The Board of County Commissioners met on October 30, 2025, at 9:00 AM in the County Office Building, Room 311, for an open session. The meeting included contract awards, an agricultural easement approval, a veterans proclamation, and extended policy discussions on the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance (APFO) and the Renewable Energy Certainty Act. Commissioners also provided updates on regional issues including the MPRP power line project and the federal government shutdown.
And to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under liberty and justice for all. And uh priority Carol, we start with uh Commissioner Krebs. I think we have some photos to put up if that's if Chris is back there. Well, I will start off with um it was pretty always a busy week, but last week we started off on Thursday when we were here. My husband represented me at the uh Strawbridge Home for the Boys. They installed a historic marker there dedicated to this Strawbridge home that was here, and it was very interesting. Um this old stone building's been there for many years, walked by it many, many times, and never really understood the history of it. So the Maryland Department of Transportation, in partnership with the Maryland Historic Trust, they put this marker honoring the legacy of the Strawbridge Home for Boys that is in Eldersburg. It's right, the sign is actually right in front of Merit Athletic Club. The home was on the actually on the other side, a little bit down, a little bit down the road. But this um Strawbridge home was home to over 300 and had a lasting impact on generations of Marylanders, for those who remember it. Uh, this property stands on the outskirts of Eldersburg, and it was there from 1924 until 1959. And there was a farm located between what is now Liberty High and Freedom Elementary off of Route 32. The home has a very uh rich history with stories that go all the way back to the early 1800s. In 1891, a wealthy elderly George Washington Monroe, so you say Manroe, uh, and his wife owned a 318-acre farm, and he died on that day, leaving no heirs. And the home was originally bought by auction after that by a George Washington all ball. I'm telling you this because Tom's a historian over there. There's a lot of George Washingtons. Lots of George Washingtons. To be run as a home for orphaned boys in 1922. And he wanted to honor Robert Strawbridge, who was the founder of Methodism in America, which actually started right here in Carroll County. I think many know that. Uh in 1924, between 5,000 and 6,000 Methodists and their friends from Maryland, Southern Pennsylvania, and Delaware all gathered at the Strawbridge Home for Boys at Eldersburg to witness and take part in the dedication of the first cottage to accommodate the first 15 or 20 boys of the home. These were all orphans. The total cost of the renovations back then were $20,000. Soon after the building was renamed the Strawbridge Cottage. It eventually housed the youngest boys, those aged four to eight years old. In 1926, the large granite building was constructed at a cost of fifty fifty thousand dollars as a dormitory for the older boys. Strawbridge quickly grew to a home for around 50 boys raging in age from four years old to 18 years old, with support staff, including a superintendent, other administrators, house parents, dietitians, and farm managers who helped run an agricultural complex that included a dairy and beef cattle horses, hogs, chickens, ducks, and extensive garden. And during the 20s, it cost approximately 200 to raise each youngster. Things have changed. 200 opposition. The boys attended public school in Sykesville and worshiped there at St. Paul's Methodist Church. But they also had daily tours. So hundreds of boys found this to be a warm and nurturing home since its accep uh inception in 1924. Um it closed his doors in 1958. Um the the actual building uh it was still sitting there. They had a large fire there a number of years ago. So there was a resident actually, one of these folks, I'm not sure which one it was, is in this photo, uh, actually was a resident in the home, and he was at the dedication. So I thought that was pretty interesting. But um it's uh um interesting what we did with our uh our orphaned children years ago. We took care of them, and this is just a dedication to that. So that was last Thursday. I wish I was able to make it, but I was here with you fine folks. Next, we had a really nice um economic development. Up the let's start with this one. Who's that guy on there? There's Tom Gordon. Sorry.