[0:03] Good evening everyone and welcome to the
August 10th mayor and town council
[0:07] meeting for Sykesville. Today um is
August 10th and we will call the meeting
[0:11] to order at 7:02 and uh stand for the
pledge of allegiance followed by a brief
[0:16] moment of silence.
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the
[0:22] United States of America and to the
republic for which it stands. One nation
[0:27] under God, indivisible, with liberty and
justice for all. That moment of silence.
[0:43] Thanks everybody.
[0:47] All right. So, the mayor's power is out
and um I'm sure I'm not the only one,
[0:53] but you get you get a beach hair mayor
for the night and uh this is uh without
[0:58] a blow dryer. Okay.
>> So, is mine.
[1:02] » Yes. [laughter] Thank you for that.
Thank you for that.
[1:06] So, our first order of business is
public comments. Do we have anyone
[1:09] signed up?
>> No one signed up for comment. That being
[1:12] said, we'll move on to our consent
agenda, which this evening is inclusive
[1:15] of the minutes from July 13th's meeting
and the reappoint of Paul Miller to the
[1:20] board of zoning appeals for a three-year
term expiring August 2029. Are there any
[1:25] requests from council to um uh make any
were there any amendments to the minutes
[1:31] before we move on? Yes. And everybody
here at the table is aware of that? Yes.
[1:35] Okay. So, that being said, um if unless
there's any concerns or questions, we'll
[1:39] keep this as a consent agenda and ask
for a motion to approve.
[1:42] » So, move.
>> Thank you. [clears throat] Second.
[1:44] » Thank you. There's a motion to approve.
The consent agenda is made by councilman
[1:48] Dyer and uh seconded by a councilwoman a
picket. All in favor, please say I. I.
[1:56] Any opposed? All right. So, that is
accepted and uh made part of history
[2:02] forever unanimously. We move on to new
business, right?
[2:06] » Yes. Thank you. Move on to new business
which is the proclamation for the house
[2:10] plant capital of Maryland. Um and I we
will dis disc consider and discuss and
[2:16] uh act on this proclamation and I will
now read it. House plant capital of
[2:21] Maryland proclamation. Whereas Botanagal
has become a destination for house plant
[2:26] enthusiasts welcoming visitors from
across Maryland and neighboring states
[2:31] to the town of Sykesville. And whereas
through workshops, educational classes
[2:36] and community events, Botanagal promotes
corticulture, plant education and
[2:42] community engagement. And whereas house
plants contribute to health and wellness
[2:46] and a stronger connection to nature and
Botanagal's foundation is horicultural
[2:51] therapy in horicultural therapy helps
make those benefits accessible to the
[2:55] community. And whereas Botanagal is a
woman-owned business on psych schools
[3:00] main street and Hannah Brookfield owner
is a certified horiculturalist and
[3:06] certified horicultural therapist. And
whereas the town of Sykesville continues
[3:11] to champion unique small businesses that
strengthen Main Street, encourage
[3:16] tourism, and foster community pride. And
whereas this designation as house plant
[3:22] capital of Maryland helps establish
Sykesville as Maryland's premier
[3:26] destination for houseplant lovers while
supporting local businesses and a
[3:31] vibrant downtown. And whereas
recognizing Sykesville as the house
[3:35] plant capital of Maryland celebrates
entrepreneurship, horicultural
[3:39] education, the town's commitment to
creating memorable experiences for
[3:44] residents and visitors alike. Now
therefore be it proclaimed by the mayor
[3:49] and town council of the town of
Sykesville that Sykesville is the house
[3:53] plant capital of Maryland and residents
and visitors are encouraged to visit
[3:58] Botanagal and the other shops in town to
enjoy house plants and the health and
[4:03] wellness benefits that they provide. Uh
is the council ready to uh have a motion
[4:09] to pro uh approve this proclamation?
>> I have so move.
[4:13] » Thank you councilwoman.
>> Second. Thank you, council president.
[4:17] Any need for debate or combo? I didn't
think so. All in favor of uh this
[4:22] proclamation calling
Sykesville, Maryland the house plant
[4:28] capital of the state, please say I.
>> I. Any opposed?
[4:32] » Fantastic. Unanimously approved.
>> And I saw there's an event on Saturday
[4:37] 12 to 4. Is there a specific time frame
where you're going to be presenting
[4:40] anything or
>> We are definitely going to either be
[4:43] repeating this proclamation.
Um or I'm hoping that maybe we might
[4:48] have a surprise speaker for it, but
that's totally up in the air and I'm
[4:52] just going to say that again for the
second time staff and see if we can't
[4:57] get a special person to come and read
it. Otherwise, no matter what me,
[5:01] » it's not you. [laughter]
>> No, it's not you. You are not You are
[5:04] not second in line. Um, but I will tell
you that uh that event is going to take
[5:10] place on a closed Oklahoma Avenue and um
uh closed to traffic on Oklahoma Avenue
[5:16] and it's going to be lots of fun, lots
of fun activities and um a chance for um
[5:22] a celebration and uh and selling lots of
house plants and enjoying one another's
[5:27] community. So, uh time for uh the
council's participation for for for our
[5:32] participation in this um proclamation
will be soon like to the beginning to
[5:38] the start of it. I have to confirm
things with with Hannah.
[5:42] » It is August 22nd.
>> August. Yes. Oh, apologies. Thanks.
[5:45] » Sorry about that. Yeah. Um okay. So that
brings us to more announcements and
[5:51] reports. And I'll begin with the fact
that our next mayor and town council
[5:54] meeting will be held on Monday,
September 14th, 2026. We have volunteer
[5:59] opportunities galore. They exist on the
historic district commission, the
[6:04] planning commission, parks and
recreation commission, police auxiliary,
[6:08] and we are seeking additional crossing
guards. Uh if anyone is interested in
[6:12] volunteering with the town, please email
townsville.net
[6:16] for more info. That brings us to our
staff updates and Joe says he's got a
[6:20] page worth of them. So, let's hit it.
>> Lots of updates. So, I'm going to go
[6:24] ahead and say sorry for the uh the the
uh the time bet this today.
[6:29] » Um I did want to address right out of
the gate the u I guess the let's just
[6:32] say the number of unusually strong
storms that have been rolling through
[6:35] the area. Uh we have seen several
comments about tree trimming and things
[6:39] along those lines. And I I just want to
report that, you know, the town did get
[6:42] a little more aggressive this year,
especially after the July 4th storms um
[6:46] uh to to I guess better get a better
handle on road tree trimming or tree
[6:50] trimming tree trimming along roadways.
>> Um one of the first roads we did was
[6:54] Sandusky Road and just tonight another
large branch fell on Sandusky. So tree
[6:59] trimming can help reduce risk, but it
does not eliminate risk. So, anytime a
[7:03] significant storm does come through,
there's always going to be the potential
[7:06] for uh for debris in the road or
branches that fall. Um, also want to
[7:11] make the public aware that BG does have
a tree and vegetation maintenance
[7:14] program. So, again, they are they go
around and trim around their own lines.
[7:18] It's not something the town does. It's
not something, you know, our contractors
[7:21] typically do. Um, so again, it's we we'd
like to we try to stay on top of it and
[7:27] we try to eliminate as much risk as
possible, but again, it's there's always
[7:30] going to be the potential for for
something like this to happen,
[7:32] » right?
>> So again, we apologize for everybody
[7:34] that's without power tonight. Uh, now uh
that being said, uh, several uh, town
[7:40] related updates. Uh, want to make
council aware that staff has been
[7:44] working with our consultant on our
zoning ordinance rewrite. Again, that's
[7:47] been a process that's been ongoing for
quite some time now. Uh we are uh
[7:50] finally to a point where we're about
ready to ask council to refer that
[7:55] document that's we've been working on
over to the planning commission so we
[7:58] can actually start the public process of
vetting that. Um it is a rather
[8:02] substantial, let's just say update to
our zoning and subdivision regulations,
[8:06] mainly our subdivision regulations. If
anybody's actually taken the time to
[8:09] look at what our subdivision code looks
like right now, it's by basically 10
[8:12] pages within our code. That is
dramatically under uh let's call it
[8:17] underregulated. Um, so we've taken a lot
of time to try to get that um, uh,
[8:22] beefed up and also mirror what the
county actually requires. Um, so again,
[8:26] we partner with the county for a lot of
our technical reviews. So again, if our
[8:29] process mirrors theirs, uh, it just
makes that process a lot a lot easier, a
[8:34] lot more uh, cohesive. Um, so certainly
probably I'm thinking in the October or
[8:38] one of the October meetings, potentially
in one of the September meetings, uh,
[8:42] we'll have our consultant give a very
brief presentation to council to at
[8:45] least get that ball rolling. uh then
it'll be referred to planning commission
[8:48] and planning commission will kind of
take it from there and when they're
[8:50] comfortable with it they'll refer it
back to council obviously for adoption.
[8:54] Um I also want to mention that Carol
County has been working on or is about
[8:58] to work on an update to the freedom
master plan. Um and again there is an
[9:03] online survey that's available for
anybody that lives in the Freedom area
[9:06] or visits the Freedom area to take the
survey and provide feedback on what you
[9:10] want to see as part of that update. So
again, we want to give uh Carol County a
[9:14] plug there because they help us out uh
quite a bit uh with their planning
[9:17] staff. So again, anything we can do to
encourage participation in that process
[9:21] um would be greatly appreciated.
>> It does have some false advertisement
[9:24] that it's only going to take a few
minutes. It took me a lot longer, like
[9:28] 15.
>> Depends on how much feedback you
[9:30] » Well, I gave a lot.
>> Yeah, that's good.
[9:32] » Thank you. Um also on the the planning
route uh here in the next few meetings
[9:37] we'll also have u an update to the water
resource elements of our um
[9:42] comprehensive plan. So again this is
something because the town uh really is
[9:47] served water and sewer by Carol County.
Carol County takes the bulk of that
[9:51] information updates it themselves and
then we kind of adopt it you know based
[9:54] on what they've seen and what they've
updated. Um, uh, every community goes
[9:58] through their own process, uh, uh, you
know, with that type of update because
[10:02] most of them have their own water and
sewer systems. However, because we're
[10:05] pretty much reliant on the county
outside of storm water, um, it's it's
[10:09] really, okay, county, you tell us what
we need to we we need to update.
[10:13] » Um, so again, because it is a a
comprehensive plan amendment, it does
[10:17] require a public hearing at council. Uh,
so again, we'll begin advertising that
[10:21] shortly and uh, make sure that council
has all that information before we're
[10:24] ready to adopt. That'll that'll probably
be the second meeting in September.
[10:27] » Okay. Thank you.
>> Um, speaking of storm water, both of our
[10:31] storm water projects are, let's just
call it, substantially complete. Uh, the
[10:34] one on Norwood is is fully complete.
Central Avenue, we're still waiting on a
[10:38] a backwater lid for the u uh the uh the
inlet that's that's there at the corner.
[10:43] But both of them are operating. Um, so
again, I've actually been out now in two
[10:47] storms watching storm water flow freely
into both of those structures. uh the
[10:51] amount of storm water that comes down
Church Street is significantly uh less
[10:54] than what it had been in the past.
Again, we'll continue to monitor to make
[10:58] sure that, you know, we don't have some
of the same issues that we've had um at
[11:01] least at that one inlet at the end of
Church Street. Um so, that's all good
[11:06] news there.
>> Um see, what do I want to do next? Um,
[11:11] we did get some uh some feedback from we
uh we were able to work with a a
[11:16] consultant uh or a consulting uh firm on
uh the speed cameras on Springfield
[11:22] Avenue. Um, you know, again, there had
been some back and forth with several
[11:25] different companies and we finally got
one to come out and actually do the
[11:28] study. Uh they they had a device that
was out monitoring the roadway for over
[11:33] a week or I think it was a week, it was
seven days [clears throat]
[11:36] and they they it basically came
substantially lower from a uh number of
[11:42] citations that it would actually pick up
than uh they would authorize a a more
[11:46] permanent solution there. So again, they
basically told us that, you know, you
[11:49] just don't have enough citations that
would justify actually adding a speed
[11:53] camera on Springfield Avenue. Um, we did
reach back out to them to see if there
[11:57] was other areas in town that could
potentially be evaluated that were still
[12:01] within the radius of uh um Sykesville
Middle School. Uh, and I believe they
[12:05] have agreed to do that. Uh, but again, I
think the number of citations that are
[12:09] required uh to have one of those cameras
installed is I think we're still going
[12:13] to fall well below what that
>> according to the vendor themselves.
[12:16] » According to the vendor, that's correct.
>> Yeah.
[12:18] » So, what are our options like what
because we definitely hear anecdotally a
[12:24] lot of concern. And I know when I walk
that corridor, it's
[12:28] » yeah,
>> it just feels like people are going
[12:30] » I I think the only other thing and again
um you know again there's probably lots
[12:35] of options that we can do if the town
wants to purchase our own speed camera
[12:37] but again that comes with its own uh uh
potential limitations. You know again we
[12:42] have to have staff time to actually
monitor all that and again that would
[12:45] you know potentially make it not not
worth it. Um, we still have this uh safe
[12:50] streets for all grant that has been u
let's just call it on my radar for for
[12:54] quite a while now. We did just get an
extension on that grant. So, we have
[12:57] plenty of time to actually complete that
project. Uh, one of the things that that
[13:00] grant can do is actually uh evaluate
intersections and figure out if there
[13:04] are uh spot improvements that can be
made to make uh more let's just call
[13:09] pedestrian friendly uh improvements. Um,
and again, typically with those that
[13:14] includes bumpouts and uh uh things like
that around the intersection, and
[13:19] typically that does slow traffic down
around those types of intersections. Um,
[13:24] so that's always an option. Now, again,
this is a planning grant. It's not a
[13:26] capital grant. So, again, it would uh
potentially show us what could happen at
[13:30] those uh those intersections, but again,
the uh the actual improvement would have
[13:33] to be something that either the town
would look for additional funding for um
[13:37] or just pay for through our capital
process. Yeah, I don't know that I I
[13:41] would say we need to do the speed
camera, but definitely
[13:45] » some kind of speed
>> something that we can do to just ensure
[13:49] Miller Cooper and this and the middle
school are
[13:52] » more at, you know, that we're more at
ease with our kids being in the in that
[13:56] space.
>> I feel that way about Spout Hill, but
[13:58] I'd be anxious to see um what the find
the real findings would be
[14:03] » in the immediate
fix or the immediate response to it.
[14:08] Can't we do one of those signs that we
have up one Oklahoma that will blink
[14:12] your
>> blink the speed?
[14:14] » Sure.
>> Yeah. I mean that that's always an
[14:15] option. We can do that just
>> be relatively inexpensive as a
[14:20] » Can I interject?
>> Sure. Absolutely.
[14:22] » Well, we have two speed trailers that we
deploy all over the town. So, and we
[14:26] often deploy those on Springfield,
>> particularly right before school starts
[14:30] and during school. So we can we can
easily deploy them which you know
[14:34] records the data of all cars traveling
through that zone and alerts people that
[14:39] you know they're
violating [snorts] a speed limit.
[14:42] » Is there something that you feel like
would be from your experience and I mean
[14:47] in this in this space that you feel like
we could do that could help there? Well,
[14:53] engineering, as Joe mentioned, is one
way, but uh education and enforcement,
[14:56] it's continuing to get the word out that
uh you know, the speeds are high there
[15:01] and and have our officers focus on on
that corridor and conduct enforcement
[15:06] activity. That's that's the way you slow
people
[15:09] » or the rumple strips or something to
kind of say, hey, in this zone,
[15:14] » yeah,
>> you know, like an awareness piece.
[15:18] » Those speed humps come with their own
set of set of issues. Um, but that would
[15:22] be something you would all have to
discuss. But
[15:24] » she mentioned rumble strips. I'm not I
>> Those are the portable ones that you
[15:28] » No, no, no. Um, if you driven up 97
recently, they just
[15:32] » at um at the two intersections, they
have these strips. They're not speed
[15:35] bumps. They just made a lot of noise.
They make you kind of And that alone I I
[15:40] you know, I noticed myself. I went from
speed limit down to below the speed
[15:43] limit cuz I heard a bump. Well, because
then you're getting a warning that
[15:46] you're in a school zone and then kind of
coincides with the sign and the and the
[15:49] speed limit like right there.
>> What I'm saying is even if you're at the
[15:53] speed limit you hear, you kind of slow
down. Well, if you're over, you
[15:56] hopefully slow down even more and
>> they won't impede traffic. They're just
[16:00] they're only about that wide, but
they're enough to make a sound.
[16:04] » Yeah, that's more of what I was, you
know, either divots in the
[16:07] » They've proven to be effective.
>> Yeah. And I and I think with the
[16:09] potential grant funding and evaluating
intersections, you know, this could be
[16:12] one of the one of the options that could
be implemented.
[16:16] » And didn't we also weren't we also
speaking that we were surprised at the
[16:19] speed limit that was allowed on
Springfield at that and maybe there's a
[16:24] way we can drop the speed limit in that
space.
[16:27] » Yeah. And again, I think I think uh if
I'm not mistaken, Obre might be 30 miles
[16:31] hour as well.
>> It's 25. Sorry.
[16:34] » It's very it's a very hard 25.
>> Don't want to confuse the public. So I
[16:37] think so Springfield Avenue might be the
only 30 mph road in all of town. Um you
[16:43] know I think the last time we had a
conversation with state highways they
[16:45] you know they basically said hey we let
the locals kind of set the set the speed
[16:48] limit there. So if that is something
that the
[16:50] » so that's an immediate something we
could do start and then look at whether
[16:55] even cuz I think I do like the rumbles I
mean just the rumble strips that just
[17:00] you know at the beginning coming into it
and then coming up that hill to just be
[17:04] like
>> you know before the crosswalks and space
[17:08] to just say hey
>> sure I would say this on 97 there's no
[17:13] cars at the intersection no cars around
me but I find myself when I go over them
[17:17] I slow
Mhm.
[17:19] » No, I don't even need to cuz I'm not ex
But that's the point. It's like I heard
[17:22] a bump. Oh, take my foot off the gas.
Oh, I'm doing I'm doing five below the
[17:26] speed limit. Must speed back up now.
>> It works.
[17:29] » Mhm.
>> So, we'll continue looking at options
[17:32] for for Springfield Avenue. Definitely.
>> Thank you.
[17:35] » Uh well, speaking of around Springfield
Avenue, uh our project on Cooper Drive
[17:40] to improve the parking lot and some of
the storm water in Cooper Park. Um that
[17:44] project is um let's moving through the
phases of approval from a uh from a
[17:49] review standpoint in Carol County. Uh we
anticipate getting that if not later
[17:53] this month, certainly early in
September. Um so that that project will
[17:57] be ready to bid and hopefully go to
construction by October so that by the
[18:00] time we hit next spring um we have a
nice new parking lot so that people
[18:04] don't have to park in the basically in
the ditch along Cooper Drive any longer.
[18:08] Um and then lastly, uh quick update on
the station. Uh nothing official on on
[18:14] opening dates. So I don't I'm not going
to know that. [laughter] Um I will say
[18:18] that, you know, they are making
progress. They just had their rough in
[18:21] electrical and framing inspections done.
Uh they had a partial uh plumbing
[18:25] inspection that got approved. Um so
again, they're they're making progress.
[18:29] It's just a little slow going and
they're making sure they're I guess
[18:32] dotting all the eyes and crossing all
the tees out there.
[18:34] » It's definitely like the most common uh
question. It is
[18:39] » in town as to when it's like
>> like we don't we're not talking roads or
[18:45] construction or even power. It's when
when is Lib's Grill opening.
[18:49] » Non-citizens flag me down and going hey
[laughter]
[18:53] I don't even live in our town but I want
>> I want when's Libs Grill going to open
[18:59] and where are they going to park?
>> Yes.
[19:01] » Those are the
>> they go they go hand in hand. Yeah.
[19:05] those questions.
>> And uh that was the last update I have.
[19:09] » Awesome. Thank you.
>> The entire page.
[19:11] » Wow, that wasn't that bad actually from
a timing perspective. There you go.
[19:15] That's kind of wearing out there. The
pen. So give it a try.
[19:19] » That is my pen running out.
>> It's um
[19:23] » too many Jen John.
>> I had it in here and I just dropped it.
[19:28] » Uh that brings us to our treasurer's
report, please. Thank you, Jen.
[19:34] So, uh, July is like most of all, the
beginning of the new year, so, uh, we're
[19:40] in between with the revenue, so there's
not a whole lot of revenue.
[19:43] » Um, but I will report that we just got
over $500,000 of, uh, property tax
[19:48] revenue, and then we're getting the
county agreement, which should be around
[19:51] 250,000, but I'll report on that next
month.
[19:53] » Excellent.
>> And then the expenses are the everyday
[19:57] running the town expenses. There's
nothing too. It's pretty much the same
[20:02] as 2025 kind of
>> drum mundane stuff.
[20:06] » It's a rough July. It's always a rough
July.
[20:10] » Well, we appreciate mundane.
>> Yeah, insuranceances and all that
[20:14] » once in a while.
>> Memberships, all that's all due.
[20:17] » Any questions for you, Treasure?
>> Nope.
[20:21] » Yeah, I was pretty bored reading it. I I
down here fell asleep. Yeah, I looked
[20:24] and was [clears throat] talking to Joe
and I'm like I really don't know to to
[20:27] report other than I'm excited that we
just got income tax revenue that I'm so
[20:31] glad you shared that
>> I didn't know it had come in yet cuz it
[20:35] » it's coming right now. It's pending.
It's over 500,000 property tax revenue.
[20:40] » Property tax revenue. I just said income
tax [laughter] first. But yeah.
[20:44] » Okay. Good. Thank you.
>> Thanks.
[20:45] » All right. Um keep up the good news.
>> Um brings us to our public safety
[20:50] report, Chief, for July 6th to August 2.
Yes, ma'am. All right.
[20:53] » And I will try not to bore you with my
report.
[20:55] » I feel like August 6 or uh July 6th was
like forever ago. When I went back and
[21:00] read, I was like, "Oh my god, the 4th of
July and the storm, all of that." Thank
[21:04] you.
>> Although boring is good in police.
[21:06] » Yes. Yes, it is.
>> All right. Well, we'll talk about uh as
[21:09] you said, the public safety report
covering July 6th to August 2nd. A
[21:12] little under a month. As you can see, a
lot of total events over a thousand
[21:18] 1,112 to be exact, which is kind of like
our barometer. If there's more than a
[21:23] thousand events during a month, that's
that's a busy month.
[21:26] » U but nearly half of them were patrol
checks. So, um as you can see, community
[21:31] policing is up thanks to some of our
newest officers who are doing a lot of
[21:35] good community policing reports as have
you as you've seen. Uh really nothing
[21:40] else. I did want to mention house
checks. There was only five during this
[21:43] period, but we have done a lot of those
throughout the summer because of course
[21:46] the people travel and that's a service
that we provide to people. you know,
[21:50] anytime they're away from their home,
they come in, drop off a a form, and we
[21:54] we conduct uh checks of their house
while they're away. So, um but that's
[21:58] been pretty steady throughout the
throughout the summer.
[22:02] » What does that entail when you do a
house check? Is it just a driveby or do
[22:05] you get a patrol check? The officer are
encouraged to get out if they see
[22:08] anything unusual. You know, usually they
let us know if there's going to be
[22:11] lights on or if there what cars are
parked in the driveway, if there's
[22:14] anybody visiting. So, you we expect the
officers to check, you know, I just
[22:18] drive by and say, "Oh, it looks good."
You know, so
[22:20] » Lieutenant Kilgore scared the hell out
of me one night cuz [clears throat] he
[22:24] thought I left that morning and I wasn't
leaving till the next morning. And he
[22:27] was out on the front porch with his
flashlight and I was like, I'm home.
[22:32] » So, yes, they do get out of their car.
Okay.
[22:34] » Yeah. [laughter]
>> So, it's just not a driveby. That looks
[22:36] good.
>> It's not supposed to be. So, yeah.
[22:38] Right.
>> Okay. Good service. Thank you.
[22:41] » Absolutely. Uh, as you can see, there
were a lot of reports written during
[22:45] this period, 19 to be exact. If you have
any questions about any of those, be
[22:49] more than happy to answer those for you.
>> So, Chief, I have a question. Um, just
[22:53] kind of a followup from the trends we
were checking out when we started
[22:57] talking about the assisted living
potential across the street um across
[23:01] 32. noticing a couple more calls on this
time again and not sure if maybe it
[23:07] would be helpful at some level of
interval to just kind of keep us updated
[23:12] as you did before on kind of are are the
nursing homes and rehab homes in the
[23:18] community causing extra work or I think
your reports seem to indicate they were
[23:24] going down.
>> They were going down. Yeah. But I see a
[23:26] couple on this report. So I'm just kind
of curious if that's something useful
[23:31] for us to track and be aware of. And
>> I also think it's so um uh reliant upon
[23:37] the population.
>> Mhm.
[23:39] » That that are there sometimes for only
90 days and um some with more behavioral
[23:44] issues than others. But
>> well, one of these is an allegation of
[23:48] staff on patient.
>> Yes.
[23:50] » Which is more cons Yeah. Which I mean
all of them are concerning.
[23:53] » It is. But I've I've had a I don't mean
to contradict you, Councilwoman. I I had
[23:57] had a conversation um with um the new
administrator over there. She's still I
[24:03] guess I could still say new. It's been
under a year. Um probably closer to
[24:07] seven or eight months. Um and uh very on
top of things. And she had mentioned to
[24:12] me that all it takes is for uh and it
doesn't have to be someone who is
[24:18] cognitively completely intact to say
that this person did this to me. And so
[24:24] it's um when you read it, it seems to be
like, okay, well, if somebody is alleged
[24:28] that,
>> you know, somebody was that a staff
[24:31] person put their hands on them or
something. Um and I'm just thinking
[24:34] about my own mother right now and how
sure.
[24:37] » Yeah. So it may be some not that that's
a good thing. We want all of the
[24:42] patients to feel comfortable and feel
safe, but um but so I'm just throwing
[24:46] that out.
>> Well, some the other one I think was
[24:48] patient on patient.
>> Yes. Um, so just, you know, it just kind
[24:52] of do we want to keep track of that? Is
it something that
[24:56] » I think it's something that maybe we
could get a quarterly like if if it
[25:00] starts to become trendy. Yeah. Yeah.
>> Sergeant Lacy was actually keeping up on
[25:05] that for us until he left. But
>> um, we can pick it back up and give you
[25:10] the report next.
>> And especially with the expectation that
[25:13] maybe something more will go on over at
Warfield. Yeah. you know, with a similar
[25:18] population. And we're trying to
understand the impact on your guy, you
[25:22] know, on your uh staff of of those kinds
of things happening within the town.
[25:27] And,
>> you know, just does it take away from
[25:30] the needs of the residents of, you know,
the citizens in the town and just so
[25:34] we're kind of mindful that you you're
getting the resources you guys need to
[25:39] » right on. Sure.
>> To support that. So,
[25:41] » absolutely.
>> Thank you.
[25:42] » Of course.
>> Anything else? Any other questions? I do
[25:46] have one. Um,
>> sorry. It's the one of the out of um
[25:52] area calls assist other agencies.
>> Um, ends in 7793.
[25:59] » Is that the Manchester one?
>> At Old Hanover Road in Westminster,
[26:03] which is
>> the officer was on his way to work.
[26:05] » That's what I was asking. Yep. Thanks.
>> Thank you, Leo.
[26:11] » That's it.
>> I actually have one question. the
[26:15] reckless endangerment case involving
explosives on Warfield Avenue.
[26:18] » Since this is Jan January,
>> July 6th, that means it was post the
[26:23] celebr celebratory uh illegal activity.
>> Um can you tell me more about it?
[26:29] » Yeah, I think it was actually July 12th
that it was reported. So, it was
[26:33] sometime after 4th of July. Apparently,
uh the persons responsible hadn't had a
[26:38] chance to fire off all their fireworks
on the 4th of July. said they decided to
[26:42] do so on the on the 12th. They chose an
area over there uh off near Warfield. Uh
[26:49] we got called uh we did find the still
smoking uh box of fireworks there. Um
[26:57] our officers called the fire department
because of the fact that they were still
[27:00] smoking. We didn't want to handle them
or get near them. They were still, you
[27:03] know, potentially unexloded. Uh, and so
we we seized them and um destroyed them
[27:11] appropriately, but
>> okay.
[27:13] » Yeah, unfortunately weren't able to
determine who they were. Nobody was
[27:16] around by the time we got there, but
>> they probably waited for the driest day
[27:18] after the rain stopped, too, to shoot
the old buildings with the fireworks.
[27:23] » Thank you, Chief.
>> Of course. Of course.
[27:25] » Uh, I did want to mention uh two things
actually. The power is on in that
[27:30] neighborhood you you asked me about.
We'll have to check that for us. So,
[27:33] that's good news. National Night Out was
a a huge success and thank you to those
[27:37] of you who who came by to see us. We we
did well the uh
[27:42] » Lions Club ran out of hot dogs, of
course.
[27:44] » It wasn't No, no, it wasn't you. It was
>> But within [laughter] the first hour,
[27:49] » it was fairly quick.
>> It was really quick.
[27:51] » It was kind of hard to gauge the size of
the crowd, but it was a good crowd. You
[27:53] know, we always have a good turnout
there. Very supportive community
[27:56] » uh with all our partners up there. Uh we
gave away a lot of stuff. Um so it was a
[28:00] good night. Yeah, very good night.
>> Thank you, Chief. Well, and Chief, I
[28:04] think I want to recognize it's not in
town, but that's your that's our event.
[28:08] » It is. Yeah, we're the primary us and uh
the fire department are the primary
[28:13] sponsors of that. So,
>> apparently a long time ago was held here
[28:16] in town. I don't know if anybody here
remembers that. One of our parks.
[28:20] » It just wasn't an ideal location for
doing that. So, um the the fire
[28:24] department grounds is a perfect location
for that. And we have a lot of support
[28:28] there from uh Paula who helps coordinate
it from the fire department.
[28:33] She does a lot of that work for us and
all we kind of have to do is show up and
[28:37] set up our tent and give away stuff. So
it's
[28:39] » and then she doesn't want any credit.
She disappears into the crowd every time
[28:43] and Yeah.
>> Right. No, she's wonderful. She's
[28:45] wonderful.
>> This it was a great event for families.
[28:48] Saw a lot of family with kids and you
know a lot of community partners with
[28:53] tables and information getting out. So
>> I want the chopper back.
[28:56] » I want MSP's chopper back.
>> Used to be good when we had them.
[28:59] » That was three years ago. That was fun.
Yeah, it's it's kind of hard to get them
[29:02] to commit.
>> Yeah,
[29:03] » they are committed to come into our
junior CSI.
[29:05] » Okay, now we're cooking.
>> Yeah. So, that's September 26th, if I
[29:08] haven't mentioned that yet.
>> Where will they land?
[29:10] » Uh at the middle school. Of course, you
have to have the fire department there
[29:13] anytime the helicopter lands. It has to
be called a training event. Uh that's
[29:17] how they justify the the expenditure of
flying.
[29:21] » Well, they're training a lot of tubies.
So,
[29:23] » that's right.
>> They might need to land there for real.
[29:26] That's an excellent training
opportunity.
[29:27] » It is. Absolutely. Absolutely. And
mayor, one last thing. And uh you had
[29:31] mentioned, I think we had corresponded
about
[29:34] » the Maryland Highway Safety Office. Yes.
>> Would you like me to just go through
[29:38] that real take me one?
>> Thank you. I I cut you off from do I
[29:41] disallowed it the last time even though
I asked you to come prepare for it.
[29:44] Thank you.
>> Of course. Someone had brought up uh our
[29:47] usage of the Maryland Highway Safety
Office overtime. I just want to explain
[29:51] that a little bit to you. Each year, uh,
Sergeant Slayer applies for these grants
[29:56] through the Maryland Highway Safety
Office. And therefore, basically the
[29:59] three pri priorities of the Maryland
Highway Safety Office. That's DUI
[30:03] enforcement, distracted driving/ seat
belt enforcement, and speed enforcement.
[30:08] So, we get um overtime funds for each
one of those categories. So, anytime one
[30:13] of our officers have has to sign up for
it while they're off, it's an extra
[30:17] person out working that that that
detail. uh they have to sign up and then
[30:21] keep track of their stats and then
Sergeant Slareth has to report that back
[30:24] to the Maryland Highways off safety
office each year. So for 2025 and this
[30:29] is the the totals we did for DUI
enforcement we had 43 vehicle contacts
[30:34] which means basically we stopped 43
vehicles uh during which 53 citations
[30:40] were issued for a total of 27.5 hours.
That was the total amount of overtime
[30:47] amount that was was allocated for that
for that one category. For distracted
[30:52] driving, we had 56 vehicle contacts, 83
citations were uh given out and about
[30:58] 29.5 hours total. Speed was 65 vehicle
contacts, 87 citations, and again about
[31:05] 31.5 hours.
>> Okay.
[31:07] » And then for 20 26, we're on a similar
path for that. uh it's about the same
[31:12] amount of hours. And so that's Does that
explain what the officers are doing out
[31:16] there? Absolutely. Very much so.
>> While they're out there on each one of
[31:19] these particular uh priorities, they're
actively looking for if they're on DUI
[31:24] enforcement, they're actively looking
for DUI violators. If they're on the
[31:28] seat belt enforcement or distracted
driving, they're actively looking for
[31:31] people using their cell phones or not
having their seatelt on. And speed is,
[31:36] you know, speaks for itself. They're
looking for speed violators. And can you
[31:39] explain um you explained it to me
privately in an email when I asked this
[31:43] question, but someone else might have
the same question. How is the number of
[31:47] uh engagements
be less than the number of violations?
[31:51] » Because sometimes multiple violations
are observed. If an officer stops
[31:55] somebody for even if it's for speed or
or seat belt or or DUI um and they
[32:01] observe other violations during the
course of their investigation, it's they
[32:04] have the discretion whether to write
multiple citations. Mhm. And is there
[32:08] ever a time um or I guess there is, but
how frequently would somebody be um
[32:16] contacted? Would there be a approach and
and contact and a violation not um
[32:24] » um I mean that happens with any kind of
enforcement. Sometimes we think we see
[32:28] something and we don't. I mean that
there's certainly mistakes made, but the
[32:32] officers are all, you know, very very
well trained, very good at looking for
[32:36] these violations. So generally I think
if they see a violation that's that's
[32:40] what they're stopping them for and
that's what the enforcement action is is
[32:43] for. But again we make mistakes.
Sometimes it looks like the person may
[32:48] not have their seat belt on and when you
stop them oh I had it on officer. It was
[32:52] right here. You know and we didn't see
them putting it on at the last second as
[32:55] we're approaching. So that certainly
happens.
[32:57] » It is a reminder for us all to
>> snap it, buckle it, click it. That's the
[33:01] word. Click it. um before we put the car
in reverse or or drive from a public
[33:06] parking lot.
>> Sure.
[33:07] » Yeah.
>> Absolutely.
[33:08] » Because you never know when Sergeant
Schlleth is going to be [laughter]
[33:11] sitting somewhere.
>> Absolutely.
[33:14] » Thank you.
>> Quick question for these initiatives.
[33:18] They the officer has to say I this my
initiative today is going to be seat
[33:23] belt or my initiative is going to be
DWI. I don't think they have to say
[33:27] that, but I think as a general rule, as
part of their their dialogue, when they
[33:31] approach a vehicle, uh they'll they'll
let them know that they're out there
[33:35] working this particular enforcement
action during that day, just so the
[33:38] person understands why they were
stopped.
[33:40] » Okay.
>> Sure.
[33:41] » Because I mean, for a seat belt, that's
an easy and then you approach the
[33:45] vehicle and you know that the driver may
be possibly intoxicated. Now, you have
[33:51] right something else.
>> Sure. Sure. One thing can always lead to
[33:54] to others and often does.
>> Well, I do appreciate you explaining
[33:58] that to the council and um uh and to the
public, whoever's listening.
[34:02] » Thank [clears throat] you,
>> Sandy. Anything else for me?
[34:05] » Not for me. Anyone?
>> Great.
[34:07] » Thank you, Chief.
>> Thank you.
[34:08] » Appreciate you.
>> All right. Uh that brings us to council
[34:14] and commission liaison updates. If there
are anyone any that anyone wants to
[34:19] share, start on my right and just start
talking if you got something. Yep. Um
[34:24] DSC uh let's see here. We've got the sip
on summer coming up on September 19th
[34:30] and tickets and signup geniuses live for
volunteers. Uh farmers market is still
[34:36] doing gang busters. I was down there
about 9:30 9:45 and people are fighting
[34:41] for parking spaces and
>> metaphorically [laughter]
[34:46] not quite not quite but it was coming
close. Um let's see. Uh the DSC has
[34:52] completed the design of a new series of
town pole banners uh featuring the Great
[34:56] American Main Street Award seal. They're
currently in production and will be
[35:00] installed soon. Uh the 7611 Main Street
popup is thriving and welcome welcoming
[35:07] new vendors and attracting residents and
visitors alike. Uh there was a donation
[35:13] this I think was it this past weekend or
several days ago to um
[35:16] » Saturday
>> to barrierfree in the amount of uh
[35:19] $4,000 from proceeds from the popup. So
>> and 76 cents
[35:24] » and yes and 76 cents. Yes.
Thought we'd round up but no.
[35:29] » Yeah. No, that was really that's that's
awesome. Just if I can interject, the um
[35:33] » Barrierfree offers services to the
neurode divergent adult population um in
[35:38] Carroll County um and across into Howard
and and Montgomery, but they come here
[35:42] to Sykesville um and many of them
participate in the program uh with funds
[35:48] or at least supplemented funds that are
um supplemented by Maryland um Medicaid
[35:55] um through the Department of Rehab
Services and um the governor
[36:01] uh new governor's budget for this fiscal
year um dramatically slashed a lot of um
[36:08] um funding specifically for the exact
type of services that barrierfree
[36:15] provides. And so many of these um uh
many of their folks, many of their
[36:20] participants um you know have to come
out of pocket otherwise um and don't
[36:26] have the out of pocket. And so Barrier
Freeze um owners and operators uh
[36:31] executive director and um director of
operations there um don't get paid. They
[36:38] they're they are not taking a uh a
paycheck so that these individuals can
[36:42] continue to participate. And when um
when downtown sexual connection caught
[36:47] wind of that and paired it nicely with a
new popup um so yeah, that was it was a
[36:52] good sense of community and I just
wanted everybody to know that's what was
[36:54] going on. Mhm.
>> Yeah, the pop-up at 7611 is doing very
[36:58] well and literally it's the kind of
place go in every week. There's going to
[37:02] be something different, a lot different.
So, it's a good place to go into
[37:06] regularly. And then finally, uh you've
probably seen the lighting installation
[37:10] that's um between the downtown Cyell
connection building and the Pasco
[37:14] Distillery Building. Um that was a great
partnership between the town and the DSC
[37:19] and um provided through the um Main
Street improvement program facade
[37:24] improvement funding. So appreciate the
town working with us on that.
[37:28] » Yeah, it looks good.
>> That's it.
[37:31] » Thank you, Alex.
>> All right. Next park meeting is
[37:35] Thursday, August 27th at 7 p.m. The next
cinema event is Saturday, September
[37:40] 12th, and we'll be showing The Goonies.
>> Yes.
[37:42] » Good one. Classic. as the movie starts
at 7:30 at Cooper Park, but come early
[37:47] for a premovie activity starting at 6.
Um, I do want to point out that Spark in
[37:52] the town recently installed six
interpretive signs on the linear trail
[37:56] um kind of showcasing the natural
landscape. It's on the side towards um
[38:00] Ora by the outdoor classroom. So, if you
had a chance to check it out yet, I
[38:04] highly recommend it. And then the last
thing is that um I wasn't able to attend
[38:08] dog van, but I
>> I was just going to ask you about that.
[38:10] [laughter]
>> How was the turnout?
[38:12] » But I I think I saw um I think they had
pretty good turnout and I think I saw
[38:16] that um Andrew Jacobs did a K9
demonstration.
[38:18] » That's awesome.
>> With with RER, so I just wanted to I
[38:21] guess give a shout out a site or there
it is. [snorts] Yes. Thank you, Alex.
[38:26] » Thank you.
>> Thank you.
[38:28] » So, uh historic district commission met
um and as you pointed out, we still have
[38:33] openings. So definitely encourage uh
community members to join the historic
[38:37] district, talk to you about maybe an
appointment. Um but we did have a lively
[38:43] discussion. Um, as I shared, they were
kind of looking at
[38:48] um
what role the historic district
[38:52] commission
could should play in um
[39:01] regulation of paint colors of houses or
businesses and buildings in in the
[39:07] historic district as well as uh artwork
and kind of installation times and
[39:14] whether something's temporary or
permanent and
[39:16] » is that a role? Um,
>> and so, uh, we did have, uh, someone
[39:21] speak, although in in our commission
meetings there's usually not space for
[39:26] public comment. Um, the commissioners
did allow it on this particular one. Um,
[39:32] and you know, there was a it was a good
conversation, I think, uh, for the
[39:35] commissioners to hear from people that
would be impacted by those kinds of
[39:40] decisions before it came to council for
us to even look at,
[39:43] » um, and look at at that level or their
compromises or their opportunities for
[39:49] partnership and things like that. It was
shared uh through and Leah correct me if
[39:54] I get this wrong but um with the
downtown Sykesville connection there's a
[39:58] look at an entertainment
>> oh an arts and entertainment district
[40:05] designation right
>> that would um kind of help support the
[40:10] growth of arts um
>> in in the in that area at least on the
[40:15] main street side of it. Um and so I
think there was some interest in, you
[40:20] know, are there collaborations, are
there partnerships, are there ways to
[40:24] incorporate um the historic district,
some of the commissioners into that so
[40:29] that you know there's not a place that
comes to the council for changing
[40:35] um their guidance or or their what they
have purview over. Um, and then I think
[40:41] the discussion kind of got into uh the
historic district commission being able
[40:47] to provide references or guidance around
paint colors as opposed to instituting
[40:52] fees or control over paint colors that
people had, but that there are people
[40:56] who buy historic homes and then say I I
I you know, how do I find a paint color?
[41:02] How do I know? Um, and so there was kind
of a desire to provide guidance if
[41:06] people would like it.
>> Right. So that's kind of where the
[41:09] discussions I think ended up. Um and
just you know thank everybody for um
[41:16] kind of their feedback and for the
community to kind of provide some input
[41:21] to the commission on that level. And I
think it was a good discussion versus
[41:24] something needing to come to us to kind
of formalize stuff that I don't know
[41:28] that we we need to be getting into. So
>> cool. I appreciate you. Thank you. Mhm.
[41:33] » Um
I'm going to jump in just because I'm
[41:37] going to forget if I don't do it now. Um
speaking of psychouts,
[41:41] uh from Councilwoman Pickicket, I almost
forgot that I wanted to give our one and
[41:45] only Sarah Patterson a psych out. Um,
Joe can fill in the blanks for me
[41:50] because I'm blanking on the details, but
I know basically what happened was
[41:54] someone had a very positive experience
with a matter and I'll let Joe pick up
[41:59] from here. But Sarah was on the
receiving end of a of a gratitude and
[42:04] thank you. And um, and I always like to
hear when when one of ours are doing a
[42:08] good job enough to like get a thank you.
So,
[42:10] » and anytime there's a a positive comment
online, we always like to point those
[42:14] out. [laughter]
the the town got a I believe it was a
[42:17] Google review about uh an experience at
Millard Cooper Park in the splash pad
[42:22] and the process by which the uh I guess
the family went in renting a pavilion
[42:27] and Sarah helps coordinate that with the
town. So um so again yeah they they were
[42:32] very happy with with Sarah's performance
as you know we all are on a daily basis
[42:36] in the town.
>> Yes. Well a psych out to Sarah Patterson
[42:38] if you're listening Sarah because I know
this is what you do every Monday.
[42:42] [laughter]
>> She actually does listen. She does. She
[42:45] does.
>> Way to go, Sarah. [laughter]
[42:48] » All right. You're up.
>> I have nothing. All right. Thank you.
[42:51] » I have nothing. [laughter]
>> This uh Thursday is the U cable uh the
[42:58] Carol County Cable Regulatory Commission
meeting. If you have an issue of general
[43:02] interest, no, you're not we can't help
you. They're not showing enough
[43:06] Australian little football. But if you
have something like our neighborhood has
[43:10] problems with continual outage, you have
called the cable administrator after
[43:14] calling Comcast and and people don't
understand what's going on, contact me.
[43:18] I can help. But if um you know, we're
doing contract negotiations because
[43:24] we're reaching the end of one contract.
So if there's some general comments you
[43:28] wish to make, please pass them on to me.
You have my address now at the town. And
[43:33] um that's it.
>> Thank you, Councilman Dyer. Appreciate
[43:36] you.
Uh so going once, going twice. Going to
[43:40] ask if there's a motion to adjourn this
lovely meeting at uh 7:45 and a half.
[43:45] » So moved.
>> Thank you, Councilman. Second.
[43:47] » Thank you, council president. All in
favor of adjournment, please say I.
[43:50] » Any opposed?