October 2011 – Page 3 – Jay's Real Estate Blog

Garrett County Presents "Modest" List Of Priorities To Transportation Officials

Support the Republican Newspaper! It’s only $9.95/year for the online edition!

Oct. 13, 2011

Maryland Department of Transportation (DOT)and State Highway Administration (SHA) personnel conducted their annual consultation meeting with local officials and residents last Friday morning at the courthouse.

Each fall, transportation and highway officials visit Baltimore City and every county in the state to present their six-year Consolidated Transportation Program draft and to review local priorities and funding needs.

Maryland Department of Transportation Secretary Beverley Swaim-Staley indicated Garrett County’s requests are small compared to other areas of the state.

“Garrett County, you all are modest in your requests,” Swaim-Staley said. “If we were to add up all of the 24 jurisdictions’ number one priorities, they would total over $12 billion.”

She noted, however, that even if the DOT’s funding level were increased by $1 billion, which would be a significant level, it would take a “very, very long time” to complete each one of those priorities.

“We continue to have significant funding challenges, as a country and as a state,” Swaim-Staley said.

More here.

Buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland? Call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! I take great pride in referrals, and I assure you, I will take great care of your friends, family & colleagues!

877-563-5350 – toll free

Wisp Resort owners file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

Tourist destination near Deep Creek Lake has had financial difficulties in its real estate arm
Comments 2Share84
By Hanah Cho, The Baltimore Sun

6:51 p.m. EDT, October 17, 2011
The owners of a ski resort near Deep Creek Lake have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy-law protection while they try to resolve financial difficulties related to another business.

DC Development LLC, which owns Wisp Resort in Garrett County, announced the filing Sunday.

The company has been unable to renegotiate the repayment of a $28.5 million loan with BB&T Corp. The loan was tied to the construction of an 18-hole golf course and community called Lodestone Golf Club. The golf club property, which is near the ski resort, has experienced lackluster sales of home sites.

DC Development — which filed for bankruptcy-law protection on Saturday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Greenbelt — said Chapter 11 protection would allow it to work out its loan restructuring and provide “breathing room needed to continue to seek new investors for the companies.”

More here.

877-563-5350 – toll free

Loretta Hummel Releases Country Gospel Bluegrass Album, 'Sweet Spirit Comfort Me'

Hagerstown, MD — Award-winning, recording artist Loretta Hummel releases her new studio album, “Sweet Spirit Comfort Me” The album represents a sought after vocal harmony of old country gospel and bluegrass music. Hummel’s lyrics express the depth and richness found in life as her heartfelt songs are about local life, friends, love and Christian faith. Paul Mullan, Station Operations Manager of WMSG Radio Station, 1050 AM, states “We’ve all heard of people who wear their heart on their sleeve. Well, Loretta puts her heart in her voice. Her lyrics are some of the most penetrating I’ve heard, and her songs mean so many different things to so many different people. She’s a joy to be around and a joy to listen to.”

Hummel wrote all the new and original songs for her eighth album, “Sweet Spirit Comfort Me”, which was recorded at River Track Studio located near the Country Music Highway in Kentucky. Studio engineers Otis Lynn Dillon and Robert Maynard not only recorded and mixed the album but also provided some instrumentation. Hummel says, “I am very pleased with Otis’s banjo and mandolin playing and I’m happy to have bluegrass musician Ron Stewart of Indiana playing the fiddle on this album.”

Cuts from the album’s 11 tracks include, “Garrett County Memories” in which words of imagery evokes reminiscence of the local landscape and pleasant memories. “I Know Jesus Is My Savior”, is one of her several songs that share the word of the gospel. This new album reveals some of Hummel’s talents: A light bit of yodeling, a Christmas song, and even a soldier’s song are included. A tribute to our men in service, “God Bless the Soldiers”, has the voice of a soldier’s personal plea for God’s blessing.

More here.

877-563-5350 – toll free

Wisp Resort’s fortunes have gone downhill

Western Maryland ski and golf resort files for Chapter 11

by Lindsey Robbins, Staff Writer

Maryland’s only ski resort has fallen victim to the collapse of the real estate market, as its owners filed for bankruptcy on Saturday after defaulting on a $23.5 million loan.

D.C. Development of McHenry, owner of Wisp Resort in Garrett County, and related companies filed the Chapter 11 petition in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Greenbelt, citing $50 million to $100 million in assets and $10 million to $50 million in debts.

“Wisp Resort continues to perform exceptionally well and will continue to be the region’s premiere skiing resort,” Karen F. Myers, an executive with Wisp Resort Development, wrote in an affidavit with the filing. “However, as a result of the [Branch Banking & Trust] confessed judgment, the companies must restructure their debt and their relationship with BBT.”

Myers is a prominent businesswoman in the state; last year, the Maryland Chamber of Commerce inducted her into its Business Hall of Fame.

More here.

877-563-5350 – toll free

GCHS To Host Fall Fundraising Dinner Oct. 28

‘Like’ on Facebook!

Support the Republican Newspaper! It’s only $9.95/year for the online edition!

Oct. 13, 2011

The Garrett County Historical Society will host a fundraising dinner on Friday, Oct. 28, at the Pleasant Valley Community Center, beginning at 6:30 p.m.

The entertainment for the evening will be provided by local actor John Wilson, who will portray the county namesake and B&O Railroad president, John W. Garrett. Wilson is versed in the events in Garrett’s life, including his numerous accomplishments and his close association with President Abraham Lincoln.

The price of the dinner is $20 per person. Reservations should be called in to the museum as soon as possible, according to Robert Boal, president of the society. The number is 301-334-3226. Persons should call between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Boal said the public is invited to attend this event, which is in part a celebration of the opening of the new Garrett County Transportation Museum, located along Liberty Street in Oakland.

More here.

877-563-5350 – toll free

Some Marylanders question odd pairings in proposed new congressional map

Farms mix with suburbs, cities with small towns
By John Fritze, The Baltimore Sun

11:33 p.m. EDT, October 15, 2011

Jim Schillinger, a fourth-generation farmer from Severn, has occasionally tussled with politicians who don’t understand the first thing about crop yields or the rising cost of fertilizer. When he tries to explain his concerns, it’s as if they don’t speak his language.

So when Schillinger studies the proposed boundaries for Maryland’s eight congressional districts and sees that his 136-acre farm in Anne Arundel County would be lumped with densely populated Prince George’s, it doesn’t inspire confidence that his voice would be heard in Washington.

“These people have different opinions than what these people have up here,” Schillinger says, pointing to a map of the redrawn 4th District. “They’re going to have different ideas — the city people — versus what we have.”

As a byproduct of their effort to bolster political advantage through the once-in-a-decade redistricting process, Maryland Democrats have created some odd pairings: farms mixed with suburbs, city centers combined with small towns and — most important from a political perspective — deeply conservative areas tied to staunchly liberal enclaves.

More here.

877-563-5350 – toll free

BOE Considers Comcast's Web Access Program

‘Like’ on Facebook!

Support the Republican Newspaper! It’s only $9.95/year for the online edition!

Oct. 13, 2011

The Garrett County Board of Education recently met (Tuesday, Oct. 11) with a representative of Comcast to discuss that company’s Internet Essentials program.

The initiative seeks to provide students of households without web access with an Internet connection.

Through the program, Comcast is offering an Internet connection for $9.95 per month with free equipment and no installation fees. Comcast will also offer free Internet training for students and their families. The system is stand-alone and there is no need to purchase cable, telephone, or any other services offered by Comcast.

Students who qualify for free lunch also qualify for the Internet Essentials program. However, eligible households must be within the Comcast “footprint,” or locations where the company has installed its cable systems. Those who utilize the program may not have been Comcast customers within 90 days of installation.

More here.

877-563-5350 – toll free

Where to go: Casselman River Bridge State Park, Md.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

• What to do: When the National Road was a major route to everywhere west of the Appalachian Mountains, the Casselman River Bridge was considered a marvel of technology. When completed in 1813, the 80-foot bridge was the longest single-span stone arch in the United States. Some thought it wouldn’t stand for long, but the bridge carried foot traffic, animals, carriages, wagon and ultimately automobiles and trucks until 1933. It’s no longer open to vehicular traffic. The 4-acre park, east of Grantsville in Garrett County in Maryland’s northern panhandle, is a popular attraction for photographers, fly anglers and history buffs.

• Contact: 301-895-5453.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11289/1182256-140.stm#ixzz1bFVc98es

877-563-5350 – toll free

Garrett College to celebrate pool’s grand opening

Work crews completing last of the punch list items; festivities to commence Saturday

From Staff Reports Cumberland Times-News

MCHENRY — The pool has been filled and the lifeguards have been hired at Garrett College’s new Community Aquatic & Recreation Complex.

Now it’s time for the public to take a dip.

A grand opening scheduled for Saturday will feature tours of the 32,500-square-foot complex, demonstrations in its fitness center and regulation-size pool — and a three-hour public swim from 2 to 5 p.m.

Funded by the state and county, the $23 million CARC is to be a wellness center for the entire community, college leaders have said. Membership fees are on a sliding scale based on income levels.

Last week, a group of area kindergartners was among the first to try out the pool when they participated in a new I Can Swim! program. The free program will bring all Garrett County kindergartners to CARC for one week at a time for swimming and water safety classes.

Work crews are completing punch list items, but construction of the aquatic and fitness building is “substantially complete,” according to a report prepared for the Garrett College Board of Trustees.

An adjacent 42,500-square-foot gymnasium is about 40 percent complete and is expected to open in March, the report said.

Saturday’s grand opening kicks off with a 9 a.m. breakfast and pre-event tour for Garrett College alumni, followed by a ceremony and guest speakers at 10 a.m.

Tours begin at 11:30 and continue until 5 p.m. Demonstrations are scheduled throughout the day, including:

• 11:30 a.m. to noon: Warm water pool features and healthy heart demonstrations

• Noon to 12:30 p.m.: Underwater robotic and scuba demonstrations

• 12:30 to 1 p.m.: Kayak roll demonstration and inflatable kayak kids race

• 1 to 1:30 p.m.: Manta Ray Swim Team, I Can Swim!, and dance demonstrations

• 1:30 to 5 p.m.: Fitness Center demonstrations

CARC’s operating hours are 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

More here.

877-563-5350 – toll free

Push for pet-friendly rooms makes hotels sit up and notice

Published: Sunday, October 16, 2011, 7:10 AM

By Susan Glaser, The Plain Dealer

When the suitcases come out, Pepper goes into hiding.

She knows what it means: We’re leaving, and she’s not.

There are myriad benefits to traveling as much as I do. Leaving the dog behind is not one of them.

So when longtime friends put me in charge of finding a rental house for our biannual gathering at Deep Creek Lake, Md., I made an executive decision: The dog is coming with us.

More here

877-563-5350 – toll free

Month: October 2011

Garrett County Presents "Modest" List Of Priorities To Transportation Officials

Wisp Resort owners file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

Loretta Hummel Releases Country Gospel Bluegrass Album, 'Sweet Spirit Comfort Me'

Wisp Resort’s fortunes have gone downhill

GCHS To Host Fall Fundraising Dinner Oct. 28

Some Marylanders question odd pairings in proposed new congressional map

BOE Considers Comcast's Web Access Program

Where to go: Casselman River Bridge State Park, Md.

Garrett College to celebrate pool’s grand opening

Push for pet-friendly rooms makes hotels sit up and notice

My Location

Deep Creek Media

Stay Connected