Berlin Mayor Zack Tyndall

Town’s 2024 calendar set to rival last year’s in terms of planned public events

By Cindy Hoffman, Staff Writer

(Jan. 4, 2024) The end of the year is a time of reflection and of looking forward to the year ahead for Berlin Mayor Zack Tyndall, who highlighted four accomplishments for which he is most proud.

The first is securing funding and implementing the Law Enforcement Officers Pension System, or LEOPS, for the Berlin police officers.

“Public safety is crucial to us,” Tyndall said. “If you are not safe, if you are not healthy, then you cannot have an active commerce.”

Town officials consider securing funding for LEOPS to be critical to recruitment and retention of police officers.

Currently, this funding is coming from casino funds (called Local Impact Grant or LIG funds). While the Local Development Committee, or LDC, the committee that reviews how local jurisdictions use their casino revenues, approved the use of these funds for LEOPS, it also asked the town to phase out reliance on casino funds for this purpose. As a result, the town council passed a motion in December to do just that in the next multi-year plan.

Tyndall also said he was proud of the town’s investment in its aging infrastructure. That includes drilling and bringing water well #3 online and the installation of LED lighting at the Dr. Williams Henry Park basketball courts through Maryland Department of Natural Resources Community Parks and Playground grant.

Tyndall also noted the substantial savings residents received in 2023 on their electric utility bills through lower Power Cost Adjustment Charges, thanks to state legislation.

The way Tyndall sees it, Berlin  not only has invested in its employees, infrastructure and recreation, it continues to be invested in being the “Coolest Small Town in America.”

The town is known for quirky events like the bathtub races and traditional Christmass tree lighting and the popular Ice Ice Berlin. Tyndall credited the people of Berlin with the success of these events, from the employees to the residents.

“People see a beautiful downtown, rich with people who are kind and welcoming and I think that is what people are seeking out,” Tyndall said.

The Berlin calendar is chock full of events starting in May, with the opening of the Berlin Farmers Market, the Jazz and Blues, Wine and Brews Festival, Spring Cruisers and the Memorial Day Parade.

It would not be June without the annual Berlin Bathtub Races and Independence Day fireworks light up the sky in July at Heron Park. With the heat of summer comes the August Peach Festival at the Calvin B. Taylor Museum. September rocks with the Small Town Throw Down Country Music Concert and the Fiddlers Convention.

The cruisers will be back in October along with Oktoberfest. Halloween cannot be beat in Berlin with dozens of homes decorated to the nines and thousands of dollars in candy distributed to a multitude of princesses, ghouls, dinosaurs, monsters and other creatures of the night.

This year marked the first official Hanukkah celebration in the town of Berlin, with Tyndall and council members lighting a menorah on the grounds of Inn Berlin.

“I think what we have to do is create more things that can attract folks in our down time, so we keep folks coming to Berlin all year round,” Tyndall said.

He reminded folks that restaurant week is coming up Jan. 9-15.

He does admit that doing so many things is a “delicate blend.”

“Full throttle all the time is hard on our staff,” he said. “It’s always a work in progress to continue to help promote our businesses and get people into our shops.”

Looking to the future, Tyndall said he is excited for the future of Heron Park and to see what the building looks like when the partial demolition is complete.

By January or early February, bids should be coming in and those will be open, reviewed and go before the mayor and council for selection.

He is also excited about the strategic planning process and the comprehensive plan which will help guide the growth of the town and its zoning structure. Residents and the business community are encouraged to engage in both processes.

The biggest challenges he sees on the horizon relate to state funding.

“We have been fortunate with state grants, but we are going to be entering into a new phase that is going to be challenging for us,” Tyndall said.

 His goal is to hold ground with the gains the town has made and to get creative in looking for new funding opportunities.

 Last year, the town was not successful in obtaining construction funds through the M-DOT Bikeways for Rails to Trails. Tyndall does not see an opportunity to advance that project at the state level this year.

He is looking for ways to pivot and is looking at the bipartisan infrastructure bill to address interconnectivity throughout the town, including the barrier of Route 113 for bicycle and pedestrian safety and to connect all town residents with vital services.

“We are just thinking creatively, which is key.”

The council and the mayor expect to provide a formal snapshot of the year’s goals and a retrospective on the past year in the near future.