Annapolis July Fourth Information

The City of Annapolis is announcing the schedule of festivities to celebrate July 4th, 2009. Please note pedestrian and vehicular traffic restrictions during the afternoon and evening events.

WHAT: Annual Independence Day Celebration and Fireworks

WHEN: Saturday, July 4, 2009

WHERE: West St., downtown Annapolis, Annapolis harbor, and surrounding areas.

WHO: City of Annapolis and July 4th Annapolis Inc., Committee Chairman, Matthew Pipkin

EVENTS SCHEDULE: At 6:30 p.m. SHARP, an Independence Day Parade will proceed through the City's Downtown area, beginning on Amos Garrett Blvd., and then right on West Street, around Church Circle, down Main Street, left on Randall Street, and disbanding just past the Market House. Strict security measures are in place for parade participants. Questions regarding parade participation should be directed to the Recreation and Parks Office, 410-263-7958.

BAND CONCERT: At 8:00 p.m. a performance by the United States Naval Academy Band will take place at Susan C. Campbell Park at City Dock.

FIREWORKS: At approximately 9:15 p.m., the fireworks will be launched from a barge in the Annapolis Harbor. Boat restrictions are in place. Please contact the Annapolis Harbormaster’s office at 410-263-7973 for more details.

VIEWING AREAS (Parade): Anywhere along the parade route will provide a good view of the parade, particularly along inner West Street and Church Circle and all along Main Street, and the Market Space. Spectators are urged to respect crowd control zones established by the Annapolis Police Department.

VIEWING AREAS (Fireworks): Generally, the best viewing areas from City Dock will be at Susan Campbell Park. Views from Main Street and the Harbormaster's office area will be partially obstructed. Other suggested areas include public spaces Northeast of the Severn River, any of the street-end parks facing Spa Creek, and aboard your favorite boat in the Annapolis harbor. The Spa Creek Bridge will also be closed to traffic beginning at 9:00 p.m. to create a spectator pier overlooking the harbor for an unobstructed view of the fireworks.

The Naval Academy will have a very limited public area available for viewing that will be accessible only via Gate #1 by the USNA Visitor Center. No access to athletic fields will be permitted. Beginning at 5:00 p.m., Gate #1 will be closed to all vehicles. No other USNA gates will be open to the public (vehicular or pedestrian) for fireworks viewing.

SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT SECURITY: Due to heightened security awareness, the US Naval Academy will require visitors (16 years of age and older) to show valid photo identification (i.e. driver’s license) upon entrance to the Naval Academy. NO alcoholic beverages or fireworks (including sparklers) will be permitted. Pets will also be prohibited from entering the Naval Academy grounds.

PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION: Many parking restrictions will be in effect (see below) in order to expedite the movement of the anticipated crowd of as many as 50,000 people. Parking will be provided at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium off Rowe Boulevard. A shuttle will be provided by the City of Annapolis from the Stadium to Downtown (Lawyer’s Mall) and return; this shuttle will operate from 4:00 p.m. until Midnight. Enter the parking area at the Navy Stadium at Gate 5, follow directional signs. There is a $5.00 charge for parking at the stadium; the shuttle to downtown is free.

IMPORTANT TRANSPORTATION NOTE: Following the event, shuttle buses will operate on a circular route from Lawyer's Mall (College Avenue in front of the Maryland State House) to the Naval Academy Stadium, until all who wish for transportation have been accommodated.

SPECIAL PARKING RESTRICTIONS AND ROAD CLOSURES: To accommodate the Fourth of July parade, Amos Garrett Blvd. and Constitution Ave. will be closed at 4:30 p.m. so that units participating in the parade may assemble. At approximately 6:30 p.m., West Street beginning at Amos Garrett Blvd to Church Circle, Church Circle and Main Street will be closed until the parade has been completed.

Beginning at 4:00 p.m. and extending until approximately 10:30 p.m., parking will be prohibited and violators may be towed from the following areas:

City Dock
Main Street
Randall Street
Market Space
Cathedral Street between West and Franklin Streets
Both sides of Severn Avenue between First and Burnside Streets
East side of First, Second and Third Streets between Severn and Chester Avenues
South side of Chesapeake Avenue and Chester Avenues between Riverview Ave and Burnside Street.
Bay Ridge Avenue between Sixth and Burnside Streets.
Bembe Beach Road from Awald to end.

No Parking zones are posted in order to accommodate emergency vehicle access during a time when the area is heavily congested due to large crowds gathering for the fireworks and to facilitate safe, timely egress for spectators from the Eastport Peninsula after the event. Violators will be towed.

In addition, vehicular traffic into the north side of the Eastport Peninsula will be restricted between 5:00 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.; pedestrian traffic will be permitted. The Spa Creek Bridge will be closed to traffic at 9:00 p.m.

Vehicular traffic will be denied access to the Downtown area beginning at 5:00 p.m. until approximately 10:30 p.m. Roadblocks will be set up at Sixth Street and Severn Avenue to deny access to the Downtown area via the Eastport (Spa Creek) Bridge. Roadblocks will be set up at the following Downtown locations:

King George Street and College Avenue
Prince George Street and College Avenue
North Street and College Avenue
Church Circle and Main Street
Duke of Gloucester Street and Conduit Street
Duke of Gloucester Street and Green Street
Duke of Gloucester Street and St. Mary's Street
Duke of Gloucester Street and Compromise Street
All other streets contained within the boundaries of the United States Naval Academy, College Avenue, Duke of Gloucester Street and Compromise Street will be closed to all but residents of the area.

Traffic will be allowed to flow down Duke of Gloucester Street from Church Circle and into Eastport until 9:00 p.m. when Duke of Gloucester Street will be closed to ensure pedestrian safety and to facilitate the movement of the crowd on foot exiting the area following the fireworks display.

CLOSING OF DUKE OF GLOUCESTER AND MAIN STREETS: In order to expedite the movement and clearance of pedestrian traffic, Duke of Gloucester Street and Main Street will be closed at approximately 9:00 p.m. and remain closed until approximately 10:00 p.m.

Feeder streets to Duke of Gloucester (Charles, Conduit and Market Streets) will also be closed at Duke of Gloucester. Conduit Street will be closed between Main Street and Duke of Gloucester.

NOTICE TO BOATERS: The drawspan of the Eastport (Spa Creek) Bridge will be closed to boat traffic from 8:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. Because of the anticipated crowded conditions, boaters are urged to select their preferred viewing area anchorage early and are also warned to avoid the 1,000 foot SAFETY ZONE around the fireworks barge. Please note: immediately after the fireworks, the barge will be underway to clear the harbor. All boaters are urged to heed the instructions of the various safety and law enforcement officials which will be on the waterways to include the U.S. Coast Guard, the Department of Natural Resources Police, the Annapolis Police, the Annapolis Fire Department, the Annapolis Harbormaster, and others.

SAFETY (and some common sense) PLEASE: The use of fireworks (including sparklers) is prohibited on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Academy. During the July 4th events, citizens are asked to refrain from using any fireworks in the downtown area. Also, the firing of pyrotechnics and flares from spectator boats and land areas is not only illegal; it presents a frightening safety hazard. Please show proper respect for your fellow boaters and their property and refrain from such a dangerous practice.

A WORD ABOUT ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES: The consumption of alcoholic beverages on the streets and sidewalks of the City is prohibited; further, NO ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES are allowed on the grounds of the United States Naval Academy.

UP TO DATE INFORMATION: Please tune to AM radio1620 and/or WNAV 1430 for event and parking information.

DONATIONS STILL NEEDED: Businesses and residents supplement the budget to provide the funds for the 4th of July fireworks display. Those wishing to help defray the costs for this community event are urged to send their donation to:

July 4th Annapolis Inc., c/o First Citizens Bank, 890 Bestgate Road, Annapolis, MD 21401

Donations may be tax deductible.

For more information: Jane Schlegel, Assistant with the Mayor’s Office, City of Annapolis, 160 Duke of Gloucester Street, Annapolis, Maryland 21401, (410) 263-7796/(410) 263-1183; or e-mail: Jschlegel@annapolis.gov.

Please send comments, subscribe, share with your friends, and support our sponsors.

WIND ENERGY AT GREENBURY POINT

WIND ENERGY AT GREENBURY POINT

Delegate Ron George is giving Annapolis Green an update on his proposal for wind energy at Greenbury Point.

"Everything is moving forward very smoothly. However it is a slow process as the Navy has a method that needs to be adhered to" said Delegate George. With most of the research steps done for the project, the process now turns to the formal testing of the wind for 6 months to a year as required by the Navy. However, other steps can proceed after we have just 3 months of official readings."

"What has been great about the slow process is how much the technology has improved. The 300 foot turbines we are considering generated 1700 mega watts when we started. Now, the newer ones generate 2500 mega watts despite moving slower. This helps in the protection of birds" he said. "And the increased watts of power further help in the elimination of greenhouse gases. Keep in mind that the entire city of Annapolis uses 18,000 mega watts and that six to ten towers could produce as much as 25,000. The infrastructure including the grid that is already in place from the former radio towers makes this ideal." The Navy has assured him that the public would still have access to the property.

Delegate George is also involved in the identification of other locations around the state that may have been overlooked.

"I have co-sponsored several bills that are creating incentives for solar, but I could not accept that there was not some way to incorporate wind into our portfolio. This helps us get to our goals and the Navy to get to theirs."

He hopes to have the Greenbury project moving along by the end of the fall. "At that time, I would like to show the Navy a collection of written support in order to assure them that we are interested in this moving forward. What a wonderful statement this would make for Annapolis to lead the way!"

Delegate George is collecting your comments of support at
Ron.George@house.state.md.us .

Ron George, Delegate

District 30-Anne Arundel Co

152 House Office Bldg

Annapolis, MD 21401

#410-841-3439

Fax: 410-841-3256

Please send comments, subscribe, share with your friends, and support our sponsors.

Josh Cohen On County Budget

The Cohen Bulletin
News and Opinion from Anne Arundel County Councilman Josh Cohen

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

FY 2010 Budget highlights

Today is the first day of the County's Fiscal Year 2010 spending plan which runs from July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010. I want to share some highlights of how we are managing your tax dollars.

Unusually tough times

"Austerity" is the word that best describes the FY 2010 budget. The downturn in our economy is affecting county revenues and requires significant spending cuts. This year's $1.18 billion budget is smaller than last year's by more than $30 million. On average, each department's budget is almost 9 percent leaner than last year. The notable exception is the Board of Education whose funding is a little more than 1 percent
higher.

These exceptionally challenging times required Anne Arundel County to take unprecedented steps. We eliminated almost all "pay-go" operating funding of long-term capital projects, thereby increasing our long term
debt service to pay for these projects. We zeroed out our planned $15 million contribution that was intended to reduce our future liability for retiree health care. We renegotiated union contracts to eliminate
more than half of the previously agreed COLA and merit increases. And, for the first time in memory, we dipped into our FY09 "rainy day fund" to the tune of $16.5 million.

Despite these and other reductions, I believe we successfully  prioritized spending to maintain essential services while minimizing the impact on the end user. The same thing I wrote about the budget process two years ago holds true again this year: Overall, the budget process was collaborative and it worked well. Although many worthy items were not funded, we did the best we could to balance different objectives with the money available.

Taxes

The FY 2010 budget reduces the property tax rate from 88.8 cents down to 87.6 cents per $100 of assessed value. (The budget reduces the county portion of the tax rate for City of Annapolis residents from 53 cents
down to 52.3 cents.) The reduction is required by the county’s property tax revenue cap, which requires the county to reduce the tax rate when rising assessments outpace the rate of inflation. With this
tax rate cut, Anne Arundel County continues to have the lowest property tax rate ($0.876) and income tax rate (2.56%) of any of Maryland’s “big seven” largest jurisdictions.

Despite our economic hard times, the Standard & Poors bond rating agency maintained our coveted Triple-A bond rating. This valuable designation will save taxpayers money by letting the county borrow money at more favorable rates to pay for long-term capital improvements. This rating is due in large part to the county’s history of prudent fiscal management and solid, diverse tax base.

What’s in the budget

The budget contained almost no new initiatives. A few items of note include the following.

*In a huge victory for Annapolis families, the budget funds the full
implementation of the Performing and Visual Arts (PVA) Magnet program at
Bates Middle School this Fall. The County Executive's proposed budget
failed to include the $800,000 needed for the Arts Magnet, but the
County Council found the money from savings elsewhere in the budget. As
I've written before, the PVA is a critical part of the plan to
strengthen schools in the Annapolis cluster.

*Despite having to reduce Monday morning hours at some branches, I am
pleased that the Library system found a way to stay open on Sunday
afternoons at the West Street branch and two other regional branches
during the school year.

*The budget includes $15 million to improve Bay water quality by
funding enhanced nutrient removal of nitrogen and phosphorus at the
Edgewood Road Wastewater Treatment Plant. This project is 75% funded by
the State's "flush tax" -- our state tax dollars at work.

*The capital budget includes full funding to construct a new and
expanded Germantown Elementary School. The new school will open in time
for the 2011-2012 school year.

*Fortunately, the budget does not include closure of Annapolis
Elementary School which was recommended by the County Auditor. The
school is one of the last remaining community institutions downtown and
is vital to keeping downtown family-friendly.

Revenue and expense summary

Property taxes are the single largest source of revenue for Anne
Arundel County, accounting for 46 percent of all revenues. Income taxes
are the second largest at 30 percent. All other revenue sources such as
recordation and transfer taxes, permit fees and sales taxes account for
less than a quarter of county revenues.

Education is the single largest expense for the county. Fifty percent
of the $1.18 billion budget goes to the Board of Education. The next
largest category is public safety: police, fire and corrections account
for 20 percent. The remaining 30 percent of the budget covers all other
services from public works to recreation, from the libraries to social
services.

More Resources

County Executive Leopold's proposed FY10 budget documents (final documents will be posted online shortly) Board of Education FY10 budget documents

Posted by Josh CohenPlease send comments, subscribe, share with your friends, and support our sponsors. Join us every Thursday morning from 8-9 am for our Sip N' Blogs held in local coffee shops...except for that one in Eastport we used to patronize...ahhhh choo!.

Republican Women in Deep Doo-doo, Bowling and Weikel Weigh In, Democrats Should Consider Weikel in Similar Light

It looks as if Joyce and CHuck Thomann's nasty and irresponsible rhetoric is earning them the reaction it deserves. This made big headlines in the blogosphere and some readers have told me that mega-blogs Huffington Post and Daily Kos picked their stories up from little old me. Huh-wuddya know?

Republican candidate for Ward Three Scott Bowling has taken the high road and distanced himself from this scene. Among other things, he wrote:

In an open letter on the Republican Women of Anne Arundel County Maryland website, Joyce Thomann stated that President “Obama and Hitler have a great deal in common in my view.” I forcefully reject this view enunciated by Ms. Thomann, and find the use of this inflammatory rhetoric unacceptable, useless and destructive. Speaking for myself, I fail to see any merit to the statements offered, and believe that these kinds of statements are contrary to my goal of vigorous, civil debate on all issues.



I would like to believe that this was an extremely poorly considered choice of words by an individual. Ms Thomann does not speak for me, nor have a role in my candidacy. I am, in light of this letter, returning the contribution Ms. Thomann made to my campaign for Ward 3 Alderman, to express my absolute condemnation of this comparison. My platform is based on fiscal conservativism, in the spirit of Ronald Regan, along with a clear focus on the local issues of personal safety, growth and development.


I am grateful for the support my campaign has received from Annapolitans of all political affiliations. I pledge to always maintain a civil and respectful discussion of the issues we face as the business of governing moves forward.

Good for Bowling.

Of course Democrats were furious about the Thomanns comments and I've received some emails going around, but ironies of ironies, I had to laugh when I saw local Democratic troublemaker Chuck Weikel (remember the old Wacky Weikel?) weighing in. I've covered his antics so many times that I hesitated to cover him again, but readers will recall not only his activities with Annapolis Alive! but also how he spends much of his seemingly boundless energies  bashing fellow Democrats while calling for unity and civility....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Here goes:

Where are the Republican voices condemning it?This is a main stream Repulican organization, not some right wing wacko group.  Chuck

..and this

Unfortunately. They were mainstream. Am I Pollyanna to believe the average registered Republican would reject this? Where are their voices?We all are hurt when hate becomes the currency of established Republican organizations and their Party. No one wins.    Chuck

and this...

Joyce Thomann just made Olbermann's second worst person in the world.


Well Chuck, I'd like to know where are the Democratic voices who should be distancing themselves from you? You seem to be the wacko in that group for all the reasons I have pointed out here before. I wrote to local Dem Chair Nick Berry about this and have not received a reply--unfortunately, but the inside skinny is that Weikel has made many Dems very uncomfortable.

Speaking of uncomfortable Dems, Alderwoman Sheila Finlayson, a close FOE,  is unhappy with yours truly. A while back I wrote about her fundraising activities which made her unhappy as I recall, and she took me to task for being inaccurate because I said her Mercedes was black. She corrected me that it was actually dark blue--or vice-verse. Even more recently I invited her to be a guest at Sip N' Blog. When I next saw her I tried to be cordial and explain that my reporting is not personal. Here is what transpired last week:

Dear Sheila:

You are the only alderperson who is consistently unresponsive when I attempt to communicate, most recently with your lack of response to my invitation to this morning's Sip N' Blog. We have hosted nearly all candidates including all of your colleagues on City Council except for Stankivic, Hoyle and Mayor Moyer. Of those, only Hoyle is running for re-election and she responded to the same email I also sent to you by explaining she would be out of town this week. Previously, when I wrote to City Council members asking if they would support placing information about the city manager petition on the city's web-site, you were, as I recall, the only alderperson who did not respond, despite two phone calls to your home.

Perhaps you will establish communication so that I may include information about your campaign which I intend to report on whether or not you choose to respond to any emails. Thank you.

Paul Foer
http://www.annapoliscapitalpunishment.blogspot.com/

to which she replied:

Mr. Foer,



I find that your emails always have an underlying threat attached. I don't respond to threats or coercion. And for the record, I did respond to the issue of placing the City Manager petition on the website.


Alderwoman Sheila M. Finlayson

Dear Sheila:


There is not and has never been any kind of threat made to you and I resent and am offended by such an allegation. It sounds as if two other Democratic operatives have put words in your mouth. The real fact is that you are consistently unresponsive and as an elected official, I find your casual and self-righteous attitude toward me as a member of the media to also be troubling. I extended an invitation to you to attend a regular event which has featured many other elected officials and candidates. And as I have come to realize, it is the normal manner in which you operate. You may not like me and you may not like my political stands but I try to be as fair as I can to as many people as I can as often as I can. Apparently that does not suit you. I have no apologies to offer. However, I believe that since you did not send your email to me as a private correspondence, and knowing full well that I do intend to report on your campaign (which you labeled as a "threat") it seems to me that your email should become a matter of public record.

Sincerely,

Paul Foer

Consider this about FOE Finlayson. She is the most consistent supprter of the mayor, she is running again for her seat, she opposes the city manager initiatives and finally--when civic activist and businessperson Doug Smith was testifying before council about how to make budget savings, all the good alderwoman could do was ask Mr. Smith how the citizens would be able to get on with a reduction in city services.  Well, what about how we the taxpayers feel about you spending our money Madame Alderwoman??? Does that count, or in your career as a public teacher and lobbyist, perhaps not having to make payroll or turn a profit has blinded to you to ths aspect of management?

Please send comments, subscribe, share with your friends, and support our sponsors.