No sooner had a motion been made to move forward with a federal initiative when a state lawmaker intervened. The unusual intervention occurred Tuesday, Oct. 29 at the weekly meeting of the Calvert County Commissioners. The board was to consider proceeding with a memorandum of understanding creating a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) comprised of the Lexington Park, California and Lusby areas of St. Mary’s and Calvert counties. The organization was proposed by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Federal Highway Administration based on data released following the 2010 Census. The data showed the combined communities had a population of 58,000 and mandated the formation of a MPO.

According to a memo from Department of Community Planning and Building Principal Planner Patricia Haddon, the MPO “would be a locally governed entity, with a board consisting of a county commissioner each from St. Mary’s and Calvert counties, and a member from the Maryland Department of Transportation. This MPO would accept federal and state funding to do transportation-related planning activities in a coordinated fashion within the MPO area.”

When the concept was originally presented to the board the reaction was tepid. This past March the commissioners were briefed by USDOT officials about the area of Southern Maryland becoming a Census Designated Urbanized Area (UZA). Then in May, a letter signed by four of the five county commissioners was sent to the acting secretary of the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) agreeing with the UZA designation and agreeing to participate in the MPO.

Haddon stated in her memo that the MPO would not incur any fiscal impacts to the county with federal and state funding “channeled to this MPO for transportation-related planning within the MPO area.”

When the motion had been made by Commissioner Evan K. Slaughenhoupt Jr. [R] to sign the MOU and forward it to the St. Mary’s County Commissioners for their signature, Delegate Anthony J. “Tony” O’Donnell [R-District 29C] stood and addressed the board. The veteran legislator asked Slaughenhoupt to withdraw his motion and asked the commissioners to defer action for approximately one month.

“I have some concerns about this,” said O’Donnell, who indicated the current MDOT leadership transition and the identification of Chesapeake Ranch Estates in Lusby as an urban area were two of the problems he had with the MPO.

Commissioners Gerald W. “Jerry” Clark [R], the only commissioner who refused to sign the letter to Acting MDOT Secretary Darrell B. Mobley last May, moved to defer action for 30 days.

“I don’t see delaying is going to cause an