Carroll County Board of Commissioners Open Session – August 6, 2026

The Carroll County Board of Commissioners held its open session on Thursday, August 6, 2026, at the Carroll County Office Building, Room 311, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Commissioners heard proclamations, approved routine contracts and grants, considered a zoning code review budget transfer and change order, discussed the Freedom Small Area Plan amendment, and took public comment. All formal motions passed unanimously.

Proclamations and Commissioner Reports

• Commissioner reports highlighted National Night Out and the Carroll County 4-H/FFA Fair. Commissioner Gordon noted the fair cake auction raised $113,625, including $15,000 for the grand champion baked item.
• The Board proclaimed the 60th anniversary of the Carroll County Farm Museum, which opened to the public on August 13, 1966.
• The Board proclaimed August 2026 as Emergency Management Awareness Month. Valerie Hawkins and emergency management staff accepted the proclamation.

Action Items

• CAD Support Renewal: Approved the renewal for support and maintenance of Computer Aided Dispatch software, interfaces, field mobile applications, and licenses to Keystone Public Safety, Inc. for $278,023, funded in the FY27 budget.
• VAWA Grant: Approved submission and acceptance of the FY27 Violence Against Women Act grant. The grant funds the domestic violence prosecutor position, with 253 victims served between October 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026. The grant amount is $68,616 with a $70,000 county cash match, for a total of $138,616.
• Nonprofit MOAs/MOUs: Approved agreements with the Veterans Independence Project, Literacy Council of Carroll County, Mid-Atlantic Gigabit Innovation Collaboratory (MAGIC), and Carroll County Historical Society.
• Inmate Medical Services: Approved a FY27 contract award to PrimeCare Medical, Inc. for inmate medical services in the amount of $2,093,649.28, using Cecil County’s competitively bid RFP #26-006.
• PowerDMS Renewal: Approved the annual PowerDMS renewal and new modules from NEOGOV for $50,619.87, using Sourcewell Contract #030425.
• Fire/EMS Medical Services: Approved $400,000 to Carroll Occupational Health for occupational physicals, drug testing, and other medical-related services for Fire/EMS employees and volunteers, including newly required cancer testing.
• Bridge No. CL-0346 Engineering and Design: Approved reimbursement of the county’s 20 percent share for engineering and design services for replacing Bridge No. CL-0346 on Brown Road over Roaring Run. Staff’s written request was for $641,356.35 in total design costs, but board discussion clarified the county’s anticipated share was approximately $128,271.27, and the approved motion authorized the 20 percent share rather than the full amount.
• Water Valve Bolt Replacement: Awarded a $207,825 contract to Mid-Atlantic Utilities, Inc. of Boiling Springs, PA to replace water valve bolts at 69 locations in the Freedom District service area. Mid-Atlantic was the low bidder on all four tasks; the next bid was $384,740. The average unit cost was $3,010. Staff estimated about 1,087 of 4,300 valves, roughly 30 percent, still have cast iron bolts, and this contract will bring the total upgraded locations to 583.
• County-Owned Property Sales: Approved the sale of five county-owned properties no longer needed for county projects. The properties were purchased in the mid-1980s in anticipation of the Westminster Bypass, which was removed from the master plan in 2003.
• Zoning Code Review Budget Transfer: Approved Resolution O-27.01 transferring $19,968 from Reserve for Contingencies to Planning and Land Management Administration for consulting services.
• Zoning Code Review Change Order: Approved a $19,968 scope amendment change order to Michael Baker International, Inc. for the revision of Carroll County Zoning and Site Development Codes, increasing the total contract from $76,743 to $96,711.
• Agricultural Land Preservation Easement: Approved exercising the option to purchase a conservation easement on the Jane Blose Shaw Revocable Living Trust property, 216.7773 acres at 154 Rockland Road, Westminster, for $841,013.60. The price is 70 percent of the land-only appraised value of $1,201,448.01, and the property retains no residential lot rights.
• FY27 Town-County Agreements: Approved agreements with Mt. Airy ($285,955 gross / $206,576 net), Taneytown ($604,553 gross / $537,361 net), Union Bridge ($84,902 gross / $72,270 net), and Westminster ($1,496,894 gross / $1,314,548 net).
• Year-End Adjustments: Approved Resolution O.26.06 and Resolution C.26.03 for FY26 year-end adjustments. Budget Director Ted Zaleski noted the county is transitioning to a new financial system and may need to return with a correction. Commissioners also discussed uncertainty about private pre-K funding because enrollment data is not known until the state provides it.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Jane Shaw, trustee of the Jane Blose Shaw Revocable Living Trust, spoke in support of the agricultural preservation easement purchase and personally thanked the Board for its support of the program and for its support regarding power lines.
• During the public comment period, Catherine Adelaide, a member of the Carroll County Republican Central Committee, gave announcements about upcoming party events and fair activities; she did not address a specific agenda item.

Discussion: Freedom Small Area Plan Amendment

• Consultants Nathan Davis and Ben Levinger of Downtown Redevelopment Services presented initial findings for the Freedom Small Area Plan amendment, focused on the MD 26 and MD 32 commercial corridors. Key findings included: household incomes in the study area are about 20 percent higher than the county overall; retail, office, and restaurant vacancy rates are below 5 percent; and the broader trade area has about 23,000 housing units but only 1,200 multifamily units.
• The consultants presented eight development typologies and a range of regulatory and infrastructure tools, including transition standards, shared access, streetscape improvements, parking lot redevelopment, and design standards. They asked commissioners to complete worksheets by the following Friday.
• Commissioners discussed infrastructure constraints, including the lack of parallel roads, traffic safety concerns, the need for transitions to adjacent residential neighborhoods, stronger architectural and design standards, meaningful open space, and predictability for developers. No formal action was taken.
• A public open house was scheduled for that evening from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Eldersburg Branch Public Library. The next engagement round is planned for October 13-16, 2026, including a joint work session with the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Other Discussion: Volunteer Fire Company MOUs

• Commissioner Kiler raised concerns about the MOU process for the organization representing Carroll County’s 14 volunteer fire companies. He said the volunteer companies were not satisfied with the proposed agreement and had returned edits. County attorneys and Fire/EMS leadership are reviewing the edits, and the Board discussed tailoring MOUs to each organization rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach. Funding is not being withheld during the review.

Key Outcomes

• All formal motions passed unanimously with no recorded opposition.
• The bridge reimbursement motion was reworded to approve the county’s 20 percent share rather than the full $641,356.35 total design cost.
• Commissioners scheduled a public hearing on the proposed text amendments related to the remaining deferral items for September 3, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. in the County Office Building.