January 15th, 2014 by WCBC Radio
The Canal Place Preservation and Development Authority has never been in such a tenuous position as it stands now, with city, county and state leaders seriously exploring the idea of it’s abolishment. A nearly two hour meeting Wednesday afternoon in the Annapolis office of State Senator George Edwards featured Authority members and representatives from the state, city, county and the governors office. The most damning commentary came from Delegate Kevin Kelly who said the authority members have mislead and provided false information to the delegation over the years- and its time to have a more accountable management operation- more specifically, the city and the county. At the close of the nearly two hour meeting, the concensus was to have Commissioner Mike Mckay, Mayor Brian Grim and Chris Uhl with the governors office meet to outline some possible scenarios that would see the city and county assume much of the responsibilities now handled by the authority. Senator Edwards said that if the state isn’t interested in abolishing the authority, it should be ready to step up and provide adequate funding for Canal Place. Some authority members as well as executive director Dee Dee Ritchie seemed visably shaken by the tone of the meeting, with acting chair Rick Thayer declining a request for comment when approached by WCBC News.
.jpg)
