MINUTES
MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEETING
June 3, 2002

Mayor Margo G. Bailey called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. In attendance were Mabel Mumford-Pautz, J. Brian Kirby, Whaland Clark, Harrison C. Bristoll, Jr., William S. Ingersoll, Town Manager, Stewart Barroll, Esquire, Police Chief Walter Coryell, Jennifer Stead, Stenographer, and guests.

Mayor Bailey asked if there were any additions or corrections to the minutes of the previous meeting or the executive session of April 15, 2002. Mr. Bristoll moved that the minutes be accepted as presented, was seconded by Mrs. Mumford-Pautz and carried unanimously.

Mayor Bailey stated that an executive session was held at 8:06 p.m. after the Mayor and Council meeting of April 15, 2002 to discuss three personnel matters. The entire Mayor and Council was present and voted unanimously to go into executive session. Motions were made to award a scholarship and to create a full-time position. The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m. Minutes were taken and were part of the record.

Chief Coryell stated that for the month of April 2002, there were a total of forty-two (42) adult arrests with sixty-four (64) separate charges placed. Primarily, the charges were in the areas of assault, traffic related charges, DWI, and some CDS. In addition, there were nine (9) juvenile arrests, with ten (10) charges being placed. There were a total of thirty-six (36) traffic violations, two hundred seventy (270) warnings and Ms. Beck wrote one-hundred fifty-two (152) parking tickets.

Mr. Peter Clements was present to discuss the Vicker's Park Neighborhood Association. Mr. Clements stated that the Association had organized a neighborhood watch training that was scheduled for May 14th and 15th from 5-7 p.m. at Sacred Heart Parish Hall. There would be a second training on Saturday, June 1st, time and place to be announced.

Mr. Clements stated that there was a problem with speeding on Cannon Street that needed to be addressed. Mr. Clements also wanted the Town to look into trashcans mounted on posts for the neighborhood. He stated that the neighborhood association would also like to see something done about the proliferation of pit bulls in Town.

Mr. Clements stated that help would be offered by their organization to the elderly and the disabled with yard work, etc., for their properties. He stated the Association would be happy to help to beautify the Town.

Mayor Bailey stated she was looking into a grant for trashcans and was contacting State Highway for ideas on traffic calming devices.

Ms. Adrian Nash was present from Washington College. Ms. Nash wanted to thank the Council for their support of the Earth Day Festival.

Rev. Fisher was present and stated that he agreed with Mr. Clements on the trash issues and stated that trash was an issue he and his parishioners dealt with on a daily basis in the Calvert and Lychburg areas.

Mr. Ingersoll asked Chief Coryell about the status of the speedboard. Chief Coryell said that had been fixed and was ready to be deployed. Chief Coryell stated that he received notification that overtime funds would be received from the State for traffic enforcement.

Mr. Ingersoll read a letter into the record from Preservation Maryland awarding the Town a grant in the amount of up to $2,000.00 to assist with the cost of producing a guided tour book of the Chestertown Historic District. Mr. Ingersoll stated that a letter had been sent accepting the grant and displayed the cover, which was drawn by Marcy Dunramsey. Mayor Bailey stated that the title would be Old Chestertown, Green and Historic.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that he received letters from the Massoni Gallery at 203 High Street requesting that on Friday, May 17th from 6-8 p.m., they be allowed to host an outdoor reception for Marc Costelli. They also requested the open container policy be waived on May 17th from 6-8 p.m. and on May 18th from 4-6:30 p.m. Mrs. Mumford-Pautz moved to approve the application as submitted was seconded by Mr. Bristoll and carried unanimously.

Mr. Ingersoll introduced the draft Town Budget for 2003 indicating that General Government was 17%, Police Department 37%, Highways and Streets 32%, Sanitation 7%, Recreation 3%, and Public Relations 1%.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that the budget included $1,906,116.00 of regular revenue, excluding State and Federal grants, another $1,447,643.00 worth of grants from State and Federal for a total of $3,353,759.00. Operating expenses were $1,964,409.00. Capital Expenditures were $1,389,350.00 for a balanced budget of $3,353,759.00.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that there were some pension enhancements being considered that were not reflected in the budget. Work would have to be done by the Council to accommodate them, either by decreasing expenses or increasing revenues.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that the taxing rate was $.36 per $100, which was 40% of the $.90 that was in effect two years ago. He stated tax assessments, which are set by the State of Maryland, have gone up continually and it was the Town's goal to keep the taxing rate the same for the public.

Mr. Ingersoll explained the enterprise funds of Satterfield Court and Cannon Street apartments.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that the Visitor's Center had total revenues of $21,899.00. $15,899.00 was coming out of the Hotel Tax and $6000 rental income from the Chamber of Commerce and the Tourism Office. Expenses matched revenues.

The last enterprise fund was the Chestertown Utilities Commission Budget. Mr. Ingersoll stated that this was a hard one to balance. Total revenue was $975,907.00 with expenses being more than that. The amount funded by depreciation was $128,206.36 (out of a total depreciation of $247,853.00). Mr. Ingersoll stated that the Town had resisted raising rates. Mr. Ingersoll stated that upcoming capital projects were being funded by low interest loans and grants. He explained that the Utilities Department often has monthly emergencies that require fixing and that was what depreciation funds were for.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that there would be a budget workshop on May 16th at 5:30 p.m.

Mr. Bristoll moved for an executive session under Section 10.508 of the Annotated Code of the State of Maryland, following the meeting to discuss a real estate matter, was seconded by Mr. Clark and carried unanimously.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that citizens of College Heights and Foxley Manor were in the audience with concerns they would like to express.

Mr. Marty Stetson from College Heights was present and read a petition from the Concerned Citizens of College Heights into the record. The Petition expressed concerns that there were too many group homes in the College Heights area. He stated there were at least three already in existence.

Ms. Dinah DeMoss from 415 Greenwood Avenue read a statement into the record. She had many questions concerning the sale of the Coast Guard homes. Ms. DeMoss stated that the Town had the first right to acquire the property and wanted to know why the citizens of the Town were not made aware of the opportunity to purchase the homes. Ms. DeMoss stated that she would like to see everything the Town had in its possession concerning the Federal disposal of the property at 115 Rolling Road, along with anything that was given to Crossroads Community, Inc., in making the application to HHS, as well as Town's Comprehensive Plan.

Mr. Don Geiss was present from Chester Harbor and stated his concerns about the Coast Guard properties. Mayor Bailey suggested that Mr. Geiss speak to Queen Anne's County with reference to that property since it was in a different county. Mr. Geiss stated that he was new to the area and not aware of that.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that Mr. Mancuso stated two weeks ago at an informational meeting that GSA had offered the property to the Town and County and implied that it was offered to the Town or County before the process of the McKinney Act began. Mr. Ingersoll stated that never happened, and the Town would have been interested in the property absent the McKinney Act. He stated the first GSA notification received was dated January 4, 2002, and was received in early February. He stated, in fact, that a letter was received from Crossroad's Community expressing interest in the property before the Town's first notification was received. Mr. Mancuso intimated that there was an opportunity before that time, and that was not so, and Mr. Ingersoll said he would open the files to anybody about that. Secondly, as far as materials, information, or any assistance ever given to Crossroads Community was concerned, there was nothing submitted by the Town to them. Mr. Ingersoll stated the Town was on record as asking for a copy of Crossroad's application since it was first reported as being filed. Mr. Ingersoll stated he called Mr. Rooney's office earlier in the day and was told he could not receive a copy of the application until after their 25-day period.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that he wanted to be clear to the community that the Town would have been interested in the properties and reviewed the materials from GSA very carefully. There were two options; 1) for homeless programs, which Chestertown did not have, and 2) recreational facilities, which the Town did not think was appropriate. Mr. Ingersoll stated the properties belonged on the tax rolls where they could be productive.

Ms. Nan Wheat of Foxley Manor was present and had a petition to read in the record as well. She asked if a group home opened one-family neighborhoods to rentals. Mr. Ingersoll stated that there were rental homes in single-family units. He explained under the residential single-family laws, up to four (4) unrelated individuals can live together. Ms. Wheat stated that supervisory people are supposed to be at the property, but they were really only there for an hour at a time. Also, the property was a mess, and the people were not doing anything to become a part of the community.

There was a question as to whether there would be a paid counselor living in the residence. Mr. Ingersoll stated what little information the Town did have on the applications (noted at an informational hearing) that for seven (7) straight days there was a counselor in the unit. Mr. Barroll was retained for the matter to see whether this fell under the provisions of alternative living units and group homes in the annotated code of the State. Mr. Ingersoll stated that the Town was on record asking for a copy of the application.

Dr. Bradley Skelcher from 415 Greenwood Avenue expressed his concerns about the group homes. He stated that they were supposed to be making a transition from an institution, but with the concentration of group homes in College Heights, which was residential, it appeared to be difficult to accomplish the purpose of integration. He suggested a group home in the Historic District. He stated College Heights was becoming a defacto service district, rather than a residential one. He also wondered if the Town had made an effort to spread the group homes throughout the Town. He cited an article from the Kent County News titled, "Janson-LaPalme, Historic Board should be flexible", where Mr. LaPalme pointed out deteriorated homes in the Historic District. Ms. Gail Register from the Historic District stated that Dr. Skelcher had no idea what he was talking about.

Ms. Sidhu of College Heights stated that a problem that had not been addressed was that of safety. Crossroads seemed to think that safety was not an issue. Mrs. Sidhu asked Chief Coryell if he was aware of the possible problems. Chief Coryell stated that his office did not have any information from Crossroads concerning the type of people who would be populating the homes, or any type of supervision for the homes. He stated that whatever workload was associated with the homes would be something that the police would have to pick up and he had not been offered any money to expand their resources.

Mr. William Bright, Cedar Street, stated that he attended the meeting in Centreville held by Crossroads and made aware that Frank Zito was offered a space in the School Road residence and he turned it down.

Mr. David Wakely, from 117 Cedar Street, stated that he was unaware of any group homes in the neighborhood until he received a petition. He stated if properly supervised, the people would be taking their medications and problems may not occur.

Stuart Barroll, Town Attorney, stated that he wanted to explain to the community what had been addressed so far by the Town on the issue of the Crossroads application. He explained that the Town did not have any knowledge of the homes until early February, at which time he was contacted. He stated who he had been in contact with and went over the many letters that he had written requesting information. He stated it was his understanding that programs for the homeless had priority for surplus property under the McKinney Act.

Mr. Barroll stated that he wanted to scrutinize Crossroads application, but was prohibited from doing that until the 25-day waiting period was over and a decision was made. He also stated that the citation that he made to a section of the Health General article was one that was a powerful piece of State legislation, which stated it was illegal to discriminate in any way against, not just group homes, but alternative living units (which was something that permits not more than three (3) individual residents providing residential services for individuals because a developmental disability requires specialized living arrangements, which provides ten (10) or more hours of supervision per unit per week).

Mr. Barroll stated that in Section 7-603 of the Health General read, "Designation of Single Family Dwelling, this section applies only to public group homes, non-profit private group homes and alternative living units. To avoid discrimination housing and to afford a natural residential setting, a group home or an alternative living unit, for individuals with developmental disabilities 1) is deemed conclusively a single-family dwelling, 2) is permitted to locate in all residential zones, and 3) may not be subject to any special exception, conditional use permit or procedure that differs from that required for a single-family dwelling. The provision of separately identified living quarters for staff may not affect the condusive designation as a single-family dwelling under paragraph 11 of this subsection. A general ordinance, rule or regulation of any political subdivision that conflicts with the provisions of this section or any rule, or any regulation that carries out the purpose of this section is superceded by this section to the extent of any conflict.".

Mr. Barroll stated that when looking at the Fair Housing Act and the McKinney Act, there were a number of cases in the annotation which involved litigation against towns that had not "reasonably accommodated" or made "reasonable accommodations" in their rules and regulations to permit the mainstreaming of the homes such as proposed.

Mr. Barroll stated that his opinion was that people's energies needed to be directed towards the lawmakers who had not taken into account in the law of any mechanism for saturation in a small area. He stated there was not a criteria allowing Health and Human Services or anyone to say that three (3) homes were enough in one small area. Mr. Barroll stated that his investigation was not complete.

Mr. Barroll stated that advice that he would give to the Mayor and Council would only be given to the Mayor and Council and stated the Mayor and Council was very concerned, but there was only so much they could do under the State and Federal Law. He stated the Mayor and Council did not pass the laws.

Mr. Barroll entertained questions from the audience.

Ms. DeMoss stated there was nothing in the Health Code giving group homes an exemption from zoning. She stated it was up to the public to determine whether a use was appropriate. She stated the Planning Commission was put in a difficult state because the public did not understand how a group home can be a consensual family. She stated density and concentration can be addressed through the zoning ordinance. She stated the mess was allowed because the Town stated group homes were exempt from zoning, when nobody should be exempt from zoning.

Mr. Ingersoll stated he would be interested in what Mr. Barroll had to say about her interpretation of the zoning. He stated he was recounting what he thought the annotated code said to a Town, which was, if a group home came in and it met the definition of a group home, it was exempt from zoning and allowed to go peacefully in the neighborhood.

Ms. DeMoss stated that the zoning could place the same restrictions on group homes that everybody else had to live by. She stated that there were towns in the country that had in the zoning ordinances that such an arrangement was a "sanatorium for the feeble minded".

Mr. Ingersoll asked Ms. DeMoss what restrictions were placed on the single-family homeowner. He stated there really weren't any restrictions on the normal household, other than the household could not be more than four, unless related. Mr. Ingersoll stated the State law read it was illegal to call them anything other than a single family home.

Mr. Ingersoll stated the Mayor and Council was trying to find out what was in the community. Normally, a group home would come in and would not register with the Town, or do anything differently than a family would do when moving in to a neighborhood. He stated a group home appeared on Rolling Road and Greenwood with no notification to the Town, nor was any required.

Ms. DeMoss stated she was not pointing fingers at the Town, but did have questions as to whether or not the entire procedure for making the homes available was followed. Ms. DeMoss stated that she knew the Town was in a vulnerable position and tried to gently present the Town with evidence and information that would allow Mr. Ingersoll to protect the Town. Mr. Ingersoll stated that everything Ms. DeMoss gave to him, he passed along to the Town attorney. He stated if there was a defense mechanism she was talking about, Mr. Barroll had it.

Mayor Bailey stated the Town was taking the matter extremely seriously and would continue to do so.

Ms. Sheila Lepter lived next to the Kent Center houses and stated that Mr. Barroll stated the individuals in the homes were developmentally disabled. She asked how the State defined that. She defined the people in Kent Center as developmentally disabled, however, the people in the group homes she did not define as that. Mr. Barroll stated that it was defined in Section 7-107 of the Health General article as follows, "Developmental Disability means a severe, chronic disability of an individual that 1) is attributable to a physical or mental impairment other than the sole diagnosis of mental illness, or to a combination of mental and physical impairments, 2) was manifested before the individual attained the age of twenty-two (22), 3) is likely to continue indefinitely, 4) results in an inability to live independently without external support or continuing and regular assistance, and 5) reflects the need for a combination and sequence of special interdisciplinary or generic care, treatment, or other purposes that are individually planned and coordinated for the individual.".

Mr. Wakely stated that at the meeting at the school administration building with Mr. Plaskon made no secret of the fact that this was a home for people with mental illness.

Mr. Ingersoll stated that there was a letter from Crossroads that came through the clearinghouse of the Maryland Department of State Planning where it was stated in a letter to Shirley Cramer that, "in addition to day programs, community support, and employment support services, we provide supervised transitional housing for the mentally ill and would utilize both properties identified above for transitional housing for adults with a mental illness. The individuals served could access all the services Crossroads provides, as well as service coordination to address other needs, example, clinical, drug, and alcohol, or to access applicable entitlements." Mr. Ingersoll stated up to now, that paragraph and the one-sentence letter were the only things that the Town knew about the use of the two (2) homes.

Mr. Kirby stated that the letter that he had came to the Sheriff's Office and he assumed as part of the process, local law enforcement had to be notified. The letter was from Mr. Plaskon at Crossroads, as follows, "Crossroads Community, Inc., is notifying you as part of the application process to acquire the properties located at 213 Manor Avenue and 115 Rolling Road. The intended use is transitional housing for people who have a mental illness. These locations will be operated as intensive, residential, rehabilitation residences. As such, we will be serving three (3) adult females in each location with a sleep-overnight staff supervision". The letter was dated April 29, 2002.

Mr. Clements asked if the Federal or State law allowed for an appeal for the application if it was accepted, to find out if it was "above board". Mr. Barroll stated the only thing they would find out was whether it was approved or disapproved. There was no provision because the Town was not considered an interested party allowed input. Mr. Barroll stated that he thought Crossroads could appeal if the application was denied.

Mr. Barroll stated that the Town could have a case against Crossroads if they were found to be fraudulent in their application.

Mrs. Sidhu stated that a member of the Board of Crossroads told her that the application had been filed and they were aware that the community was protesting the home.

Mayor Bailey stated that she did not want to debate the zoning code. The community needed to go for areas where some good could be done, such as the Board of Crossroads and Congressman Gilchrest. Mayor Bailey also stated that the Council would continue to track the matter legally.

Mr. Kirby stated that the Federal Government was not bound to give anybody the application until after the twenty-five (25) day period. He stated Crossroads could voluntarily give the application to the Town if they wanted to. Mayor Bailey stated that the Concerned Citizens could request that Crossroads provide the application to the Town. Mr. Kirby asked Mr. Barroll if a letter could be written to the Board of Directors asking for the application, as opposed to requesting it from Mr. Plaskon. Mr. Barroll stated that he would write to the Board of Crossroads.

Mayor Bailey stated that George Best was the recipient of the Mayor's Scholarship to Washington College. The scholarship committee was Kevin Coveny and Mary Ellen Clark.

Mayor Bailey stated that the request for a traffic control device at Rt. 291 and the entrance to the Rescue Squad had been denied by State Highway.

Mr. Clark made a motion for payment of bills, was seconded by Mr. Kirby and carried unanimously.

Mr. Clark moved that the meeting be adjourned at 9:20 p.m. was seconded by Mr. Kirby and carried unanimously.

Submitted by:

Jennifer Stead
Stenographer

Approved by:

Margo G. Bailey
Mayor