According to the Wicomico Environmental Trust, a publicly owned local forest is in danger of being clear cut to make way for the dumping of dredge spoils from the Wicomico River. Citizens of Wicomico County need to make their voices heard in opposition to this action.

The forest is part of a 350-acre
parcel purchased by the county using state funds from Program Open
Space. The forest contains numerous species typical in our native mixed
forests: pine, yes, but also oak, dogwood, beech, holly, sweet gum,
magnolia, and many other plant species, and deer, woodpeckers,
raccoons, turtles, voles, skunks, and hawks. This forest should be left
alone for the benefit of humans and other living things. It is absorbing
carbon, producing oxygen, and filtering rainwater into the aquifer.

But right now a bulldozer sits in this forest. It is there because
Wicomico County and the Army Corps of Engineers are testing this
site as a place to dump mud from the next phase of a Corps project
dredging the Wicomico River. The bulldozer is there to clear a path for
the core driller, and the core driller is there to check the soil and the
aquifer level before clear-cutting the forest to create a dump site for the
dredge spoils begins.

WET encourages all concerned citizens to contact officials of Wicomico County to express their opposition to the clear cutting of this forest.

John Redden, Acting Director of Public Works, 410-548-4810
Gary Mackes, Director of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism, 410-548-4900, ext. 106
Jim Grindle, Public Works civil engineer, 410-548-4810

If you are not satisfied with what they tell you, you can call your county
council member or Rick Pollitt, the County Executive (410-548-4800).

Tell them to build the dredge spoils dump facility on a field instead of
cutting the forest.

The March of Dimes is asking Eastern Shore residents to save the date in Spring 2009 for the March for Babies. Wicomico County will host a walk on Sunday, April 19, 2009, starting from the Salisbury Moose Lodge at 10:00 AM. Caroline County will be the site of a march on Sunday April 26, 2009, starting at 10:00 AM in Federalsburg. Worcester County has selected Assateague as the site for the walk on Saturday, May 2, 2009, beginning at 10:00 AM. For more information, visit March of Dimes or March for Babies, or call 410-546-2241. The goal of the March of Dimes is to “help moms have healthy pregnancies and give hope to families of babies born too soon or sick.”

The Wicomico County Board of Education is maintaining a blog on the Daily Times web site at delmarvanow.com. Recent posts include news about the JMB High School Boys’ Soccer State Champions and a CSI night at Salisbury Middle School. A total of 22 posts have been entered over the two months that the blog has been in existence. Any effort to improve communication about our local schools is a positive sign.

I ran across this video on YouTube. It is a short film promoting Wicomico County as the enchanting hub of the Delmarva Peninsula, which offers a unique blend of history, recreation, relaxation and fascination.

I ran across a web site for Chesapeake Bay Farms, an operation that touts itself as the only dairy farm in Worcester County, MD. The farm is located just a couple of miles west of Berlin, MD, on Route 50. CBF is a family operation that has branched out from the main dairy operation into cheeses, ice cream and butter which are offered through their farm store. If you are traveling east from Salisbury, take the first left after the Rt. 90 split onto Logtown Rd. and look for the cows. The store is currently open Wednesday thru Sunday from 11:30-5:30.

Our ALL NATURAL gourmet cheese, ice cream, butter and milk are top quality because we control every aspect of the production - from growing the feed to placing the labels on each individual pack. Our milk also contains no synthetic hormones, antibiotics or chemical compounds.

These local products are also available for wholesale and fundraisers. Support local cows.

The Delmarva Shorebirds are in search of a candidate to fill the big wings of Sherman the Shorebird. Sherman must be available to appear at all home games in addition to other special events and marketing opportunities. A complete job description and list of requirements are available online.

(Salisbury, MD) Do you love Maryland wine, the great outdoors, delicious food and live entertainment? Join us for the Autumn Wine Festival at Pemberton Historical Park in Salisbury, Maryland. Hosted by Wicomico Recreation, Parks & Tourism and the Convention and Visitors Association, this two-day festival is slated for Saturday, October 18 and Sunday, October 19.

The Autumn Wine Festival is produced in conjunction and sanctioned by the Maryland Wineries Association and is the only one of its kind in the Salisbury area. Now in its sixth year, the Autumn Wine Festival continues to grow. This year will offer tastings from 19 Maryland wineries, arts and crafts, live music performances, and tasty regional cuisine.

Tickets to the Autumn Wine Festival are $20 in advance and $25 at the gate. Youth and designated driver tickets are available for $5. For a full schedule of events, list of participating wineries and to purchase tickets visit www.AutumnWineFestival.org.

Wicomico County Councilwoman Sheree Sample-Hughes will hold the next in a series of
citizen’s forum meetings on Wednesday, September 24th at 7:00 P.M. at the Hebron Fire
Department. The program will focus on voter registration and preparation and ballot information.
Councilwoman Sample-Hughes said that she will be joined by County Executive Rick Pollitt,
County Council President John Cannon and Sheriff Mike Lewis.
Wicomico County District One includes Delmar, Hebron, San Domingo, Salisbury- West Side
and Mardela Springs. Mrs. Sample-Hughes said the over-all theme of the forums is “Creating
Community Connections.” She commented that the purpose of the forums is to provide citizens
with an opportunity to speak face-to-face with their elected officials. She further noted that this is
the continuation of the fulfillment of her campaign promise to hold quarterly meetings throughout
District One.
Mrs. Sample-Hughes said that “I encourage as many of my constituents who possibly can to join
us for this important meeting.”

For More Information, Please Contact Councilwoman Sample-Hughes
at 443-366-5846 or Via Email at ssample@wicomicocounty.org

Wicomico County Executive Richard M. Pollitt, Jr., announced that county
residents will have an opportunity to dispose of hazardous household waste at no charge
on Saturday, September 20th at the Newland Park Landfill. The hours for “Household
Hazardous Waste Collection Day” are 8:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. The event is open to residents of Wicomico County and participants should bring a valid proof of residence such as a driver’s license. The Landfill will be accepting the following:
Gasoline
Gas/Oil mixes
Fuels
Acids
Cleaners
Solvents
Automotive Fluids
Bleach
Ammonia
Batteries (all types)
Household Smoke Detectors
Asbestos
Pool Chemicals
Dark Room Chemicals
Household & Lawn & Garden Pesticides
Insecticides & Herbicides
Compressed Gas Propane Cylinders (30 gallon and under)
Painting Products
Oil Based Paint
Paint Thinner
Turpentine
Wood Preservatives
Wood Stripping Chemicals

Landfill officials noted that solidified latex paint may be disposed of with trash. It can be
solidified by adding dirt, mulch, kitty litter or a comparable substance.

The Landfill will not be accepting the following:
Business, Industrial or Commercial Farm Waste
Explosives
Ammunition (handled by Fire Marshall)
Medical Waste
Radioactive Material

Landfill officials suggest that participants pre-arrange large loads. They also said that empty fuel containers will be returned upon request and that staff will help unload vehicles.

The Wicomico County Board of Education has posted a schedule of open houses as our local schools prepare for back to school time.

Beaver Run Elementary
Thursday, Aug. 21, 2-6 p.m.

Charles H. Chipman Elementary
Thursday, August 21, 2-3 p.m.

Delmar Elementary
Friday, Aug. 22, 2-3 p.m.

East Salisbury Elementary
Friday, August 22, 1:30-4 p.m.

Fruitland Primary
Friday, Aug. 22, 1-2 p.m.

Fruitland Intermediate
Friday, Aug. 22, 2-3 p.m.

Glen Avenue Elementary
Thursday, Aug. 21, 1-2 PM.

North Salisbury Elementary
Friday, Aug. 22, 2-4 p.m.

Northwestern Elementary
Friday, Aug. 22, 3-4 p.m.

Pemberton Elementary
Thursday, Aug. 21, 1:30-3:30 p.m.

Pinehurst Elementary
Friday, Aug. 22, 3-4 p.m.

Prince Street Elementary
Friday, Aug. 22, 2-4 p.m.

West Salisbury Elementary
Thursday, Aug. 21, 4-6 p.m.

Westside Primary
Friday, Aug. 22, 1-2 p.m.

Westside Intermediate
Friday, Aug. 22, 2:30-3:30 p.m.

Willards Elementary
Thursday, Aug. 21, 6-7:30 p.m.

Wicomico Early Learning Center
Thursday, Aug. 21, 2-4 p.m.

Pittsville Elementary and Middle
Tuesday, Aug. 19, 6-7:30 p.m.

Bennett Middle
Thursday, Aug. 21, 6-8 p.m.

Salisbury Middle
Thursday, Aug. 21, 7 p.m.

Wicomico Middle
Thursday, Aug. 21, 1-4 p.m.

Mardela Middle and High
Thursday, Aug. 21, 4:30-6:30 p.m.

James M. Bennett High
Thursday, Aug. 21, Back-to-School Night for freshmen 7 p.m.

Parkside High
Wednesday, Aug. 20. PTA Back-to-School Night, doors open 6 p.m.

Parkside Career & Technology Education Center
Tuesday, Sept. 23, 4:30 p.m.

Choices
Thursday, Aug. 21, 4-6 p.m.

Changes to the schedule can occur, so check the WCBOE link for updates.

There has been an abundance of news regarding various areas of the Wicomico County Board of Education lately. From the retirement of some long time employees, to the progress of the Bennett High project, we are seeing a lot of change going on. The students of Prince Street School finally got to move into their new facility in April, and the ceremonial ground breaking took place at the site of the new JMB high school. For many months, the completion date for the high school had been quoted as 2010, but in the latest news article, that has changed to 2011. The change in the completion date isn’t new. Brain Foret, the Director of Facility Services, offered 2011 as the completion date over a year ago. Apparently nobody let the PR department know that, because all of the press releases during the past year gave 2010 as the date, until now.

Another interesting detail of the plans for JMB High School as well as Bennett Middle is that both of the new buildings are being built for a capacity that is roughly equal to the current enrollment. The plans for Bennett Middle allow a capacity of 930 students, which is only slightly above recent enrollment figures and is the same as the current State Rated Capacity, which probably includes the half dozen or so portables on the grounds. Pemberton Elementary is one of our recently renovated school buildings, and the playground of that school is already home to two portable classroom buildings.

All of this leads me back to the retirement of Alan Brown, who reported at the October 2007 Board of Education meeting that he had recently met with officials at Peninsula Regional Medical Center. This seemed odd to me at first, but then he offered one of the details that came out of that meeting. PRMC was seeing record numbers of births at the hospital. Obviously, the BOE needs to be able to project enrollment figures for the future, and the statistics from PRMC’s maternity ward probably help accomplish that. The problem is that the WCBOE has done nothing to increase the capacity of our schools, and nothing will be done in the next five years while we focus on the construction of two schools named Bennett.

The record birth numbers at PRMC last fall mean that in four or five years the enrollment at our elementary schools will also begin to reach record numbers, and there is no plan to handle this increase, unless you consider moving in more portable classrooms as a plan. Wicomico County already has 75 portables in use at various schools according to a recent inventory for a total of 68,000 square feet. It has been reported that the new Prince Street building is approximately 77,000 square feet. That means that we have roughly the equivalent of an entire school in portable classrooms. There are also 30 portable buildings covering 34,000 square feet that are currently being used as office space in the Central Office Annex and Facility Services.

Based on recent enrollment figures, Wicomico County schools are operating at 102% of their State Rated Capacity, and there is no plan to increase the capacity with permanent structures for at least the next five years. Both of our kids will be out of school in six years, so I guess I am glad that we won’t be impacted by the increased overcrowding that will be occurring in the future, but I do worry about the impact that the situation will have on the students and teachers of Wicomico County schools. The quality of education in Wicomico County has a direct impact on the quality of life and the property values in our area, and unless something drastic is done to improve our school facilities, that quality has only one direction to go. Down.

The First Annual Soft Shell Half Century hosted by the Salisbury Jaycees will take place on Saturday, May 24th, starting in Crisfield, MD. Cyclists will have a choice of 20 and 50 mile courses starting from Crisfield High School and traveling through various scenic and historic areas of lower Somerset County. A registration fee of $35 includes a t-shirt and rider packet. Event registration is available at Active.com or with a printable form.

Also on May 24th, the Shorebird Metric Century will take riders on 15, 35 or 65 routes starting from Arthur W. Perdue Stadium on Hobbs Road in Salisbury. The event benefits the American Cancer Society, and the $45 registration fee includes a t-shirt, two fully stocked rest stops, and a free lunch at Perdue Stadium following the ride. Registration is available on Active.com or with a printable form.

On Saturday, May 31st, Pedal Delmarva will host their latest event starting from Berlin, MD. A registration fee of $35 includes the rider’s choice of a dozen different routes along with energy drinks, healthy snacks and a cookout following the ride.

The Lower Shore Family YMCA will host the 6th Annual Pocomoke Triathlon on Saturday, May 31st. The triathlon will include a 1/2 mile swim, 14.3 mile bike ride, and 3.5 mile run.

The Bike MS: Tour de Shore is scheduled for June 7th and 8th starting from Salisbury University. Participants have the option of staying in SU dorms with all meals provided. Routes from 30 to 150 miles offer riders of all abilities the opportunity to tour the flat roads of the Eastern Shore.

The Autism Chapter of the Eastern Shore will be hosting the 3rd Annual Bowling for Autism on Sunday, May 18th, from 1:00 to 3:30 PM at Cherokee Lanes. Participants will bowl a Scotch Doubles format with an entry fee of $25 for adults and $7 for children 17 and under. For more information, call 443-614-0344. Space is limited.

Sharptown will be holding a town wide yard sale on Saturday, May 17th, from 7:00 AM to noon. In addition, the Sharptown Historical Museum will be open to visitors at no charge. Raffle tickets will be available for a spring gardening basket for $1.00 each or 6 for $5.00.

The weather forecast looks promising for the 5th Annual Pork in the Park BBQ Festival with various attractions filling the schedule for April 18th-20th. And even with its relatively short history, Pork in the Park can now claim to be one of the nation’s top ten bar-b-que festivals. The fantastic food alone makes the festival worth a visit, but with live music, performers and carnival rides, the event is must see entertainment for all local residents. You can’t beat the price of $2 for admission with kids under 12 getting a free pass through the gates. Check out the schedule on the Pork’s web site and plan your visit to Winterplace Park this weekend.