The Aegis wrote a glowing thank you to County Councilwoman Roni Chenowith today, thanking her for all she's done for the Fallston community. Fallston named its community center after her, for her tireless efforts on their behalf.
The Abingdon community might have a different outlook. We'd like to know where's our community center? Where is one piece of green space that you don't want to pave over? Where is our relief from the peddlers who use Tollgate Road as their own personal swap meet?
At TAA we say thanks. Thanks for nothing.
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With the exception of a whole lot of ball fields, Fallston hasn't seen too much in the way of improvements, IMHO. 3 schools, a library, a fire station, 3 stoplights, and that's it, in my 40 some years here. No water & sewer (we don't want it), the roads aren't any wider, we don't need a police station as there isn't much crime. Over all, I'd say that Fallston hasn't been much of a burden on the county at all. I would venture to guess that the area is something of a cash cow, compared to other sections of Harford. I'm sorry you hold this new project against us, but I think we are in line for an improvement.
I'm happy to see the new community/senior center going up, even though my mom will be too old to use it by the time its done. Fallston has long been more of a barracks than a community because it has no commons. But these things take time. I can remember as a child, my mom going to organizational meetings for the library. She used to joke that by the time it was finished, I wouldn't much need it. She was right, I was in my 20's when it was opened - and working in a library in Baltimore. If you think your community needs something, my advice is to get cracking, because it won't happen overnight. Many people would say it takes so long to see positive change because we are overburdened by all the, ahem, new people moving here, but I won't hold that against anybody; I was raised better than that.
Thanks for commenting. You've hit on my point exactly -- 3 schools and 3 stoplights sounds about right. She protected the Fallston area while pushing every storage facility in operation to Abingdon and encouraging her developer friends to build more! Please! We have tried to get cracking here in Abingdon but have been ingored by our representative who has been busy with her less troublesome constituents.
I am sympathetic to your opinions however I am increasingly frustrated by the complaints of people new to Harford County who don't know how far we have come. As a Fallston resident, I must drive 15-20 minutes to any convenient shopping, I have minimal cell phone coverage, I struggle with water pressure issues on my well, my children must learn in one of the older and most crowded schools in the county, my neighborhood has been threatened my MTBE contamination, and I truley miss the small town main street Bel Air that I grew up with. But I CHOSE to live here as you CHOSE to live in Abingdon. And I am thankful to see a MUCH needed center for our community that struggles for space for indoor sports, gymnastics, meetings, etc. Yes, it saddens me to see what happened to the farmland which became Abingdon but I have also seen the county struggle to keep up with new roads, several new schools, a BEAUTIFUL large library...
It takes time, and concerned citizens like you. But don't rage against us and please allow Ms. Chenowith, whose opinions I don't always share, to be rewarded for the time and energy she gave to our community and county long before you came here!!
Hey Anonymous Fallston, maybe you could get a bailout with all of your problems, the government is pretty generous right now. The reason your children are in over crowded schools is because our schools are so poor in the Abingdon region everyone moves. And since you are so happy with Roni her real estate business is why Abingdon is no longer farmland. I have been here almost 20 years and resent older Harford County residents treating me like an invader because I dared to move to Harford County.
Agreed, TAA!!
Fallston wants to be the mecca for million dollar homes and nothing else. I do also believe that a brand new middle school renovation was recently completed in Fallston. If you have enough money to live in Fallston, it goes without say that the deep pockets who reside there have plenty of pull to keep the affordable housing, storage facilities and shopping centers out while continuing to better the lives of those who live there.
Like many Fallstonians, my house is on the modest side. My "mansion" is 1,300 square feet. The majority of houses in Fallston are ranchers, split-levels, and the such, built in the 60's and 70's. Back then we had a good mix - doctor, next to steel worker, next to salesman, next to carpenter - but that was before the the working class became the working poor, now it's pretty bland here. And if I'm lucky, I'll have enough to pay off the property taxes by the end of the year. Well, time to go eat my lobster in my Rolls Royce.
falmanac,
I didn't live in Harford County in the 70's. There is absolutely no comparison between then and now. I am fairly certain that the land where my home now sits here in Abingdon was woods. In the past 7 years, there have been 5 new housing developments built within 3 miles of my home. Up the road aways there are 2 hotels in the works. Where is the over development right off Rt. 152? Oh, that's right...it's up the road right off Rt. 24 and 7. Near MY home. My home, which was purchased 7 years ago, before the county decided it was perfectly OK to build development after development and strip malls and shopping centers. The roads remain as they were and the new school that is less than 5 miles from my home is conveniently not zoned for Abingdon residents.
It's an age old story. People move here and expect their subdivision to be the last.
Abingdon is part of the "development envelope," and I believe it has been for a long time. I'm not defending bad growth policies, but I wonder how many home buyers read the Master Plan and Land Use Element Plan, before they buy a house? How many look at the zoning maps? Many of these decisions were made years and years ago. Just because a lot is wooded, doesn't make it a national park. A little research goes a long way in making a happy homeowner.
Heck, a simple road map will tell you where the growth is likely to occur. Suburban people tend to congregate near major transportation corridors: Interstates, U.S. Highways, and railroads. Sound familiar?
It's not a conspiracy as much as it is common sense. Why would anybody build hotels in Fallston, where's the money in that? Development follows the population. It followed you.
Joe Hill said, "Don't mourn, organize!" Join Friends of Harford or, if you don't like them, start your own group. Join your local political party. Attend meetings, and not just the ones that affect you personally - have a little solidarity with the rest of the county.
How many Abingdon residents go to zoning meetings in Fallston, or vice versa? Resenting the people down the road isn't merely petty, it plays into the hands of the developers.
Here's a quote from the Examiner by our county executive: “The reality is that most people — even if they care about it — don’t have the time or the inclination to get involved.” It's up to you to prove him wrong.
Don't just vote for the candidate you think will protect your community, volunteer some time, or donate some money. Like the old saying goes, "If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem."
Neighbors, neighbors. TAA's comment wasn't a slam against Fallston or its fine citizens. It was; however, a statement of disgust at the lack of thought toward our community. Be thankful that your "progress" has been slow in coming. And, I just wanted to add that it can sometimes take us 15 to 20 minutes to get to and return from the store here too. Do you ever shop here on the weekends, especially rainy weeekends? One year, on Super Bowl Sunday, it took me a half hour to get home from BJ's. I'm not exaggerating. I'd like to give a shout out to the fine planning of the arteries serving our community. Woohoo progress!!!
As far as the Fallston whiner goes - give me a break! Nobody FORCED you to move to Fallston or buy a home with a well. People move to those areas for the precise reasons you are complaining about - they don't want shopping nearby. Klein's tried to open a super market in Fallston a few years ago. They were met with so much opposition, they withdrew their plans saying they weren't planning on going anywhere where they were not wanted. As far as Chenowith goes, it is obvious she only cares about her little corner of the world. Abingdon is in desperate need of home space. There is a huge property currently owned by woman in NJ (so I've been told) who - rumor has it - refuses to sell because she spent so many happy summers there. Think the big wooded area just across from the Festival at Bel Air and you'll know where I mean. When she is ready to sell, the county should buy it, clear some of it and turn it into a nature preserve. There's probably even room for ballfields although I'm not sure we need anymore of those. The bottom line, though, as I've said in the past: Harford Countians won't be happy until the whole county is paved - except for where THEY live.
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