Here are the unofficial election results from yesterday's primary:
Harford election results
We voted in the primary election yesterday to cast a vote for our elected school board. While we were very excited about this, our excitement was dashed when we realized that as a Democrat, we had absolutely no say in how this county will be run in the coming years.
We did not have a choice on the county council, of which Abingdon of course again, will not be represented. Please don't tell me that Joe Woods is concerned with Abingdon. If he did he might have expressed concern that we are in the middle of a crime wave, which has not been mentioned by anyone (and of course not our local newspaper). We are especially saddened to not have a choice because the last race was very tight against incumbent Roni Chenowith.
We also did not have a choice in county executive. As we watch more and more trees come down in Abingdon to make way for more retail and minimum wage jobs, we would have liked to have a chance to at least express our displeasure. But this option was not available.
As we drove past the palatial rec center that bears her name last week, we recalled a conversation we had with the late county councilwoman who said how for years she thought about trying to get us some "greenspace" in Abingdon. And (we're paraphrasing but not too much), how it would be great if we could have a "park" in Abingdon.
Well now we do. It's going to be called the Box Hill South office park with theaters and just tons of things to do.
We could not be more upset with the Democratic party who did not even field candidates. While you're giving up, we're getting paved over. Rant over.
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4 comments:
I couldn't agree with you more. Why didn't the Dems even field candidates? Because this county is totally and completely conservative. I was with a group discussing Frank Kratovil's campaign. We were told that the Eastern Shore, although conservative, is actually a lot more likely to elect Democrats than Harford County. My son,raised here but now living in Philly, believes people come here because they want to be with like-minded people and because they are fundamentally racist. That's harsh and a lot of people would disagree. Yet over and over I have heard people say how certain neighborhoods "changed" and that's why they moved. Honestly, I don't know the answer. As for green spaces,I gave up the fight for that years ago. The powers to be decided that we in Abingdon only deserve a few places for kids to play ball. Other than the Ma and Pa trail and Susquehanna State Park, how many places are there for people to just get out and walk in the county? Certainly the roads are not set up for walkers or even bikers for that matter. As for Box Hill South, that was never going to be open space. Think about this area. The demographics should mean that we have upscale shopping, etc. Yet we mostly have junk shopping. Trader Joe's and Whole Foods won't come here. They don't think the locals would support them. The David's Natural Foods market in Forest Hill seems to be doing okay, but their selection is limited and it is expensive. I have been trying to get my husband to make a decision to move for years. He is finally doing it. I've been here since 1979. We'll be moving soon assuming we can get the house sold for a decent price. When that happens, sadly, I won't look back.
I've been reading this blog for a few years now and I just wanted to add some comments. As a Democrat, I appreciate your sentiment about representation.
We moved here to Abingdon in 2002 after living in western Baltimore County less than a mile from Baltimore City. We lived there because it was an affordable place to live. During the 10+ years we lived there, we saw major grocery stores close, along with smaller stores and restaurants. We saw the only mall within a 15 minute drive close most of its stores. The local library was one of the oldest and outdated and remains that way to this day. The theme was that no one seemed to care about building there or revitalizing the area, from the schools to the recreation to the retail establishments.
That kind of depressing feel is not felt here in Abingdon. The school leaders do seem to care about the students and the schools. Edgewood Middle just saw a major update and of course, Deerfield Elementary and Edgewood High School's beautiful new buildings.
In the 8 years that we have lived here, there have been at least 4 new neighborhoods built near our home. This is a good sign that people want to live here. Yes, it is true that when some people hear the bad reputation of Edgewood, they may choose to move to another school district, but hopefully that will turn around eventually when they see that this county did improve the school building.
Wegman's is building here, which is a great sign of confidence in this area. Yes, I would love to see a Trader Joe's here as well, but perhaps it's not a matter of not being able to support the store and more of a matter of fear of competition from the new Wegman's. We have so many great choices here for grocery shopping and well as other shopping choices. My friend who lives in Carroll County is envious that there is a Target here as well as a Walmart.
There are places for recreation here. I'm sure you have been to the Anita Leight Estuary? There are hiking trails galore and you can put a kayak in the water if you so desire. You can take your family to Flying Point Park if you wish.
There is a brand new YMCA here. Not every community can say that! How about the new library?
Yes, there is the Ma and Pa trail in Bel Air (less than a 10 minute drive on a good day) and the Susquehanna State Park. How about Gunpowder? Also less than a 15 minute drive.
On the subject of racism, there are racists here as there are anywhere. The problem here is that there are so many people (rightly so) blame the crime problem in Edgewood on the "Move to Opportunity" program that was implemented in the 1980's. This creates a racist attitude, even though there are plenty of people from all races living side by side peacefully in many of our neighborhoods. Let the racists move away! I'd rather see more liberal-minded people who actually try to help the situation than people who just want to complain about so-and-so.
As for the creation of more minimum wage jobs, I fail to see the problem with that. There are people who need jobs and some of them are teenagers and some are not. You could start out as a cashier in a store and move up. There are also management jobs in stores that pay more than minimum wage. Something that would help that problem of jobs is implementing more public transportation around here so that those who do not have a vehicle can catch a bus in Edgewood and get a job in Abingdon. Of course, there will always be those who don't like that idea, but it is imperative for a good economy to provide a way for those who want to work to get to work.
The point of this very long comment is to say that this is a growing area and with growth comes change. I would much rather live in a growing area that provides a good standard of living than an economically depressed area with boarded up stores and abandoned homes. I would like to see road improvement to handle the increased traffic, but for the most part, I am happy to live here and grateful.
Anonymous: I appreciate your comments. However, if you are looking for a job in Harford County at a living wage, there are not a lot of options. Minimum wage jobs, while they may be fine for teenagers, are not very good for the REST of the population. Besides, go to McDonald's or other mininmum wage emporia. You will not find many teenagers working those crappy jobs. Next time you go through one of those drive through lines, take a look at who is serving you. They're not young kids.
So, Larraine, are no jobs better than minimum wage jobs?
Wegmans pays very well, and every retail outlet that will be placed in that mall will require management level positions that will pay well. Maybe not 100K well, but most pay 40+. Certainly better than unemployment. So would you rather adults not work, or work a crappy (as you put it) job? Clearly, retail is below you.
There are great parks in Abingdon, as well as great schools. I know at least some of Abingdon goes to the new Patterson Mill. And the new Edgewood. Any new schools for Fallston in the works-I think not! Any new parks, or any parks at all for Fallston or North Harford-nope. Oh, sorry they do have Gunpowder State Park.
Point being, is Abingdon is a diverse area, full of everything that makes a community. Parks, great NEW schools, shopping (and a greater variety to come). A beautiful library and YMCA. What are you so angry about? Besides lack of Democratic representation? And if that makes you so angry, do something about it.
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