Town Hall Report
by James Rada, Jr.
Thurmont
Streetlight Replacement Approved
The Thurmont Mayor and Commissioners approved a bid from Catoctin Lighting to replace 114 streetlights in the Pleasant Acres and Bennett Estates subdivisions with LED streetlights. The cost of the contract is $48,564 and is funded by a grant from the Maryland Smart Energy Communities Grant. The grant was for $67,100, so the town has asked the state to be allowed to purchase additional streetlights with the surplus funds.
Electrical Work Approved
The Thurmont Mayor and Commissioners approved a bid from Primary Installation in Rocky Ridge for $14,625 to drill a new conduit from the elementary school on East Main Street to the First Baptist Church. The funding will come from the capital projects fund.
Pedestrian Bridge Approved
The Thurmont Mayor and Commissioners approved a bid from Kinsey Construction to build a pedestrian bridge across Hunting Creek from Community Park to connect to the Lewis Annex of Catoctin Mountain Park. The bid was for $462,352.50. It will be funded from a Program Open Space grant and a Local Parks and Playgrounds Infrastructure grant. These grants left a shortfall of $23,167, which will be funded from a bequest that former Mayor Donald Lewis made to the town for the improvement to Community Park if additional Program Open Space funds can’t be secured.
ARPA Funds Reallocated
The Thurmont Mayor and Commissioners voted to reallocate $11,700 in excess ARPA funds from the town’s MS-4 project to help fund the North Center Street water main replacement.
Emmitsburg
Town Receives a Clean Audit
Michelle Mills and Addie Blickenstaff, CPAs with Deleon and Stang, presented the results of the annual independent audit of Emmitsburg’s financial statements for Fiscal Year 2024. They gave the town an unmodified or clean opinion, which is the highest rating that can be given.
The town has assets of $44.5 million, up $801,100 or 1.8 percent over 2023. The town’s liabilities are $7.4 million, up $728,900 or 10.9 percent over 2023.
Town Puts Off Pursuing Main Street Designation
The Town of Emmitsburg will remain as a Main Street affiliate and not become part of the Maryland Main Street Program for now. While the town would gain benefits from the program—in particular, access to more grants to fund town projects—it comes with some commitments that the commissioners weren’t ready to make at this time. The town would need to hire a main street manager for a minimum of 25 hours a week, provide initial funding, show that the program is sustainable, and set up various program committees. Even after the town does this, it would take at least five years to be designated a Maryland Main Street and reap the benefits of the program.
New Grants Awarded
The Town of Emmitsburg was recently awarded two new grants.
The first grant was for $350,000 from the Department of Housing and Community Development. It will provide partial funding for the North Seton Avenue Waterline Replacement and Green Street project. It has no matching requirement that the town must meet.
The second grant was for $15,000 from Sustainable MD. It requires an in-kind match of $1,562 and will fund the Cedar Avenue Community Garden Expansion, adding more raised beds, a new shed, and a water spigot.
Appointments Made
The Emmitsburg Board of Commissioners made the following appointments to town committees:
Carol Burger to the Citizen’s Advisory Committee, with a term of January 13, 2025, to January 13, 2027.
Gail Fowler to the Citizen’s Advisory Committee, with a term of January 13, 2025, to January 13, 2027.
The commissioners also accepted the resignation of Carolyn Miller from the Parks and Recreation Committee.
