The Mays Chapel Elementary School Site

I provided the following as a response to a request from the Forge Flyer:

The Mays Chapel and Dulaney Springs sites.
Source:  Towson Times

I support the Mays Chapel site for a new elementary school, and I have communicated that to County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, Superintendent Joe Hairston, and my friend and colleague County Councilman Todd Huff.  Councilman Huff has heard from many constituents who oppose the Mays Chapel site, and I can understand why they would want to preserve such a large, undeveloped area.  But I am motivated to support the Mays Chapel site for a number of reasons. 

First, it offers the fastest way to provide relief to overcrowded schools along the York Road corridor.  The property is already owned by Baltimore County and there are fewer environmental constraints than the alternate location at Dulaney Springs.  I am told the school can be opened by the fall of 2014.

Second, if the school system moves forward with the proposal to move some West Towson Elementary School students to Ridge Ruxton Elementary School, I want a plan that makes this disruption as brief as possible.  I understand the concerns of parents from both schools.  The Mays Chapel location offers the fastest route to a solution.

Third, the Mays Chapel location has been "on the books" for decades.  

Fourth, geographically the Mays Chapel location seems to make sense.  The September 2011 enrollment numbers demonstrate that school overcrowding affects elementary schools along the entire York Road corridor, from Towson to Hunt Valley.  Mays Chapel will help reduce overcrowding not just in Towson, but in Ruxton, Lutherville, and Cockeysville as well.

Although I know my position will be criticized by some, I will defend the Mays Chapel location because it offers the fastest relief for schoolchildren in central Baltimore County.

Perry Hall High School's 50th Anniversary

2013 will mark Perry Hall High School's fiftieth anniversary.   The original location was what is now Perry Hall Middle School.   When that place became too crowded, the school system constructed the current high school down Ebenezer Road and converted the first building into a junior high school.

The Perry Hall High coat of arms.

I am very proud to have graduated from Perry Hall High School, and am actually the first alumnus to serve on the Baltimore County Council.   Today, I went back to be interviewed for a documentary that will be unveiled at a banquet in 2013. 

My years at Perry Hall High School were a half a lifetime ago, not only for me but almost a half-lifetime in the history of the school.   In 1987, when I entered PHHS, our community was in the middle of a housing boom.   Farms were being plowed under for new housing developments, and plans were underway for new highways like Honeygo Boulevard that would shuttle cars to White Marsh Mall, then only six years old.  The mall was the hangout for teenagers on Friday and Saturday nights.  The closest movies were at Golden Ring Mall.

My memories of high school are of cross-country competitions and marching band trips, It's Academic outings and Homecoming parades.  Perry Hall High School has always been a big school, and its population then was about 1,800 students (500 less than today).  But despite the size, there was a feeling of pride and togetherness that drew the school and community together.

Today's principal, George Roberts, has brought back the history and traditions that were largely ignored by previous administrators.   I am very happy he and Assistant Principal Steve Arnold are heading up an anniversary committee.   Several events are currently being planned.  If you are interested, stop by the meeting on Monday, February 27 at 6:30 p.m. in the high school library.

Jane Roger Nominated to Commission on Aging

Jane Roger

I am happy to nominate West Towson resident Jane Roger to the Baltimore County Commission on Aging. The Commission is an advisory panel that helps Baltimore County accommodate the housing, health care, nutritional, and social needs of seniors.

A state employee, Ms. Roger has been a small business owner, a longtime member of the Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors, and a member of the Baltimore County Republican Central Committee. She currently works at the Maryland Department of General Services. 

Jane Roger's business background will be helpful as Baltimore County delivers services to our growing senior population in an efficient manner.   We must make sure vulnerable seniors get the care they deserve, and we need to plan for the needs of the Bykota, Parkville, and Seven Oaks Senior Centers, which serve many residents of the Fifth District.  

Ms. Roger replaces Lacy Flynn, who retired from the Commission. She will serve a three-year term commencing immediately.