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Resident urges action on water, growth, traffic and sewer capacity during La Plata public comment
Summary
At the June 10 La Plata council meeting, a resident asked the council to prioritize water affordability and conservation, raised concerns about rapid development and a recent sewage spill, and urged more attention to traffic and public transit.
A La Plata resident used the council—s public-comment period on June 10 to urge town leaders to give higher priority to water affordability and conservation, to address rapid development and traffic, and to investigate a recent sewage spill.
"I'm here to express my disappointment with the violation that was found for the city of La Plata, the town of La Plata," the speaker, Miss Turner, told the council. She said water should be the town's top priority and expressed concern that Charles County could control La Plata's growth "through water" and that county negotiations might not result in a fair or low water rate for town residents. She also said she was "not real confident in the town attorney" and worried the public would learn details of any deal only after it was signed.
Turner said she has heard residents say development is occurring "too fast," and she linked a recent sewage spill to the town's growth, saying the sewage treatment plant appears to be strained. She listed traffic and walkability as major community concerns and noted those topics, along with public transit, did not appear on the council's priorities list: "That's what everyone is complaining about in La Plata. Can we make this a more walkable community?" she asked, adding that certain developments, such as Pine Grove, do not support walkability.
Turner said councilman Sampson had mentioned water conservation at some point, but "that didn't even get on the priorities list at all." She urged encouragement of conservation measures among La Plata residents and said she worried that development without affordable water would benefit out-of-town developers, naming "Doctor Horton from Texas" as an example of an outside developer she fears would profit.
Turner—s comments were made during the public-comment portion of the meeting; the transcript records no formal council response during that same segment. The town—s published priorities list was discussed by the speaker but was not amended or acted on during the meeting.
