Cambridge City Manager, Leaving onJuly 31, 2021

 City Manager Patrick Comiskey has declined to seek renewal of his employment contract following the current contract’s expiration on July 31.

Comiskey, who was hired following a search in 2018, is Cambridge’s second city manager, having served in that role for three years. Comiskey’s time as city manager has seen many transitions for Cambridge, with development and growth occurring across the city, according to a press release from the city.

The Mayor and Commissioners of Cambridge will discuss the city manager vacancy at an upcoming meeting in July.

A review of requirements will occur with regard to naming an interim city manager, as well as requirements for search committee members for the hiring of a permanent city manager.

deepharbour@comcast.net

What do the owners at 900 Marshy Cove pay in taxes?

For your information:

Data for this analysis was obtained from public records from The Dorchester County Web site.

https://www.dorchestercountymd.com/

In 2017, an analysis revealed a tax increase from 2017 to 2019 averaging $66 per year per unit.

In 2014, the analysis revealed a tax increase from 2014 to 2019 averaging $276 per year per unit.

Taxes are based on real property values and updated every three years. Your taxes go up as property values rise.  Original owners have seen 50% swings in taxes since 2007, mostly favorable.

Collectively, the building owners pay $138,635 in real estate taxes per annum.

The difference between the highest and lowest rate is $620 per year.

Creekside Eastons are the highest. Cedar Street Baysides, Arundels, and Chesapeakes are lowest.

Dorchesters are all taxed at the same rate.

In summary, water-facing units are assessed at a higher rate.

You will see some anomalies with the Baysides and Arundels.

Overall, the Deep Harbour community contributes approximately $450,000 to the County's and City's tax revenue.

Comments?  Questions? Send them to mc900@comcast.net

Where will the new Bay Bridge be located?

New Bay Bridge Notification of Open House


The Open House will be held at the Talbot Community Center, located off of Route 50, tomorrow evening - which is Thursday, October 3rd.  Doors open at 6 PM and the event is scheduled to conclude at 8 PM.  If you are unable to attend or are interested in more information, click 

https://www.baycrossingstudy.com/

DNR completes Rail Lift for large vessels

In case you have been wondering what has been going on across the creek.

The DNR has been rebuilding the rail lift ramp that will enable them to service their fleet here in Cambridge.  

The project started last summer when the ramp was partitioned with temporary steel pilings.

The water was pumped out creating a dry work space.  The original wooden pilings an rails were replaced. In the past three weeks, the large crane returned to remove the steel pilings. 

Response to an email sent to the DNR

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Sir:

Thank you for contacting the Maryland Department of Natural Resources regarding the work in Cambridge Creek.

The department's Engineering and Construction Unit has replaced the railway that we use to pull boats out of the water for repairs. The next phase of the project includes replacing the bulkhead. This a very important facility for the department because we use it to house equipment and materials, including our ice breaker.

Thanks again for writing the department. If you have any additional comments or questions about the project, please contact Jordan L. at the Maryland DNR

Thanks,

Stephen

dnr.maryland.gov

Stephen E. Schatz Director, Communications Department of Natural Resources 580 Taylor Ave., D-4 Annapolis, Maryland 21401

It appears that the work is done.

The DNR Ship Maintenance Facility. Big Lou, the tug, is docked above the rail ramp.

The large crane needed to place and remove the steel bulkhead pilings heads out to the Choptank

A tight fit, a slow approach held up street traffic for 20 minutes

Safely on the north side

Sailwinds Development RFP: Meeting Thursday, Feb 11, at 6:30 at City Council Chambers, 305 Gay St.

Frank Cooke welcomes all interested to attend, 
you do not need to reside in the 3^rd ward!  

See below for details.

From: Frank Cooke fecooke@yahoo.com

http://www.choosecambridge.com/index.php/mayor-commissioners/third-ward-frank-stout/
Sent: Tuesday, February 9, 2016 12:03 PM

Subject: Ward Meeting regarding development at Sailwinds

  Fellow citizens,

     A couple of weeks ago, Council decided to have a public work session to discuss the possible release of a Request For Proposal (RFP) for development of the Sailwinds property.  The mayor at that time did not favor public input at the work session and she asked the commissioners to poll their wards regarding the proposed release of an RFP.  I subsequently arranged to have a meeting with my constituents and I have that set up for this Thursday, Feb. 11, at City Council Chambers at 6:30 P.M.  A couple of days ago, the mayor changed her mind about taking public comments on Feb. 17, so there may be some opportunity to do so then as well.

     The advantage of attending this Thursday is that you will likely have a smaller crowd and more opportunity to get information and to share your thoughts.  I am hoping that you would be willing to complete a short survey during our get-together.  I would use that information to express the sentiment of my ward at the meeting on the 17th.  If you cannot attend this Thursday and would like to complete the survey, let me know and I will send it to you via email.

     Please feel free to forward this email to your neighbors!  If you want to copy me, I will add their email addresses to my list so that, in the future, I can contact them directly to let them know what is going on, both on Sailwinds and other matters of interest.

     Again the meeting is this Thursday, Feb 11, at 6:30 at City Council Chambers, 305 Gay St.  I have asked Commissioner Hanson to join us as he sits on the Sailwinds Committee and is quite knowledgeable about the history of this project.  Please feel free to contact me via email or by phone.  My cell is 443-205-3263.

Sincerely,

Frank Cooke,

3rd Ward Commissioner

City Council Meeting: April 27, 2015

The April 27 City Council Agenda contains the following topics relating to Sailwinds:

6:00 pm   Open Executive Session – design of promenade at Sailwinds Park

7:00 pm   Mayor to Convene Council in Regular Session

Under Unfinished Business

Public Comments on Master Development Agreement for the Sailwinds/Cambridge Port Property

Documents can be viewed on the City’s website – link follows:

http://www.choosecambridge.com/index.php/economic-development/opportunities/waterfront-2020

Cambridge City Manager: Update, March 4, 2015

Dear Friends of Cambridge,

 

The city manager issue is back on the docket for the city council meeting this coming Monday. I do not know all of what will be discussed but have some information that you need to know.

 

Within the past few days the mayor and others met with the Dorchester Election Board, their staff, and their attorney. The purpose of the meeting included the city's request that the election board verify or certify the signatures on the petition that was presented to city council on January 26th. This request had been previously made and rejected and, apparently, was rejected again.

 

That moves the matter back to the city for it to make a decision on how to proceed to certify or verify the signatures on the petition. I have made a written request to review the petitions and possibly copy some or all of them but have not yet received a response to that request.

 

It is unclear what, if any, rules or guidance exist regarding how the signatures or the petition will be verified or certified so we will have to wait to see what the city council tells us on that issue.

 

If it turns out that the petition is certified or verified (the count may be done between now and the Monday city council meeting), there are at least two things that need to be decided  by the city council. The first is what the referendum question will be for the voters to vote on, and the second is when that vote will take place.

 

With regard to when a vote would take place, there are two options. One is to have the vote within 40-60 days of the verification/certification of the petition and the other would be to have the vote in May-June of 2016 at the time of the general election for the mayor and commissioners.

 

With regard to what the referendum question will be, it appears that that decision lies with the city council to draft the question based on how the issue is raised in the petition.

 

I plan to attend the meeting on Monday and would certainly encourage you to attend as well to be able to hear first hand what the current situation is and what next steps may need to be taken.

 

It is our position on when the vote should take place (if the petition is verified/certified)  that it take place within the 40-60 day period from the date of certification rather than waiting until more than a year from now. This is an issue that has now been discussed for over 2 years and needs to be decided sooner rather than later.

 

Steve Rideout

Cambridge: City Manager Debate wears on.....................

CAMBRIDGE CITY MANAGER INITIATIVE

CURRENT STATUS

as of February 7, 2015

• ·        Mid December - the commissioners on a 4-1 vote pass the charter changes and transition ordinance.
• ·        Under Maryland law, those who disagree with that law change have until January 26^th to obtain signatures of 20% of the registered voters in the city seeking a referendum.
• ·        On the evening of January 26^th, a petition was presented at the city council meeting seeking such a referendum.
• ·        As a result the city manager implementation process is on hold pending a number of things.
• ·        The Petition was sent to the Dorchester Board of Elections for review.
• ·        The Board of  Elections has declined at this point to participate in the certification process and has returned the petition to the City of Cambridge
• ·        What will happen next has not yet been decided by the commissioners.
• ·        If the petitions are certified in some way, city council will need to determine the language that will be used for the referendum and will also set a date for a vote on the referendum.
• ·        The options for a vote would be either within 40-60 days of the petition being approved and the ballot language being set or at the next general election in June 2016 (over a year from now).
• ·        Those who presented the petition asked to have the ability to observe the certification process.

See this link to better understand the City Manager model for city government.

https://www.youtube.com/city manager

Comments? Questions? >>>mc900@comcast.net 

Message from Steve Rideout regarding City Manager for Cambridge, MD

A letter that was received from Steve Rideout by email on January 27, 2015.

Below the letter is an explanation of the City Manager form of government and why.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Dear Group:

"As you know, there have been ups and downs with the effort to improve the effectiveness of the government of Cambridge through establishing a city manager form of governance.

"Last evening there was another bump in the road.

"As you will recall, in December the commissioners on a 4-1 vote passed the charter changes and transition ordinance. Under Maryland law, those who disagree with that law change had until yesterday to obtain signatures of 20% of the registered voters in the city seeking a referendum. Last evening a petition was presented at the city council meeting seeking such a referendum. As a result the city manager implementation process is on hold pending a number of things.

"1. The Dorchester Board of Election must review the signatures on the petition and determine if there are the required number of registered voters who have signed it.

2. As I have not seen the form that was presented, I do not know what it says, but that has to be reviewed to determine the petition meets legal requirements.

3. If the petition meets the requirements, the Board of Elections will certify the matter back to city council for next steps. How long the review of the petitions will take is unknown.

4. If the petitions are certified and returned to city council, it will need to set a date for a vote on the referendum. The options would be within 40-60 days of the petitions being returned or the alternative would be that the vote would be held at the next general election in June 2016 (over a year from now).

"Those who presented the petition asked to have the ability to observe the certification process by the Board of Elections. It would appear that there would also be an opportunity for those who support the commissioner's decision to establish the charter changes to also observe that process.

If the petition is certified for a vote, there will be a need for people who support the effort to have a city manager to put together a campaign to make that happen. That means the ability of the small group that has pursued this effort  for the past 2 years needs significant help from you, your neighbors, and those you know in the city.

"In the final analysis, we will get the government that we deserve. If we simply let the vote happen with no effort on our part, I am concerned that Cambridge will return to a government that hides what it will do with Sailwinds, overtaxes its citizens, fails to implement a vision for the city to help it and its citizens to prosper, be a city that thrives on grants rather then effective and smart business development, and the list goes on."

Steve 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Background on City Manager Initiative

Here are some reasons why we think it is a good idea:

Council-manager government combines the strong political leadership of elected officials with the strong managerial experience of an appointed manager or administrator. All power and authority to set policy rests with an elected governing body, which includes a mayor and members of the council. The governing body in turn hires a nonpartisan manager who has very broad authority to run the organization. The council-manager form has become the most popular structure of local government in the United States.

How does council-manager government work?

The elected council represents our community and develops a long-range vision for its future. They establish policies that affect the overall operation of the community and are responsive to residents’ needs and wishes. To ensure that these policies are carried out and that the entire community is equitably served, the Council appoints a highly trained professional manager on the basis of his or her education, experience, skills, and abilities (and not their political allegiances). If the manager is not responsive to the governing body, it has the authority to terminate the manager at any time.

How can council-manager government benefit our Community?

Policy-making resides with elected officials, while oversight of the day-to-day operations of the community resides with the manager. In this way, the elected officials are free to devote time to policy planning and development

The manager carries out the policies established by the elected governing body with an emphasis on effective, efficient, and equitable service delivery. He or she is a full-time professional employee whose sole responsibility is working to improve Cambridge.

Does it cost more to have the council-manager form of Government?

Most local governments have found that their overall costs are reduced under competent full-time management. Savings come from decreased operating costs, increased efficiency and productivity, and improved revenue collection. The economic health of the community benefits from improved business development and retention of existing businesses.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

send your comments An questions to mc900@comcast.net

November 10, 2014; 7:00 PM: Cambridge City Council Meeting

NOVEMBER 10TH  MEETING  OF THE CAMBRIDGE CITY COUNCIL TO BE HELD AT THE DORCHESTER COUNTY OFFICE BUILDING 501 COURT LANE 7:00 PM The following is an agenda item under Unfinished Business: Unfinished Business Introduction and discussion of the following: ·        Charter Resolution No. CR-2014-01 – adding Section 3-39 entitled “City Manager” ·        Charter Resolution No.  CR-2014-02 – amending Section 3-21 entitled “Mayor: Oath of Office, Duties” to incorporate changes to the duties of the office of the Mayor consistent with the adoption and implementation of a City Manager-Commissioner Form of Governance ·        Charter Resolution No. CR-2014-03 – repealing in its entirety Section 3-22 entitled “Town Clerk, Treasurer and Collector” ·        Ordinance 1041 to implement a transition plan for the implementation of a City Manager form of government ATTEND, BECOME INFORMED! BRING A FRIEND AND NEIGHBOR!

Sailwinds Planning: November 17th at 6:00 p.m. at the County Office Building

Dear Group:

On November 17th at 6:00 p.m. at the County Office Building (Enter through the rear door), there will be a meeting of the city council about the planning for Sailwinds.

There are a number of challenges that Cambridge faces with regard to this project that are too numerous and detailed to go into here. The details of this project have not been made available in any detail to the public so far, and, hopefully, that will happen at this meeting.

It is important that the meeting room be filled with those of us who are interested in this issue as it is very important to the community.

Sailwinds is one of, if not the, most important pieces of any successful future development of Cambridge or preservation of a valuable attraction and resource of this community. Who the developer will be, how much we as taxpayers will be asked to contribute to this project through our taxes, and what vision the city leadership and developer have for Sailwinds are all unknown at this point.

We need to pay close attention to what is going on and ask hard questions of those we have elected to make decisions such as this for us, as they will be doing it without having any community input by referendum or other public vote on the matter.

See you on the 17th.

Steve

City Manager: Letter to the Editor

Dear Interested Citizens:

We have spent much of the past two years talking about moving to a city manager form of government. On Saturday a friend sent me a link to a video done in Michigan about the benefits of a city council-city manager form of government. It says in minutes what we have been trying to say these past two years.

Please watch it. Please share it with others no matter their position on the issue. It is important that everyone understand what we are seeking for Cambridge and the benefits that will come with having a city council-city manager form of government.

The only things that I saw in the video that were different about our story in Cambridge are these:

1. They do a comparison between a "strong" mayor form of government and a city council-city manager form of government. The current form of government for Cambridge is what is called a "weak" mayor form of government. The commissioners in Cambridge are the strong part of our governmental structure. In my view this difference only shows how much better our proposal is because it brings the mayor and commissioners together to develop the vision for the city rather than possibly placing them at odds with one another.

2. The video talks about cost savings because the salary of the full time mayor in Michigan would be moved over to pay the city manager. As we do not have a full time mayor who is paid a full time salary, there would be no savings in salary as we are not proposing that the  salary of any elected official be reduced. The savings come, as explained in the video, by a better run and more efficient government that is managed by the city manager.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbZlrXW2BJg&feature=youtu.be

submitted by Steve Rideout

Unified Development Code- Cambridge

Here's the direct link to the UDC.
It is not easy to find on the Choose Cambridge Website.

http://www.choosecambridge.com/uploads/Planning/UDC/Cambridge-UDC-FINAL-City%20Council%20Draft%20for%20PH.pdf



The UDC link is on the following web page.
You will find links to other documents that may also be of interest.

http://www.choosecambridge.com/index.php/extensions/dept-public-works/planning-zoning/  

City Manager Matters - the day after. A letter from Steve Rideout

	From: Steve Rideout [mailto:swrideout@aol.com] Sent: Tuesday, October 07, 2014 7:46 AM Subject: City Manager Matters - the day after Dear Cambridge Citizens and Friends of Cambridge: I waited to send this email to take some time to reflect on last evening's work session regarding the city manager proposal. It was certainly a great night for Cambridge but it is not the end of this effort to achieve better, more efficient, more effective, fairer, and economically sound government for this community. I am thankful for everyone who came last night or sent emails or spoke to the mayor or commissioners and am particularly thankful for everyone who spoke either for or against the proposal. Last night is what government is and should be about - the people letting their elected leaders know their thoughts. What I heard from most of those who spoke were reasonable and legitimate issues of concern and some of which will make any changes to our proposal even stronger than it currently is. What was being discussed last night was a proposal, and with all legislation there needs to be give and take on issues where there is legitimate disagreement. I took notes on those issues and believe that we can draft reasonable compromises that will not diminish or harm the underlying core values of what is before the commissioners for decision. At one point, for those who were not there, I briefly spoke about the differences between leadership and management. What the City of Cambridge received from 4 of our commissioners last night was leadership, and we need to remember that when the next local election takes place. Attached is a slightly modified handout I provided last evening for those who did not attend or did not get a copy last evening. For next steps, I spoke with Mr. Pinkett, who heads the local NAACP chapter for Dorchester, and offered again to meet with him and members of his organization to discuss this initiative. About a month ago I had contacted him about meeting prior to last evening, but that could not be arranged. I hope that you will send a letter to the editor of our local papers expressing your views, whatever they may be, as this discussion needs to continue so that as many people in Cambridge understand the benefits that will come to the entire community when we have a city manager on board. All the best.  Steve

YOU ARE ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND

YOU ARE ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND

THE PUBLIC WORK SESSION OF

THE CAMBRIDGE COMMISSIONERS

TO DISCUSS

THE PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE CITY CHARTER

TO ESTABLISH

A

CITY MANAGER FORM OF GOVERNMENT

TO BE HELD ON OCTOBER 6, 2014 AT 6:00 P.M.

GOVERNOR’S HALL AT SAILWIND’S PARK

on Franklin St.

----------------

THE PUBLIC IS INVITED

PUBLIC COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS WILL BE WELCOMED

---------------

THIS IS IMPORTANT TO EVERYONE WHO CARES ABOUT CAMBRIDGE

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT STEVE RIDEOUT AT SWRIDEOUT@AOL.COM

http://www.sailwindscambridge.com/index.html

Send your comments to mc900@comcast.net

Email regarding Cambridge City Manager, September 23, 2014

From: Steve Rideout [mailto:swrideout@aol.com]
Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2014 9:13 AM

Subject: City ManagerMatters - Public Work Session - October 6, 2014 at 6:00 p.m. - Governor's Hall Sailwind's Park

Dear Interested Citizens:

The meeting date, time and place has been set for the first of several meetings in October and November regarding our effort to establish a City Manager form of government for Cambridge. This first meeting will be at Governor's Hall at Sailwinds Park - so there will be plenty of room inside and plenty of parking. The start time is 6:00 p.m. The Date is October 6th.

This first meeting will be a work session of the commissioners. At last night's city council meeting, the Mayor encouraged everyone to come and express their views on what the commissioners should do. Part of this will be to provide feedback on the draft legislation that we provided to them several weeks ago and to you recently so that issues can be ironed out regarding any concerns. 

This is a critical meeting for this effort, and having you there is very important. This is a council work session, and the mayor indicated her desire that the public come and express their views.  Attendance by the public at this meeting will tell the mayor and commissioners how important this is to our community.

  

There is so much to say about what has gone into this effort, but I know long emails are often not read.

The research, planning, collaborative meetings, and the writing of the proposed charter change legislation are all done. We are ready to place this in the hands of our elected officials. They need to know that there is strong support for this effort. If that meeting hall is empty on October 6th, the perception of the commissioners could be that the community does not care, and I know that we and many of our neighbors do care.

We are almost finished with a paper that breaks down what the proposed legislation will do, if passed. I will get that out to you later this week.

This is our best chance to make a statement as we take the first of what are the final steps in making Cambridge a better community for all of us to live in; a community that will thrive; and a community that will have the people in place to preserve what is great about this city and improve what is not.

Tell your friends, relatives, and neighbors. Share this email with them. Talk to them. Give them a ride to the meeting.

Thanks. See you on the 6th if not before.

Steve