Monthly Archives: September 2017

City spokesman Patti Mullins has emailed us saying: “The Downtown Frederick Hotel Advisory Committee is not a public body within the meaning of the Maryland Open Meetings Act. It is therefore not subject to any of the Act’s requirements, including … Continue reading →

Mayor McClement’s hotel advisory committee (HAC) has been breaking state law for six years — a public body meeting behind closed doors. Maryland’s Open Meetings Act requires state and local public bodies to hold their meetings in public, provide adequate … Continue reading →

The performance of the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) last Thursday night in approving demolition of the Birely Tannery was pathetic. The commissioners were snowed by the shoddy Plamondon/City sales pitch. They fell head over heels for the garbage-economics of ‘impact … Continue reading →

Commissioners: demolition of the Birely tannery must be voted down for four reasons. 1. Demolition would bring on a very bland glass front for some 250 feet along Carroll Creek when there’s an opportunity for developing a point of interest … Continue reading →

from Matt Seubert to HPC — Dear members of the City Historic Preservation Commission: I’m a retired CPA.  During my 20 year career I spent 5 years working for a publicly traded hotel REIT in the capacities of accounting manager and … Continue reading →

HPC17-490 is a first. According to City staff it is the first time in the history of the Historic Preservation Commission that a contributing historic resource found to be of ‘unusual importance’ has been proposed for demolition. The unprecedented nature … Continue reading →

The City’s historic preservation staff have caved. They are now supporting demolition of the Birely Tannery that they previously said is a ‘contributing resource of unusual importance’ to the historic district, and a building and site found eligible for listing … Continue reading →

The City disregarded advice from its lead consultant Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) on structuring of its procurement of the downtown hotel/conference center (DHCC) to maximize competition, it is apparent from a newly released report. The consultants, paid some $335,000 for … Continue reading →

Friends of Frederick County has launched a new FoFC Save Birely Tannery page. see https://www.facebook.com/groups/FoFCSaveBirelyTannery This is in addition to the well established FoFC Downtown Marriott Watch page run by Jane Weir: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1498307467136953/

Submission on the Guidelines & the Law on Demolition: There are some legal questions about how the HPC procedures in this case comport with the law on demolition of historic properties. The Guidelines are sometimes different from the law. I quote … Continue reading →