Public Invited To Local Viewing Of Health Care Forum
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Dec. 2, 2010
A forum to explain the impact health care reform will have on rural citizens, communities and businesses will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 14, from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at five locations around the state, including the Garrett County Health Department in Oakland. The public and press are invited to attend.
Presentations will originate from the University of Maryland College Park and be webcast to rural areas. Each location will have its own facilitators and conduct its own discussions.
There is no fee to attend any of the forums, but registration is required by Tuesday, Dec. 7. Registration is available online at rural.state.md.us.
“Setting up a location in Garrett County to view the webcast of the health care forum is an excellent way for all of us to learn more about the health care law and particularly how it will impact rural areas and each one of us,” said Garrett County health officer Rodney Glotfelty. “We are especially happy to be a participating site for the forum.”
Other viewing locations include the Eastern Shore Higher Education Center at Chesapeake College at Wye Mills, Wor-Wic Community College in Salisbury, College of Southern Maryland in Prince Frederick, and University of Maryland 4-H Center in College Park.
26th Annual Christmas In The Village Slated At Spruce Forest
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Dec. 2, 2010
The 26th annual Christmas in the Village at Spruce Forest Artisan Village is planned for Friday and Saturday, Dec. 3 and 4.
The village will once again be lit by hundreds of candles and warmed by wood fires in all of the studios and galleries.
Hosts from the Miller family will relate their family history, explaining why they came to this area, and how they survived and prospered while working with Native Americans and each other.
Hosts in the House of Yoder will also tell stories of their ancestors and give tours of the three-story German-style house.
Refreshments will be served in the House of Yoder, Miller House, and Hostetler House (John’s Little House).
In the Compton one-room school, Miss Historic Maryland and volunteers from the Reading Council will read children’s stories and help children decorate cookies.
In the church, seasonal music will be provided on Friday evening by the Allegany High School choir, the Northern High School concert band, St. John’s Christian Church Joyful Ringers, and the Beachy Family Bell Ringers.
Author returns for book signings
December 4, 2010 – By NANCY TULLIS (ntullis@reviewonline.com)
CHESTER – Chester native Lauren Carr, author of three mystery novels, will return to the area the weekend of Dec. 10 for speaking and book-signing events.
Carr will speak to language arts classes at Oak Glen High on Dec. 13. Prior to that Monday, she has scheduled three book-signing events.
She will be at Waldenbooks at the Ohio Valley Mall, St. Clairsville, Ohio, from 4-8 p.m. Dec. 10; at Borders Express in Beaver Valley Mall, Monaca, Pa., Dec. 12 from 1-4 p.m.; and at Lynn Murray Library, Chester, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 11.
Carr, who now lives in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., is promoting her latest mystery, “It’s Murder, My Son.” Books will be available for purchase at each of the book-signing events….
…In “It’s Murder, My Son,” Carr introduces readers to a new setting, Deep Creek Lake, Md., and a new main character, homicide detective Mac Faraday. Her previous books were set in Chester and featured Joshua Thornton, a single father of five.
Deep Creek Lake welcomes ski season
Posted: 12/03/2010
MCHENRY, Md. – Maryland’s only ski resort is preparing to open its doors.
Wisp Resort says the Deep Creek Lake region received several inches of snow Thursday and Friday, combined with plummeting temperatures that allowed for three straight days of snowmaking.
Wisp will open a beginner trail on Saturday and Sunday, with reduced-price lift tickets of $10 for adults and kids.
The grand opening is set for Thursday, and more terrain is expected to be open by then.
Wisp celebrates its 55th anniversary this year and will provide several discounts next weekend,
including $7 lift tickets on Dec. 12 and 13.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Wisp resort celebrates 55 years
Saturday, December 04, 2010
By Larry Walsh
McHENRY, Md. — Wisp knows how to throw a party.
The western Maryland resort overlooking Deep Creek Lake will celebrate its 55th year of operation Dec. 12 and 13 with steeply discounted lift tickets, half-price rental equipment and group lessons, entertainment and free birthday cake on each day.
Lift tickets for adults and children will be $7. Rental equipment and lessons will be $18 and $17.50, respectively.
Depending on snow conditions, guests may have their choice of up to 32 slopes and trails served by two quad chairlifts, five triple chairs, four conveyor lifts, one surface tow and one loading carpet.
The resort has a state-of-the-art snowmaking system and receives a lot of natural snow.
Wisp, which will hold its Grand Opening on Thursday, opened Belly Flop this morning for skiers and snowboarders who couldn’t wait to get back on the snow. It’s a beginner trail served by an easy-to-ride conveyor lift.
Marketing director Lori Epp said the off-snow highlight of the birthday party will be a “one-of-a-kind” birthday cake “designed, created and masterfully executed by Baltimore’s famous Charm City Cakes.”
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10338/1108260-139.stm#ixzz179MceyHc
Deadline for Hat/Glove drive extended!
Helping to Heat the Heads & Hands of Garrett County Children!
Time Thursday, November 18 at 8:00am – December 1 at 6:00pm
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Location Drop off at ANY local real estate office or at the Garrett County Board of Realtors® by December 1, 2010
434 Weber Rd (Short Stop Plaza)
Oakland, MD
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Created By I Love Garrett County & Deep Creek Lake, Maryland!
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More Info Join us in keeping the children of Garrett County warm this winter! Here’s how to help: Buy a warm hat & gloves. Place them in a zip-lock bag and write the size (kids or adults, boys & girls). Drop off at ANY local real estate office or the Garrett County Board of Realtors® office (Short Stop plaza) by December 1, 2010. We’ll do the rest!
Help us keep the kids of Garrett County warm this winter!
Questions? 301-334-8405
Buy a hat & gloves and mail them ASAP to 434 Weber Rd, Oakland MD 21550. c/o GCBR (Garrett County Board of Realtors)
NewsWatch: Foreclosure sales drop in third quarter
The number of foreclosure sales in Maryland in the third quarter dropped 47.6 percent from the second quarter and 17.0 percent from the third quarter of 2009, according to new data from RealtyTrac of Irvine, Calif.
A total of 2,338 such homes sold in the third quarter, at an average price of $207,544, or an average discount of 35.9 percent. That was 17.0 percent of all homes sold in the quarter.
Prince George’s County had the highest percentage of foreclosure sales in the quarter — 33.6 percent of all home sales.
The state data reflected the national numbers, which also showed quarterly and year-over-year decreases. The average national sales price of a foreclosed home was $169,523.
State agencies back Allegheny merger offer
Allegheny Power’s residential customers in Maryland would share $6.5 million in credits over four years and the western part of the state would get a regional headquarters as part of a proposal to approve the electric utility’s merger with FirstEnergy Corp. of Akron, Ohio.
Although Maryland agencies, several unions, four local governments and an industrial customers group have signed off on the deal, the state’s Office of the People’s Counsel has not approved, Deputy People’s Counsel Theresa V. Czarski said Thursday. Its objections are expected to be filed with the Public Service Commission today.
The proposal was filed with the PSC on Wednesday. The commission has until Jan. 7 to act on the proposal, under which Allegheny Power would become a subsidiary of First Energy, which already owns seven utilities in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Allegheny of Greensburg, Pa., has about 250,000 customers from northwestern Montgomery County, north into Frederick and Carroll counties and west through Garrett County. Of those, only the 220,000 residential customers would share the credits.
Governor O’Malley Empowers “Clean Energy Communities” With An Additional $2M For Energy Improvements
December 1, 2010
Grants to be Awarded in Every County of the State and Baltimore City are Expected to Help Approx. 1,400 Marylanders
ANNAPOLIS, MD — Governor Martin O’Malley announced today the award recipients for the FY2011 “EmPOWER Clean Energy Communities” grant program, which helps local governments and nonprofits fund energy efficiency projects specifically for low to moderate income Marylanders. The grants, overseen by the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA), are expected to help 1,400 Marylanders save a total of 1,800 MWH of electricity and almost 7 million cubic feet of natural gas each year, or over $5.1 million in savings over the estimates life of the measures.
“These grants are an example of exactly the type of efficiency projects we had intended for Maryland communities and families when we entered into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, the nation’s first multi-state collaborative carbon cap-and-trade program,” said Governor O’Malley. “These grants are another step forward in our effort to make Maryland’s future cleaner, greener, and more sustainable for all our citizens.”
These grants, forty-one in total, will be awarded in every county across Maryland and Baltimore City. With projects ranging from home energy efficiency upgrades in Caroline County to large-scale residential weatherization in Montgomery County, local jurisdictions and non-profit organizations will use these funds to help make Maryland more energy efficient.
“The Maryland Energy Administration is thrilled to be able to help hundreds of Maryland families save money on their energy bills, while also creating jobs and stimulating the economy,” said Malcolm Woolf, Director of the Maryland Energy Administration. “Under the leadership of Governor O’Malley, Maryland is continuing to move forward towards achieving our EmPower Maryland goal of reducing energy consumption 15% by 2025.”
Each Maryland county and Baltimore City was provided an allocation based on the number of low-to-moderate income households residing in the respective area. A listing of grants awarded is detailed below. Funding for the program comes from the Strategic Energy Investment Fund, which was created from public auctions of carbon credits through the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
For more information, visit the Maryland Energy Administration.
2011 EMPOWER Clean Energy Communities Project Synopsis:
Garrett County Habitat for Humanity Garrett County $15,000
Garrett County Habitat for Humanity will use their grant to enable energy efficiency upgrades for three (3) Habitat homes in Garrett County.
Prosperity Pail Ministry Works, Inc. Garrett County $6,000
This grant will enable Prosperity Pail to provide hot water tank upgrades to low-to-moderate income residents.
Mortgage tax break in the crosshairs
By Tami Luhby, senior writer
December 2, 2010: 5:25 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Don’t even think of touching the mortgage interest tax deduction in the midst of a fragile housing market.
That was the immediate response of the housing industry, which has come out with guns blazing against the presidential deficit commission’s proposal to overhaul the coveted tax provision.
“We will fight this proposal,” said Joe Stanton, chief lobbyist for the National Association of Home Builders. “From everything we’ve read, it will end up being a tax hike.”
Charged with finding ways to reduce the nation’s exploding federal debt, the bipartisan debt panel recommended Wednesday a wide range of controversial spending cuts and tax changes that would slash $4 trillion in deficits over the next 10 years.
Among the proposals was a major change to the mortgage interest deduction, which costs the Treasury Department an estimated $131 billion a year.
Currently, taxpayers who itemize their deductions can deduct the interest on mortgages of up to $1 million for their principal and second residences, plus on home equity loans of up to $100,000. The provision generally benefits higher-income Americans since they are more likely to itemize.
SHA Ready For Winter Operations; Will Introduce "Pro-Active" Strategy
Nov. 25, 2010
The Keyser’s Ridge garage of the Maryland State Highway Administration is ready for the snow forecast for Garrett County on Friday, according Charlie Gischlar, SHA Communications, Baltimore.
“We’re totally ready for anything Mother Nature sends us,” Gischlar said.
Western Maryland – Garrett, Allegany, and Washington counties –received an average of 156 inches of snow last winter. Garrett County alone, however, received more than 260 inches.
Currently, there are 7 tons of rock and solar (sodium chloride) salt at the ready in the three SHA “salt barns” located in Garrett County. Statewide, there are 340,000 tons of the materials in 96 barns. Gischlar noted that SHA will try to restock those supplies after every storm.
Statewide, SHA also has 35,000 tons of abrasives (sand, etc.), 60 tons of calcium chloride, 675,000 gallons of salt brine, 50,000 gallons of magnesium chloride, 4,500 gallons of potassium acetate (used in automated bridge anti-icing systems), and 30,000 gallons of Geo Melt 55 at the ready for the 2010-2011 winter season.
Gischlar also reported that SHA will introduce a new “proactive” anti-icing strategy in Garrett County and elsewhere in the state this winter. Prior to or at the onset of snow, SHA crews will spray salt brine (liquid sodium chloride) on I-68, Rt. 219, and Rt. 40 in order to prevent snow and ice from bonding to the pavement.
