Letter: Crandell Thanks Community, Explains Candidacy

Dear Editor:

I would like to thank the community for the overwhelmingly positive reception to the announcement of my candidacy for Baltimore County Council, 7th District. Due to the response, I am more convinced than ever of our ability to unite in demanding open, honest, and communicative representation to county government. 

Over the next year, I look forward to discussing how to improve our community. We are a strong, one-of –a-kind place with a rich history all our own. We possess a unique personality and character to persevere, but we are also the poorest district, with the highest density of subsidized housing, and largest homeless population, in Baltimore County. We also bear the burden of an industrial era that is no more. The first step we must take is to restore the trust we have in the people who represent us. 

My presumptive opponent, John Olszewski Sr., is part of the political machine that has burdened us with a gas tax hike, toll increases, and a Rain Tax that ridiculously suggests that somehow homeowners and businesses are polluters (a measure he voted for, claiming his hands were tied [Dundalk Eagle, July 18], even though other Councilmen, other counties, and the entire state of Virginia said, “No.”) He also has forsaken his constituents in another way by apparently endorsing a process that put the North Point Government Center and Park up for sale without community input.  Mr. Olszewski seems more concerned with toeing the party line and his friends’ real estate deals than he does with the wants and needs of the people of the 7th District. 

Furthermore, as reported by Patch.com, Mr. Olszewski allegedly is employed by a Baltimore County contractor, a job which he initially failed to disclose. Baltimore County Code, Article 7-1, Subtitle 3, prohibits public officials from having business relationships which create a conflict of interest or even the appearance of a conflict of interest. If the allegation is true, either Mr. Olszewski does not know the rules or feels they do not apply to him. Either way, he has not engendered the trust of his constituents, making them ever more skeptical of his leadership and integrity. 

Over the course of our campaign, we will address these issues head on; we will not be bullied or intimidated into silence when it comes to the well-being of our neighborhoods, families, and kids. Mr. Olszewski has been in office for four terms. That’s 16 years. We must ask, “Are we doing better than we were 16 years ago?” Clearly, the answer is no. Does he deserve a full salary for life - the pension he voted for himself - which he will receive if he serves a fifth term? 

Folks, it’s time for a new direction. 

• As Councilman, I will seek to reduce the Rain Tax to the one-cent level as Frederick County has done, or, in a best-case scenario, work with other Council members to repeal it altogether. How can you tell a senior citizen on a fixed income that the house they’ve lived in, cared for, and raised children in, is now polluting the Bay? It’s not fair, and it needs to be erased off the books. 

I will not allow any publicly owned, community asset to be put at risk without significant and substantial community input at the outset of the process. I do not believe the selling off of valuable public assets to cover short term financial liabilities is sound policy, nor will I ever allow community centers relied upon by kids, parents, and grandparents to be part of some non-transparent, back room deal.

I will seek to restore the people’s trust in their government by strengthening both the spirit and enforcement of the Ethics portion of the Baltimore County Code. No county elected official should be financially involved with a company doing business with Baltimore County; we need to remove all notions of conflicts of interest within our government. 

Over the course of the campaign, we will be rolling out our platform to return the Councilman’s office to the people, so please stay tuned. You can expect:

• A structured system of interaction between the Councilman and community and civic associations that promotes mutual accountability

• An aggressive approach to returning the Sparrows Point Peninsula to the vital economic and job creation mechanism we desperately need

• Measures to control the amount of subsidized housing in the district

• A plan to eradicate homelessness in the district

Thank you again for your support. Together, we will accomplish great things, and I look forward to the ongoing conversation with all of you over the next year. 

Todd Crandell