From Harford County government:
Harford County Executive Barry Glassman is pleased to announce that 28 local nonprofits will receive more than $1.5 million in fiscal year 2019 to plan and implement tourism-related activities including historical, cultural, agricultural, heritage, and eco-tourism operations. Now in its fourth consecutive year, Harford County’s competitive award program is funded by the hotel/lodging fee initiated by the Glassman administration in March 2015. The program stimulates local economic activity and strengthens attractions enjoyed by tourists and residents alike.
“With revenue generated from visitors to Harford County, our program supports activities that are good for business and improve the quality of life for everyone,” County Executive Glassman said. “I am proud that over the past four years we have directed more than $6 million to our nonprofit museums, arts programs and other attractions that bring people together and make Harford County a great place to be.”
To be eligible for funding, nonprofits must be 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(6) organizations. The Harford County Office of Community & Economic Development (OCED) oversees the competitive funding application process that was open earlier this year from mid-January to mid-April. OCED held two workshops to answer questions from interested organizations and assist with the application process. The workshops focused on three critical criteria that enhanced eligibility: organizations must be in good standing with the state; programs or activities must be able to draw visitors from outside the borders of Harford County, and the extent to which their successful implementation depends on receiving funding.
The Harford County Tourism Advisory Review Committee reviews all applications and makes recommendations to the county executive. Recommendations are made to serve the greatest number of recipients while focusing on organizational accountability and sustainability. This year’s funding recipients have been sent a notification letter from County Executive Glassman announcing their award amount. An award package from OCED will follow with guidelines for executing a Memorandum of Agreement, quarterly performance and budget reporting templates, and procedures for receiving funding. Once packet materials are fully executed, funds will be made available after July 1, 2018.
Nonprofit organizations receiving contributions for FY 2019 are listed below:
APG Centennial Celebration Association, Inc. (APG Discovery Center) – $40,000 to execute operational aspects of Phase 1 of the APG Discovery Center planning
Bel Air Downtown Alliance – $45,000 in general operating support for special events in Downtown Bel Air
Bel Air Recreation Committee, Inc. – $8,500 toward marketing efforts for the Bel Air Arts Show
Boys & Girls Clubs of Harford County, Maryland, Inc. – $21,500 for operations and marketing for the Catch A Pig 5K Run and Harford’s Hardest 5K
Chesapeake Heritage Conservancy, Inc. – $15,000 to market the Skipjack Martha Lewis
Community Projects of Havre de Grace (The Havre de Grace Colored School Foundation)-$30,000 for operations and marketing for multiple programs
Darlington Apple Festival, Inc. – $25,000 for event operations
Friends of Concord Point Lighthouse, Incorporated – $18,000 for operations and signage
Harford Artists’ Association, Inc. – $4,000 for operations
Harford Community College Foundation, Inc. – $35,000 for expanded event marketing
Harford County Farm Fair, Inc. – $45,000 for fair operations
Havre de Grace Alliance, Inc. – $38,000 for operations
Havre de Grace Arts Collective, Inc. – $15,000 for operations and marketing
Havre de Grace Decoy Museum, Inc. – $80,000 for operations and marketing
Havre de Grace Maritime Museum, Inc. – $35,000 for operations
Highland Community Association, Inc. – $50,000 for operations and marketing
Hosanna Community House, Incorporated – $45,000 for operations for multiple events
Maryland Center for the Visual and Performing Arts, Inc. – $50,000 for operations and marketing
Rockfield Foundation, Incorporated – $25,000 for operations, outreach, and signage
Soroptimist International of Havre de Grace, Inc. – $5,000 for the Havre de Grace Arts Show
Steppingstone Museum Association, Inc.- $50,000 for operations and programs
Susquehanna Museum of Havre de Grace, Inc. – $35,000 for Lock House operations
Susquehanna Symphony Orchestra, Inc. – $25,000 for operations and outreach
Susquehannock Wildlife Society, Inc. – $55,000 for operations
The Historical Society of Harford County, Inc. – $40,000 for operations
The Liriodendron Foundation, Inc. – $70,000 for operations and outreach
The Trustees of The Ladew Topiary Gardens, Inc. – $55,000 for operations and outreach
Visit Harford!, Inc. – $595,000 for operations and outreach
Will people from that area of the county please tell me what the Highland Community Association is and what it does in the way of promoting tourism to warrant the County Government’s awarding it $50,000 for operations and marketing?
Sounds like a homeowners association
A google search returns a Facebook page that appears to be infrequently updated. It includes a link to a website which is only a landing page for the domain and contains no content whatsoever. The “about” details on the Facebook page indicate that the association is a non-profit and has office space or a gym available for rent. There are two events listed, both from 2013. There is no mission statement, statement of purpose, listing of officers, or any other information related to the function or purpose of this association. One concludes that the grant is a kickback directed towards a particular unknown person or persons that benefits the County administration in some way, shape, or form. http://www.highland-presbyterian-church.org/
You got that right – kickback is the correct word. Somebody in a position of authority should investigate this. Do they audit expenditures?
Or they could be the legal name of the non-profit that runs the Highland Senior Center in Street. The County supports the center, but no fully like the Bel Air or Aberdeen Senior Centers due to the small number of people in that part of the county. As it is a Non-profit, you can look up it’s financial records, they are public.
$80k for a Decoy Museum? Does anybody really care about decoys??? Whiskey Tang Foxtrot??
Believe it or not,yes. Havre de Grace is known as the “decoy capital of the world”.
I’m not sure how many people visit,but there is a yearly festival.
I’m from HdG and I never understood the whole decoy thing… aside from the money fools will part with. The very decoys they seem to value so highly were carved by the same people responsible for the wholesale slaughter of waterfowl in the upper Chesapeake for pure greed. Pulling the trigger on a punt gun and killing 30 ducks while they floated on the water was considered a good shot. The old descriptions talk of the sky turning dark when waterfowl took flight but thanks to the very carvers and hunters that are revered today, you’re lucky to see a dozen at a time.
While we’re at it: More money for the Center for the Arts??????????????? Astounding.
They should take this money and buy a backhoe to dig the big hole that all of their future money will be going into. This is embarrassing and pathetic. How much have they raised and received so far, and what do they have to show for it?
A few years back they used the money to pay some guy in PA to carve a cartoon figure for the entrance to flying point. Imagine that return on investment there. Originally when the tax was proposed it was to be used to increase tourism but it was really about just giving money away with no strings attached.
Dazed or more like amazed that folks would question the distribution of supportive funds that help to bring people into this county to spend even more funds. Certainly not confused that anyone would expect accountability but to complain about what one person may travel here vs. Another just doesn’t make sense. If you completely read the article y ou would’ve noted that recipients have to enter into an agreed MOA which outlines the record keeping of expenditures.
At the end of the day this sounds like honest money being redistributed back to honest people and definitely not a decoy for some other purpose.
Barbara Kreamer points out at Aberdeen City Council Meeting that the Harford Hotel tax has garnered $31 Million revenue for the County government and only $645 thousand for Aberdeen City even though Aberdeen produces most of the revenue. Is this fair? Who watchdogs this revenue? Not the lapdog Aegis! Not the sleeping dog County Council! Not the dodgy Dagger!
Thanks so much for citing a true patriot. What a great senator she’ll be. Just drive by her house at Maxa and Beards Hill to see how much she cares about her environment and the value of her neighbor’s properties. .
I think her flower garden is lovely, actually.
Re:Arturro ” Nasnotty” Nasney
:
The best environmental way to grow grass is to ocassionally let it grow for a month or more to let it seed itself.
But the question at hand is who is watch dogging the $31 million revenue from the Hotel tax ?
Every year the Tax has produced $15 million !
Where is it going?
Why is the County Council allowing it to be a slush fund for the Glassman to hand out political favors?
Why isn’t its use regulated and monitored by the elected County Council?
Why doesn’t the public have input in the use of the hotel tax?
Do we have a democracy or an Executive autocracy?
http://www.emmitsburg.net/gardens/articles/adams/2005/not_going_to_cut_lawn.htm
Please add the decimal point between the 3 and the 1. You are grossly over estimating these numbers to cause hysteria.
You are correct. I was misinformed. Harford hotel tax raised approximately $2 million in 2016 and $2 million in 2017
. Mea Culpa.
The County Executive should still require input from County Council and the public on who should get funding.
It is not just a slush fund for political favors for the County Executive.
That is still autocratic and corrupt.
She should be more concerned about how she couldn’t manage a law practice enough to avoid disbarment.
She was disbarred for doing the same thing any other attorney does. The attorney grievance commission states, “Disbarred for lack of competence, lack of diligence, failing to communicate with her client, charging unreasonable fee and making misrepresentations to clients”. There is NO attorney in Maryland that isn’t doing the exact same thing. The whole purpose of being an attorney is to “twist” and be a “twister”. They are ALL required to follow the lead of the treasonous Judges of the corrupt State of Maryland. ALL attorneys are incompetent, lack diligence, fail to communicate, charge unreasonable fees and make misrepresentations to their clients. This is a WELL KNOWN fact and every attorney is actually trying to get their clients convicted. So disbarment doesn’t mean a damn thing and people should be more concerned about the ones who aren’t disbarred because they are still aiding the courts in committing treason against WE THE PEOPLE, whom are the United States.
You have personally dealt with every attorney that ever existed to be able to state as a WELL KNOWN fact that all attorneys are trying to get their clients convicted? Title attorneys? Elder law attorneys? Attorneys that never step foot in Court or appear before any of said treasonous judges?
The broad brush you use to paint your strokes discredits your argument.
No, but I have dealt with enough and I must make mention, that you are correct, I am speaking of the criminal justice side of law and NOT every branch of the legal tree. However, the corporate law of contracts still requires the “twister” to be a member of the beached fleet that they call the “BAR”. These “beached ships” of every jurisdiction are part of this “fleet” and each “Captain” commands his “Bridge” from the authority hailed by a foreign “Admiralty”. The “beached ships” are what we call Courts. The “bridge” is the pedestal which a Judge sits and the gate in front of his “bridge” is an extension of the foreign authority also known as the “BAR”. The “Captain” is what we call a Judge. The “fleet” is what we call a Judiciary and the “BAR” is treason against the United States, as it is a foreign authority on our shores meant to do us harm. Allegiance to the “BAR” is in itself an act of treason and I have no problem with calling the American BAR Association and its members traitors against the United States. Same thing applies to the Maryland BAR Association. It is what it is….
By the way, the American BAR Association is treasonous as it is responsible for a number of institutionalized plea bargains known as “BAR Pleas”. These “BAR Pleas”, force an attorney to go along with unconstitutional acts of Judges or they will be discredited by the BAR Association. You can NOT practice law in Maryland while being discredited by the Maryland BAR Association and the Maryland BAR Association will NOT accept you if you are discredited from the American BAR Association. The term “BAR” means “British Attorney Registry” and is directly connected to the war against the United States aimed at controlling the behaviors of WE THE PEOPLE. The “War on Drugs” is an undeniable extension of this war and there was even a declaration of war by former President Richard Nixon in 1968. This makes Nixon not only a criminal, but a traitor to the United States and ALL his policies should be scrutinized for potential treason against the United States.
Reputable Sources say a vote for Ryden is bad for following reasons:
Vote for this guy and you will get a continuance of the current Harford County State’s Attorney Office. You can NOT reform your Judicial system by placing a person taught and trained by the longest running prosecuting traitor to the United States, that currently sits in that position. Be forewarned, this man will betray you and your families and will bring forward more terrorism, racketeering, perjury and treason to your county, all under the color of law. The entire Maryland Judicial Department is an act of treason against the United States and persecution of citizens thru foreign laws of international treaties is what they are after. Put this man in and you will get more of the same…..
1. Always do the right thing, even when it is unpopular.
2. Law Enforcement is not just about convicting the guilty, it is also about exonerating the innocent.
After 4 decades of the Harford County State’s Attorney being run by one person, do you want someone with no government office management skills running the office, or do you want someone with that experience?
I have seen the State’s Attorney office over the decades zealously pursue seemingly minor crimes with questionable basis while the opioid epidemic has ravaged out of control. How can anyone who is in that office talk about public safety when they missed one of the greatest crises that this county has ever seen? People in our county are hurt and dying and it is time for a change.
Your facts are incorrect regarding the tax distribution in Aberdeen. They collect 50% of the tax revenue that is collected by the Aberdeen hotels. They are not encumbered by any regulation as to how they choose to spend it. I suggest that you look at the actual legislation. But this is the Dagger what fun would it be if you really knew what you were talking about.
To NICE (but we know who you are; its laughingly transparent): But you ARE, or should be, encumbered by ethics. Do a little more homework on what you’re on record as saying….. and to what 3rd party agencies you’ve said it. You’ll be shutting up real quick on that hair-splitting claim about technically not being encumbered. Thank God for arrogance and carelessness.
The county council and executive branch are corrupt. Please Harford, wake up and replace these idiots.