Testimony on PlanMaryland

Today, I was able to address the Maryland State Senate Committee about PlanMaryland and provided the following testimony:

"Good afternoon, I am Evan Slaughenhoupt, Calvert County Commissioner. I am pleased to give this testimony on behalf of all concerned citizens of Calvert County.

First, I thank the Maryland State Senate’s Committee on Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs for putting together this forum permitting testimony from local elected officials.

Calvert County, the smallest county in Maryland, is proud of its role over the years in land preservation where we have permanently preserved 30,000 acres of land while on a path towards 40,000 acres.

We have a successful Transferable Development Rights program that not only helps direct and focus commercial and residential development into our Town Centers, and preserves farm lands, but has served as a model for many other counties throughout America.

We have maintained much of the rural character of Calvert County by controlling residential growth and “promoting a higher quality of life for our citizens”.

In short, “we know what we are doing”, “we are doing this locally”, and unless specifically requested, “we do not need intrusion by the state as described in the current draft of PlanMaryland.” …and yes, we have read the plan several times, and we understand it clearly.

Our success to date, however, did not occur by planners staying in the confines of their cubicles in Prince Frederick. We collaboratively met with citizens, individually in some cases, with community associations and their representatives, and various citizen commissions as well as volunteer organizations.

Our success to date is because our citizens are involved in the development and implementation of our County Comprehensive Master Plan and Town Center Master Plans. We have done so without the need for greater insertion by the state into our activities as envisioned in the current draft of PlanMaryland.

Your involvement today should have the affect of placing on hold the current draft of PlanMaryland. More importantly, however, is how PlanMaryland moves forward as a result of your efforts today.

Calvert County contends that the Maryland Department of Planning be instructed to set aside the current plan. Instruct the department to follow a path that is collaborative rather than insular. Engage the County planning organizations which have intimate knowledge in the uniqueness of their county, identify commonality within the various comprehensive master plans and zoning ordinances. Expand the current AgPrint, GrowthPrint, and GreenPrint concepts in PlanMaryland, to include an EconPrint to demonstrate just how friendly the business atmosphere is in the State of Maryland.

Bottom line, build a new plan based upon commonality and collaboration. The future generations are counting upon us getting PlanMaryland correct. Let’s not permit the process to be short-sighted while having the state and local officials talking past each other. Instead, let us work together as that is what the citizens expect of us.

Thank-you."