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October 4, 2022

The Talbot Spy

The nonprofit e-newspaper for the Talbot County Community

Top Story

Easton Councilman Al Silverstein to Run for Mayor in 2023

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Town Councilman Al Silverstein will run for mayor of Easton in the May 2023 election.

Silverstein announced his mayoral campaign in a Friday news release.

In his statement, Silverstein said:

“Twenty-one years ago, my wife Karen and I moved to Easton after I accepted a job with the Talbot County Chamber of Commerce as its president and CEO. We fell in love with this community and decided to make it our home.

“Over the course of the past twenty years, I have served this community in leadership positions such as the United Fund of Talbot County, Talbot Family Network, Mid-Shore Regional Council, Talbot County Economic Development Commission, Talbot County Office of Tourism, Upper
Shore Transportation Advisory Group, Eastern Shore Heritage Inc., Talbot Historical Society and as an Easton Town Councilmember representing Ward 1 since 2015.

“The four areas that I will stress in my campaign will be:

“1) Engaging citizens to express their wants, needs, concerns and solutions for the betterment of our community.

“2) Enhancing the lifestyle and quality of life for our citizens through the expansion of recreational and cultural activities in our community.

“3) An intentional Economic &amp; Community Development strategy to attract, retain and expand businesses that can contribute to the economic wellbeing of our community and its citizens. Provide career and professional employment opportunities to attract a new generation of community contributors.

“4) Developing new programs within the Easton Police Department to reimagine community policing and to build a safer community.

“I pledge to you that if I am elected mayor, I will dedicate my efforts to maintain the high standards of service we provide to our citizens while working with town staff to find ways to do an even better job of serving our community.”

Hearing Tonight on Easton Draft Zoning Code

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The Easton Planning and Zoning Commission recently completed a comprehensive examination and revision to the town’s zoning code.

The Easton Town Council will have a public hearing on the draft zoning code at 5:35 p.m. Tuesday, July 6, in the council meeting room at 14 S. Harrison St. in Easton.

The planning commission has highlighted the following as “the most significant proposed changes” in the proposed zoning code:

1. A revised Planned Unit Development (PUD) Chapter. Currently there is one process and set of standards/criteria for any proposed PUD, regardless of type or context of the development proposal. The new DRAFT Code proposes to distinguish three types of PUDs, with standards unique to each development scenario. The three PUD subtypes are PUD – General, PUD – Infill, and PUD – Redevelopment. The intent of this change is to move away from a “one size fits all” PUD for any development type to three slightly different types corresponding to specific development scenarios, with corresponding review processes and development standards believed to be more appropriate to each scenario. A primary goal of this change is to facilitate more infill and redevelopment projects.

2. A revised Sign Regulations Chapter. In addition to a general reformatting of this chapter, provisions for temporary signs are extensively and significantly revised to comply with a recent Supreme Court ruling and window signs are proposed to be regulated for the first time.

3. The Critical Area Chapter is revised as required by a mandated update of our Critical Area Program. The chapter follows the latest State model for this chapter of our Code with a few local modifications carried forward from the existing Ordinance.

4. A number of measures are proposed to promote the general theme of increasing housing options and opportunities, especially in the general area “in and around Downtown” and with a particular focus on affordable housing options. Such measures include increased density in some contexts/locations, the identification of new housing types (e.g., so-called Middle Housing types including triplexes, fourplexes, cottage courts, mansion apartments, and courtyard buildings), and a simpler review process for certain housing types in certain locations.

5. The rezoning of parcels currently zoned CG (General Commercial) located in relatively close proximity to Downtown from CG to CBD (Central Business District) in recognition that such parcels are more like Downtown in their development characteristics than they are the commercial areas along Route 50, Elliott Road, or Marlboro Avenue, which are also zoned CG.

6. The elimination of the I-1 and I-2 Zoning Districts and the rezoning of any properties zoned as such to either BC (Business Commercial) or I (Industrial). This was done in recognition of the fact that many of the Town’s industrially-zoned areas have transitioned to more of an office/service/light industrial area as opposed to traditional industrial uses. The BC Zoning District was created in part to reflect this land use. The I Zoning District is proposed to reserve lands for the more traditional industrial uses.

 7. A number of proposed changes for Port Street between the Parkway and Washington Street focused on infill and redevelopment consistent with the Port Street Small Area Plan, with the intent to insure that this corridor serves as an important link between the Waterfront and Downtown.

Easton Incumbents Unopposed in May 4 Election

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Easton voters go to the polls Tuesday, May 4, to vote for council president and town council members for Wards 2 and 4.

The three incumbents — President Megan Cook, Ward 2 Councilman Donald Abbatiello, and Ward 4 Councilman Rev. Elmer Neal Davis Jr. are unopposed.

All three are seeking a full four-year term to their respective positions:

• Abbatiello won election in May 2019 to serve the last two years of Pete Lesher’s term. Lesher won election to the Talbot County Council in November 2018 and vacated his town council seat.

• Cook was elected town council president in a special election after the death of John Ford.

• Davis was appointed after Cook became president, vacating her Ward 4 seat.

The election will be held from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Easton Firehouse, 315 Leonard Rieck Drive, in Easton. Absentee ballots must be returned to the town office by 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 4.

Easton has staggered four-year terms for elected officials, with elections every two years. In 2023, voters will choose a mayor, and town council members for Wards 1 and 3.

This article has been corrected from its original publication.

Cook to be Sworn in as Easton Council President

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Megan Cook will be sworn in tonight as the president of the Easton town council.

Cook defeated fellow Councilman Ron Engle in the July 9 special election to serve out the remainder of the term of John Ford, who died Feb. 4.

Cook has represented the town’s 4th Ward for more than a decade.

Engle, the town’s Ward 3 councilman, has served as interim council president since mid-November.

 

Easton Urges Shoppers to Follow COVID-19 Precautions

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Among reports of entire families out shopping at grocery stores and customers congregating in aisles talking with friends, Easton officials are urging local residents to follow precautions against COVID-19, including social distancing.

Councilman Ron Engle said the town had received numerous complaints about shoppers stopping to speak to one another, blocking aisles and making it difficult for others to shop safely.

Easton also has gotten reports of entire families heading to the stores to shop, which violates the spirit of the governor’s executive order allowing Maryland residents to leave home to shop for essential supplies, such as food.

Engle, acting town council president, said Easton does not want to get the police department involved in managing people shopping in stores. A person who is found guilty of violating the governor’s emergency orders may be subject to a year in jail and/or a $5,000 fine.

“We’ve received numerous complaints the past week regarding several businesses allowing large crowds within their establishments in violation of the state’s social distancing order,” Engle said at Monday night’s council meeting.

“In a number of reported instances, groups of people have been observed mingling and talking in groups in the aisles of these establishments,” he said. “This makes it difficult for other shoppers to get past these groups and dramatically increases the degree of exposure to all those involved.

“Gov. Hogan has given local health officials authority to close/modify essential businesses for not following social distance regulations,” Engle said. “We have raised these complaints with the county health department which has this responsibility. We will move on this as quickly as the process lets us.

“Secondly, there is something we can all do regardless of action from the health department,” he said. “I want to raise the issue of the spirit of the executive order that allows certain businesses to remain open during these dire times. It would appear that many are using these open businesses for social connecting as well as shopping for their families.

“One easy and appropriate fix for this is for families to limit the number of family members present for shopping to 1 or 2 people,” Engle said. “People should also employ a high degree of courtesy to their fellow shoppers and citizens.

“They should not congregate in aisles, which violates the social distancing rules, and they should not interfere with other shoppers’ ability to traverse the shopping lanes without increased exposure or inconvenience.

“We would rather not involve our police department in social management. They are currently stretched too thin to respond to complaints of this nature.

“All of the health experts predict an extremely severe couple of weeks ahead,” Engle said. “We need to be practicing as many health practices as social distancing and shelter in place as we can to try to reduce the incidence of this deadly virus.

“This will help protect not only ourselves and our families, but all the citizens of Talbot County and the Town of Easton.”