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Dorchester County Council approves equipment leases, maintenance work and letters of support; delays contested lease termination
Summary
At its Sept. 16 meeting the Dorchester County Council approved a $200,000 excavator lease, $30,750 courthouse fire pump replacement, a three-year farm lease, concept approval of the Board of Education FY27 CIP local share of $602,500, and letters supporting a replacement fishing pier and requesting PILOT review; it agreed to a 45-day stay on a nonprofit lease termination.
The Dorchester County Council on Sept. 16 approved a series of routine capital and maintenance actions, confirmed grant- and policy-related letters, and agreed to pause a contested lease termination pending further information.
Councilman Mike Detmer moved and Councilman William V. Nichols seconded the excavation lease motion; the Council approved leasing an excavator from Elliott & Frantz, Inc., at a total cost of $200,000 after a $28,779 trade-in offset for a John Deere 270D (characterized in the request as equating to $40,000 per year with a $1 buyout at the end of a five-year term). The initial payment will be funded from the Contingency Fund.
The Council also approved proceeding with Bayside Fire and Security, LLC, to replace a fire pump and controller at the Circuit Courthouse at a cost of $30,750, funded by the Courthouse Maintenance FY26 Operating Budget. Both motions passed by 4–0 votes (Councilman Rob Kramer Jr. was absent).
During action items the Council granted conceptual approval for the Dorchester County Board of Education’s FY2027 Capital Improvement Plan for planning purposes only, accepting a local share request of $602,500 (Cambridge South Dorchester HVAC—$127,500; Maces Lane Middle Roof and HVAC—$475,000), contingent upon final adoption of the FY27 county budget.
In the public hearing portion of the meeting the Council voted to execute a three-year farm lease with Delmarva Native Plants, LLC, for four acres on Bobtown Road at an annual rent of $2,000. The roll-call vote was Pfeffer—aye; Detmer—aye; Nichols—aye; Travers—aye; Kramer—absent.
The Council confirmed several interim poll decisions taken between meetings, including submitting a letter of opposition to Draft Addendum III to Amendment 7 of the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Striped Bass and approving a $20,000 Edward J. Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant application for the sheriff’s office. It also approved a joint letter of support to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources for construction of a replacement public fishing pier at Cambridge Harbor, to be submitted with the City of Cambridge and Cambridge Waterfront Development, Inc.
On Planning & Zoning’s request, the Council authorized submission of a letter to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service seeking review and reconsideration of Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) and Refuge Revenue Sharing payments for federally owned lands within Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge. The letter will be copied to the county’s federal delegation.
Finally, in response to public comments from residents Susan Windsor and Scott Hughes, the Council agreed to a 45-day stay on the termination of the South Dorchester Community Foundation lease of a county-owned property in Crapo to obtain additional information about the facility’s status as a dedicated emergency command center and its 501(c)(3) standing. Resident Lindsay Wheatley also raised concerns about the planned temporary closure of Worlds End Turn, noting tractors and other heavy equipment may be unable to use the alternate route because of a bridge tonnage limit.
The meeting adjourned at 8:12 p.m.
