Public park purchase questioned By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (March 14, 2019) In approving $124,000 to demolish seven small buildings and a digester at Berlin Falls park on Monday night, the Town Council gave an angry mob a focal point in its objections to town spending. The 5-0 vote came after months of research by town… Read more »
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Council sets special budget meeting, March 26 at Decatur High School
District 2 storms Town Council meeting By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (March 14, 2019) A crowd of Berlin District 2 residents showed up at the Monday night Town Council meeting to protest proposed property tax and utility rate increases. By the end of a lengthy public comment period, District 2 Councilman Zack Tyndall, who apparently encouraged… Read more »
Friends honor baseball legend Judy Johnson
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (March 7, 2019) Judy Johnson, one of baseball’s greatest third basemen of all time, never achieved the universal reverence accorded today’s professional athletes, even though his enshrinement in the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1975 reflected the respect he earned from his peers while playing in the Negro Leagues almost four… Read more »
Impeachment talk at library silenced over safety concerns
Conservative groups had planned rallies, prompting cancelation on Wednesday By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (March 7, 2019) Safety concerns have forced the cancellation of a lecture on impeachment at the Worcester County Library in Berlin that was originally scheduled this Wednesday. The program, part of a series on the U.S. Constitution presented by Howard Sribnick, drew… Read more »
Berlin adds Toy Town to downtown collection
With Snow Hill shop closed by town officials, owners sought second location By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (March 7, 2019) The dispute between the Town of Snow Hill and Toy Town Antiques could lead the business back to Berlin, albeit in a smaller, satellite location. Storeowners Richard and Debbie Seaton were in Berlin on Monday, looking… Read more »
Lead tests at elementary school above normal levels
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (March 7, 2019) Seven sinks at Buckingham Elementary School in Berlin have tested above normal levels for lead. According to a Worcester County Board of Education letter sent to parents last Thursday, sinks in six bathrooms and in one classroom tested above the “compliance action level” for lead of 20 parts… Read more »
Pines approves budget, $986 assessment
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Feb. 28, 2019) The Ocean Pines Board of Directors finalized a $12.8 million fiscal year 2020 budget on Saturday, and set the basic annual assessment at $986 per homeowner. Assessments fluctuated wildly throughout the budget process, from a low of $951 with the proposed budget released on Jan. 4, to a… Read more »
Trailblazer Lockwood visits Berlin Police Dept.
By Rachel Ravina, Staff Writer (Feb. 28, 2019) Former Berlin Police Department officer David Lockwood Sr., 70, walked into the new station on Decatur Street last Wednesday to share some history. Much to the surprise of members of the department, including Chief Arnold Downing, Lockwood had found an old newspaper article tucked behind his high school… Read more »
Berlin considers property tax, utility fee hikes
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Feb. 28, 2019) Town of Berlin budget work sessions for fiscal 2020 began last Thursday with rate increase recommendations for utility fees and property taxes, with the latter possibly going up by a third or more. Stormwater fees are recommended to double for residents – from $50 annually to $100 –… Read more »
Berlin celebrates fifth anniversary of ‘Coolest’ honor
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Feb. 28, 2019) Five years ago, this week, former Anne Arundel County firefighter Mike Wiley went to his volunteer post at the corner of Route 50 and Main Street with a special purpose: to announce that Berlin had been named “America’s Coolest Small Town.” Wiley, a Berlin resident, has been in… Read more »