Elected officials in Charles County blasted the Department of Juvenile Services decision to move forward with acquiring land for their Southern Maryland region juvenile detention center on Friday. The plan has caused backlash with residents in the Waldorf area. The location, on Acton Road, would be within a couple miles of three schools and within only a few hundred yards of the White Oak Village community.

“As I told Secretary Sam Abed, first of all, we've tried to work this thing through the Charles County Delegation,” State Senator Thomas ‘Mac’ Middleton (D: 28th District) said. “The delegation was on record. I spoke to him personally about how much I thought it was the wrong site. It's supposed to be a regional facility and the fact that it's in Waldorf does not meet the description of regional. It's in the defined area for light rail transit which is the number one priority for the commissioners. It does not make sense to house a facility hosting 60 kids on 30 acres of land where we need to concentrate on density. Citizens opposed it because of perceived impact on schools and facilities nearby. 

“I was strongly opposed to it. I asked the secretary to consider other sites. For him to select this site, I’m very disappointed. I've talked to one other member of the delegation to call for a review on what went in to the consideration.”

Middleton also said that a location next to an existing facility in Hughesville would have been more appropriate.

"One of my sources said it had never been looked at,” Middleton said. “I’m as opposed to this location now as i was when i met with the citizens.”

"The selection of the Acton Lane site was the culmination of an exhaustive 2 year process where DJS reviewed and evaluated 121 potential sites in Anne Arundel, Charles, Calvert and St. Mary's Counties," Jay Cleary, spokesperson for the Department of Juvenile Services, said. "During the past year, Secretary Abed invited the community to suggest potential sites. As a result, DJS considered several sites that had been suggested by local community members and organizations. After measuring each of the 121 sites against DJS's criteria and needs, the Acton Lane site remained the property that would give DJS the best opportunity to run a safe and successful juvenile facility."

Charles County Commissioner Vice President Reuben Collins (D), who also represented the district affected, said he was disappointed in the decision.

“I should say im shocked but I shouldn’t be,” Collins said.  “The state was committed to that site and I don’t believe they really looked any place else. I actually feel a sense of grief for the residents rather than it being a policy issue I’m not in support of. The residents put together an impressive advocacy effort. It’s unfortunate we so often view one of the basic tenants of democracy being the right to assemble and voice your opinion. I’m hoping many of these residents don't leave the feeling that ‘no matter what I do, it doesn't matter’.”

Charles County Commissioner President Candice Quinn Kelly (D) expressed her disappointment over the decision.

“The residents were clear this is not the site that they prefer. I support them completely, however, this is entirely a state matter and i have every confidence in Senator Middleton and the delegation to represent their constituents. As an elected official to the residents of the county, my opposition was dually noted after hearing the opposition of our citizens.”

Kelly did not feel that the decision would negatively impact the light rail plans, but did say she would call for a briefing.

“I am unaware of it having any negative impact. On Tuesday, I am going to request this be placed on the agenda for a briefing. Transportation is our county/state priority.”

Kelly has received political backlash after documents obtained on a Public Information Act request show she had initially supported the Waldorf location and had pitched it to Middleton. Despite her initial support, Kelly stated that she became opposed to the location when she got more information about the proposal and listened to the residents.

"As this is a state issue and the Charles County Delegation has made it clear that they are opposed to the Acton Lane site, concerned citizens should continue to make it clear to our state representatives that they do not want the facility in their neighborhood," Charles County Commissioner Ken Robinson (D: 1st) said.  "The county commissioners have declared unanimously that Acton Lane is not suitable because the neighboring communities do not want it there.  I have felt that locating the youth facility next to the already secure existing Charles County Sheriff’s Office Detention center in La Plata makes the most sense."

"I'm disappointed,” Waldorf resident Matt Ashurst, who started an online petition drive against the proposal last year, said on Friday. “I was really holding out that they would find a solution for all intents and purposes. Everybody was on board; there was some more practical solutions. I'm just overall disappointed and I don't know what the next steps are. I don't think the fights over with, we still have options on the table, but I'm surprised DJS was not compelled with the information we supplied them from informative to emotional. I don't see how they came to their conclusion. I respect their process and the communication we had with Abed. I guess we'll keep with the process."

The decision drew the ire of residents at multiple public hearing. Residents expressed concerns about safety and the detention center’s proximity to nearby schools. The pre-trial detention center, which will sit on 18 acres off Acton Lane, would house 48 youths awaiting trial from Charles, Calvert, St. Mary’s and Anne Arundel Counties.