On several occasions this year, members of the Charles County Planning Commission have called for civility. It’s a situation that’s become too common; 4-3 votes, shouting matches and now a vote to censure Chairman Courtney Edmonds over the advice of counsel. So, where is the civility?
It’s a situation that has frustrated the Charles County Board of Commissioners and has even been discussed outside of Charles County. When I was covering the 2012 Grand Prix of Baltimore in Downtown Baltimore, reporters from the Eastern Shore and from Baltimore City asked me about the planning commission when they learned I covered politics in Charles County.
There has been much division on this board. The pot, which had been stirred, finally started boiling in February 2012. At issue was continued discussion about the 2012 Charles County Comprehensive Plan. A group of land owners, real-estate interests and farmers created what could be considered a county-level version of a Political Action Committee called the Balanced Growth Initiative, and they took out an ad saying downzoning in the comprehensive plan would cause higher crime in Waldorf, higher taxes and cause property values to plummet.
Edmonds took exception with those comments.
“I remember the same accusations being thrown around in Columbus when people of my skin tone started moving in,” Edmonds said, saying they’ve created boogeymen. “Boogeyman one, downzoning will increase your taxes. Boogeyman two, downzoning will decrease property values and increase crime.”
While most people were tuned into the Daytona 500 on February 27, 2012, which was most memorable for Juan Pablo Montoya’s Chevrolet exploding upon impact with a jet dryer, the planning commission meeting was most memorable for the verbal explosion lodged at the chairman of the planning commission by supporters of the Balanced Growth Initiative. They took exception to Edmonds’ remarks.
After a lengthy remark from Charles McPherson of the Facchina Corporation, Edmonds used his discretion to move the public comment section to the end of the meeting, citing that the commission already had a full agenda. Lou Grasso, the former chairman of the commission, said, “We need to change the chairman”. At one portion, Edmonds requested a recess to go to the restroom at close to three hours into the meeting. Vice Chairman Joe Richard accused him of trying to delay the meeting and assumed the chair until Edmonds returned.
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