Martin, Glenn, Smith Sworn In; Miller, Cullum Praised

Havre de Grace City Council met for about four hours Monday night, covering a variety of topics in the final meeting for two council members and the first for two others.

Fred Cullum and Jim Miller were praised in their final meeting. Newcomers Joseph Smith and Dave Glenn were sworn in as new council members.

Council President Bill Martin was sworn in after being re-elected, before he to his close friend, Randy Craig.

The meeting included about a one-hour period during which the new council moved into a closed session to discuss the council president position. Craig, who served in 2009-2010, takes over for Martin, who served two terms, from 2010-2012.

Patch will post photos of the swearing-in ceremony for council members in a separate article for Tuesday publication.

Council also discussed legislation and honored the members of the ACPR Level 4 gymnastics program.

Here's the recap of the early portion of the meeting:

8:15 p.m.: The meeting is adjourned.

After a pause, new council members will be sworn in.

8:10 p.m.: Elected officials begin their closing remarks before adjournment.

Many comments are offered in thanks toward Councilmembers Fred Cullum and Jim Miller, in their final nights as council members.

Patch will provide those comments in a separate post.

7:50 p.m.: Mayor Dougherty delivers the financial update for the third quarter of the fiscal year. Patch will provide his address in an upcoming post.

7:45 p.m.: The Havre de Grace Historic Preservation Commission is in attendance to present the Lafayette Trail brochure, which was recently recognized by Harford County and state government officials.

The brochure highlights more than 50 historical sites in the city. Mayor Dougherty said the brochure would be utilized by the city when cruise ships visit the waterfront this summer.

7:40 p.m.: Council votes unanimously to approve an amendment to the special event application for First Friday, as well as a license agreement to build a deck on a right-of-way at 632 Erie Street.

7:40 p.m.:  Council votes unanimously to introduce Ordinance 939 as amended. The ordinance concerns the city’s water and sewer rates for Fiscal Year 2013.

Council votes 5-1 to approve the water and sewer rate increase. The lone vote against came from Councilman Jim Miller.

Miller said he will not vote for an increase in the water and sewer fund because the city hasn’t addressed the state of the water and sewer facilities in the city.

Miller read figures that were gathered as a result of the smoke test conducted on the water and sewer system last summer. That data noted 265 defects in the system.

“As of this time, the city as done virtually nothing to correct that,” Miller said.

Miller notes that 36 downspouts were found to be connected from private property to the water system. Based upon data that suggested 50,000 galllons of stormwater each year is generated from each downspout, he said 1.8 million gallons of stormwater would be cast upon the city’s treatment facility.

“That’s the amount we treat in one day,” Miller said. “We did this study 25 years ago, and we were supposed to identify these places. They were still connected on August 11.”

Miller maintained that no actions have been taken on the issues.

“It sounds big, but it’s a minor issue,” Director of Public Works Larry Parks said, defending the notion that nothing is being done following the report.

7:25 p.m.: Public comment period on agenda items closes without any comment from residents.

7:24 p.m.: Three residents are sworn in as members of commissions or boards with the city.

Christine Berry is sworn in as a member of the Arts Commission. She will serve a term beginning Monday and running until May 21, 2014.

Daniel Edwards is sworn in as a member of the tree commission. He will serve a term beginning Monday and running until May 21, 2015.

Billee Smith is sworn in as a member of the Tourism Advisory Board. She will serve a term beginning Monday and running until May 21, 2015.

7:15 p.m.: Five city residents that perform with the ACPR Level 4 Gymnastics program are honored with recognitions from Mayor Wayne Dougherty.

Those gymnasts include: Autumn Gladfelter, Jade Vincenti, Emily- Jane Wasielewski, Takyra Baugh and Laiden Ryan.

7:04 p.m.: The council meeting begins.

7 p.m.: The public hearings on Ordinances 940 and 941 open and close without comment.

6:55 p.m.: All council members are present and the standing room-only crowd is spilling into the hallway at the back of the council chambers.

Patch is amongst the standing.

6:45 p.m.: Welcome to our City Council live blog, where we will be updating the news coming from City Hall at it happens.

Check back regularly. We will be adding nuggets of news immediately. Feel free to email sean.welsh@patch.com with any questions.

For the full agenda—including a printable PDF file—for tonight's meeting, .

NOTE: Lulls in reporting are a result of a lack of wireless internet connection inside council chambers.