Keeping Beverly Triton Open & the AA County Budget Hearings

[Lisa]

Hello all,

The Anne Arundel County budget hearings are kicking off 2 months early and have a new format. County Executive Pittman is holding 7 budget town hall meetings, 1 for each of the 7 districts. The county council member for each district will co-host the district budget town hall with Pittman.

District 7 is the first budget hearing and is this Wednesday February 27 2019 from 6 to 8 pm at Southern High School. Beverly Triton and the rest of the Mayo Peninsula Parks are in District 7 and I anticipate the Mayo obstructionists will be out in full force. Putting District 7 first on the hearing calendar leaves public water access advocates little time to organize.

So who lives in District 7 and can attend the budget town hall? It's imperative we get people there to stand up and ask for improvements to Beverly Triton and for better not restricted public access. The Mayo obstructionists are spinning a mighty tale of woe in their efforts to get the county to close Beverly Triton back up and Pittman seems to be attentive to them BUT he's new, he hasn't heard from the people who want to use the public waterfront parks we all paid for and this is the prime chance to educate him.

If you don't live in the county, show up and be part of the pro-water access crowd. if you live in the county show up and speak up even if you don't live in District 7. We're one county and the budget hearings should not balkanize us into seven competing tribes. Me, I can't make my own district's budget town hall so I'll be speaking up in a different district budget town hall anyway.

I'm working on talking points. 6 of the 7 councilmembers are also new so we have an educational challenge in front of us.

Full budget town hall schedule and "how to find your council district and councilperson" link below.

Thanks. This really snuck up on me and I fear we will again lose Beverly Triton.

Lisa

How to find your council district and council member: https://www.aacounty.org/departments...cil/index.html

Budget Town Hall Meetings:

Wednesday, February 27, 2019, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
District 7- Southern High School Auditorium with Councilmember Jessica Haire

Tuesday, March 5, 2019, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
District 4 - Arundel High School Auditorium with Councilmember Andrew Pruski

Thursday, March 7, 2019, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
District 2 - Glen Burnie High School Auditorium with Councilmember Allison Pickard

Tuesday, March 12, 2019, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
District 3 - Northeast High School Cafeteria with Councilmember Nathan Volke

Wednesday, March 20, 2019, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
District 1 - Lindale Middle School Auditorium with Councilmember Sarah Lacey

Tuesday, March 26, 2019, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
District 5 - Severna Park High School Auditorium with Councilmember Amanda Fiedler

Thursday, March 28, 2019, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
District 6 - Annapolis High School Auditorium with Councilmember Lisa Rodvien

[Lisa]

I went to the Beverly Triton meeting last week. After the meeting I was cornered by some angry Mayo obstructionists who told me that "If I wanted water access I should have bought a house in a water-privileged community like they did." I can not make this stuff up. The obstructionists want the county to both close the park to the general public AND spend more millions of dollars on erosion control.

Here are suggested talking points and email addresses. The email addresses are for CE Pittman, all 7 members of the County Council and Mike Lofton, Chair of the Water Access Commission.

Points:

*Talk about how you enjoy Beverly Triton and the Bay
*Fulfill the promise made decades ago and put money for basic improvements at Beverly Triton in the budget (details below)
*The county has spent millions of dollars on Beverly Triton. $3.25 million to buy the land, more than $1 million for the offshore stone jetties and other erosion control fifteen years ago, decades of salary and benefits for the caretaker whose job was to live in the park, mow the grass in the park and keep anyone who didn't live within walking distance out of the park.
*The basic improvements necessary for families to enjoy this public park in safety and comfort are decades overdue.
*The county should not spend more millions of tax payer dollars on more erosion control at Beverly Triton unless and until that investment is accompanied by finally fulfilling the promise the county made decades ago and public access improvements are made at the same time.

The design for Beverly Triton is almost complete. If CE Pittman puts money in the budget and the county council approves it, construction at Beverly Triton could start in late summer.

*do not reduce parking from existing 125 spaces to 96 spaces - this is a 345 acre park!
*pave the existing grass parking lot at Beverly Triton so the parking lot is usable when it rains
*improve kayak launch so it is easier to get heavy kayaks to and from the water
*install a basic bathhouse with a few toilets like at Downs Park and a rinse off shower like at Mayo Beach so you can do a quick rinse off after kayaking
*install a basic bathhouse with a few toilets and a rinse off shower so you can bring your kids and your grandkids to the beach and clean them up and dry them off before taking them home
*we all paid for this park, we are all paying to clean up the Bay and we must be able to use this park to enjoy the Bay!

*boat ramps elsewhere in the county
*whatever else is on your wish list.

expitt99@aacounty.org
slacey@aacounty.org
allison.pickard@aacounty.org
nathan.volke@aacounty.org
andrew.pruski@aacounty.org
amanda.fiedler@aacounty.org
lisa.rodvien@aacounty.org
Jessica.Haire@aacounty.org
msl49@aol.com

Remember, please include your full name and snail mail address so they know you are a real person.

Thanks

Lisa

[Mark]

I attended the meeting. The Anne Arundel County Department of Parks and Recreation presented an excellent plan for Beverly Triton Beach. It offered a both a minimal ecological footprint on the grounds and sufficient recreational activities to make the park a desirable destination for county residents. Yet, not one Mayo resident present spoke up in favor of those plans.

I was perplexed by the vehemence of their arguments against developing the park. Some had their facts about projected traffic and parking spaces incorrect. One resident held up an ancient arrowhead, I assume found in the park, to cite a need for archeological preservation. Evidently and miraculously, the people who used that arrowhead never walked through that gentleman’s yard or anywhere else on the well-developed Mayo peninsula. Clearly, for some, keeping the park unimproved and therefore underutilized has become an emotional stance.

And that’s very perplexing to me, living as I do on the Pasadena peninsula with Downs Park at its very end on a long single access road, MD 177. I’ve seen what an asset to our community Downs Park has been. I think the folks on the Mayo peninsula are missing a great and similar opportunity for their own community.

I’d like to see their reaction if developers got ahold of that property and filled it with waterfront condos. At least if that happened it would generate tax revenue for the county. Presently it sits vastly underutilized as a recreational site. And it has been that way for over 30 years. That’s an immense opportunity cost borne by the citizens of Anne Arundel County. That makes me angry as a county taxpayer.

Unfortunately, I also saw elected officials at the meeting (Executive Pittman and Councilperson Haire) who failed to counter the immense negativity expressed by residents in any way. Indeed, they placated the residents with promises of more study and strongly implied a downgrading of the plans by the county’s Department of Parks and Recreation. The residents cheered. The politicians smiled. And integrity was nowhere to be seen in the room.

Anne Arundel County has made great strides in recent years in providing public water access. I worry now that the best may be behind us in that endeavor. I also worry that some sites we currently use may be subject to review given the tone toward development expressed at the meeting by our present elected officials.

Therefore, it is important for those of you who have enjoyed the county’s cartop boat launch sites to let Executive Pittman and your district council member know how you feel about continued access to the water. If you can post here, you can easily write an email to your elected officials. Please do so.

Thank you,

[MD Dore]

If you can post here, you can easily write an email to your elected officials. Please do so.

Thank you,

Done.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

[Salisbury]

For what it's worth, this is what I sent to Pittman and Sarah Lacey (my representative). She responded that she was in favor of the improvements in the county budget. No response from Mr. Pittman.

Mr. Pittman,

As a life long county resident I voted for you this past year largely because I believed you had a commitment to getting people outside ( the Bacon Ridge Project). As a regular mountain biker, Bacon Ridge is important to me. I also kayak fish and like taking my kids to the water to enjoy the bay. Beverly Triton is a nearly 350 acre waterfront park that for years has had limited access because individuals that live near it think it is their own. However, it was purchased with my tax dollars. Please open it up. If you do not, please make them re-purchase the land from the county, if they really want it for themselves. I would think that waterfront acreage costs approximately $200,000 per acre in AA county. At 345 acres, they need to cough up $69,000,000 for the exclusive right to that land we all purchased. The last census indicated that the population of the Mayo Peninsula was 8,000 people, so let's assume 2,600 homes. Each house can have a one time assessment of $26,539 to cover the approximately $70 million park they want to have exclusively to themselves.

The county purchased it to avoid waterfront condo's being placed there during the 1980's. We just want 130 parking spots and a shower for families to enjoy it during the summer. It you really care about the bay, you need to give AA county residents, especially children, an opportunity to see it, touch it and learn about it. In a county with 500 miles of shoreline and minimal county parks along it, opening up Beverly Triton Beach would be a good start. I really think it's a social justice issue that you have to live in a million dollar house, or in a high end neighborhood to have reasonable water access in AA county. I guess us poor folks from Lithicum/North County will have to continue telling out children about the Bay, without actually having the ability to show them the tributaries in a Pittman/Lacey administration.

All that said, the Mayo residents illusion of increased traffic is a bit ridiculous. Minimal families will be heading there at 8AM or leaving at 5pm on workdays. There will be slightly elevated traffic on weekends - but significantly less than standard rush hour during the week. Again, we are talking about 130 parking spots here.

Vince Grey

[EMSer]

As an avid car top kayaker, access to the bay is crucial to my being able to enjoy doing what I love. As most of you know, that access is very scarce in AACO.

You can believe that I will be writing the powers that be within the county to voice my support for county residents being able to use county property that we pay all for. I encourage you all to do the same.

[Lisa]

Thanks all and YakFisher, I am glad I am not the only person in landlocked District 1 to email Councilwoman Sara Lacey!

Oh, and at the Mayo meeting, the obstructionists also demanded that the county close Carrs Wharf.

Lisa

[Mark]

Thanks all.

That's a good start.

[Lisa]

I have some disturbing news. The County Executive unilaterally renamed Beverly Triton Beach Park to "Beverly Triton Nature Park.

Thanks to all who have emailed and spoken at the first Budget Town Hall. There are 6 more Budget Town Halls, dates, times and locations upthread.

Please email our elected officials and speak up at the upcoming Budget Town Halls in support of preserving existing public water access at Beverly Triton Beach Park and Spriggs Farm Park and in making the basic improvements at Beverly Triton Beach necessary for families to swim in safety and comfort.

If you belong to a club, an organization or community association that wants public water access and a swimming beach at Beverly Triton BEACH Park, please ask the organization to send an email to the county executive and all 7 county council members. Emails upthread.

Also, please also send your email to Mike Lofton msl49@aol.com Chair of the Water Access Commission. If you have already emailed the county executive and your council member please forward a copy to Mike.

I fear this is going to be an uphill paddle. We made more progress in the last 5 years than we did in the previous 30 and we're going to have to fight to keep it.

I'm not going to be around in 50 years but the little kids who will splash in the water this summer should be able to take their kids and grandkids to the park 50 years from now.

Lisa