Members representing environmental groups and other residents clashed during a town hall hosted by Charles County Commissioner President Candice Quinn-Kelly (D) at the Bel Alton Volunteer Fire Department on Wednesday night. The debate started when Gene Davies expressed concerns about outside influence in the Cross County Connector debate.
“The Cross County Connector was not done well,” Davies stated. “The (Willard Dutton) Bridge was a compromise. It has been blindsided by environmentalists. If you live in Bryan’s Road, we have been intimiated by environmentalists… go to the (Charles County Comprehensive Plan) charrettes, there were a number of people from Prince George’s County and other counties… I can’t understand why we’re intimidated by environmentalists.”
“Blaming residents for going to meetings is crazy,” Howard Dent of Newburg said.
“There is no intimidation going on,” Kelly said. “The day people don’t go to a meeting, that’s when we need to be concerned. What (Maryland Department of the Environment) wanted, they never got. If we can’t go that route, what can we do?”
Kelly later added, “If we can do the right thing for developers and for the environment, that’s a good day.”
Kelly stated her support for the controversial road, saying there is already development taking place on Billingsley Road and that there must be infrastructure in place.
“I don’t feel intimidated by any group,” Kelly added. “Farmers’ biggest advocates are the environmentalists.”
Despite the commissioners’ reassurance, residents have expressed concern about outside influence regarding the 2012 Comprehensive Plan process in editorials to media outlets and during meetings.
“I was representing the fire department in the Comprehensive Plan,” another resident said. “The turnout of environmentalists was a disproportionate influence. They weren’t from that part of the county, they were from other counties.”
This led to a debate between several members in the audience; some pointing out that other residents from outside the area attend meetings in other areas at the time.
Kelly reiterated that the process is still underway. There will be a joint meeting between the Charles County Planning Commission and the Charles County Board of Commissioners in January. After that, a final plan will be released in a public meeting where residents will be given the opportunity to provide their feedback. The planning commission will then make a decision, and a final decision by the county commissioners will be sent to the state. The timeline for a final plan to be approved by the commissioners is April 2012.
Earlier this month, the commissioners decided not to appeal a denial of permits from the Maryland Department of the Environment over the cross county connector because county attorney Barbra Holtz did not feel an appeal would be successful. The county must get an economic impact justice study sent to the state for the process to move forward. Environmentalists have opposed the cross county connector for years. Concerns over the cross county connector propelled environment-friendly Commissioner Ken Robinson (D: 1st) in to office in the 2010 elections.
Contact Andy Marquis at
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