehicle. There are many people who think that electric vehicles, including vehicle charging, are the future of transportation. While this may be true, I do not believe that we should force this option on housing for people who may not want or may never own an electric vehicle. I believe that customers should be given a way to opt-out and not be required to pay for this construction. There was testimony that this electric charging station could cost between $900 - $1,200. That is significant money for something that you might not want or use. Simply making this optional is a better approach.

Finally, the County Council began discussions on passing a Police Accountability Board (PAB). Last year the state legislature required every county to have an independent board to review police misconduct. I did not agree with the Annapolis legislation, as I fear it has the potential to hurt our law enforcement community. Until a person has been in a pressured life and death situation, we should not judge others who are putting their lives on the line everyday in service of their community. We saw this with the tragic, senseless shooting of two Frederick City police officers who were protecting our community from a criminal with a handgun.

Nevertheless, we are required by law to create a board that will review police misconduct complaints. We are debating the membership and the type of procedures for this PAB to investigate citizen complaints against police. We need to ensure that this Board does not become a tool for witch hunts against those who serve our community. We owe police our respect and gratitude, and we need to make sure they feel that this Board and our community is fair to them.