(Sept, 2010) The National Night Out event held at Carroll Valley Commons was a success. The purpose was to strengthen the relationship between the citizens and first responders. Over 400 adults and children were in attendance. The Good Samaritan Lodge #336, Free and Accepted Masons of Pennsylvania of Gettysburg fingerprinted and videoed 79 children as part of the Child Identification Program. Thanks to the Masons and all the agencies who participated in the event. Specials thanks to Jo Ann Myers, Chief Richard L. Hileman II, Amanda Bell and the Carroll Valley Municipal Services.

Reassessment is definitely the heated topic of our local area and throughout Adams County. Our Borough Manager, Dave Hazlett, and I made arrangements with the Chief Assessor's office to meet with 21st Century Appraisals representatives. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss our concerns with the assessed values in Carroll Valley. The result was to request that the Assessors utilize all information already available to them such as on-site sewage testing history. We were told that this would be accomplished; however, we have not been informed of any changes made.

The Borough is in the same position as our property owners. The Borough owns over 200 properties. Most of them have been donated to the Borough. Half of these properties are tax exempt. However, the Borough pays approximately $11,000 in property taxes that are not exempt. Based on the reassessment, the Borough is now facing a tax bill of $70,000. This would definitely have an impact on Carroll Valley taxpayers. Following the formal appeal process, the Borough has filed over 97 individual appeals. At the same time, the Borough is also requesting tax exempt status for these same parcels of land.

To give you some idea of the workload the reassessment has had on the Borough Office, over 750 phone calls have been answered and over 500 reassessment Open Record Requests have been processed. And to better serve our property owners, the Open Record fees normally charged were waived. If you are interested in seeing what questions were asked and the information provided, go to www.carrollvalley.org and click on FAQs on the home page.

Congratulations to James Stratton for being awarded the highest honor a Boy Scout can achieve in Scouting with the rank of Eagle. James is the son of David and Monica Stratton of Fairfield and a member of Troop 76 since 2003. To earn the Eagle Scout, James had to progress through each of the Scouting ranks and complete a minimum of 21 merit badges, of which 11 are required. In addition, he had to be active in the troop and patrol, demonstrate spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law in his everyday life, serve in a leadership position for at least 6 months as a Life Scout, complete a community service project, take part in a Scoutmaster conference, and pass a Council Eagle Scout Board of Review. All requirements had to be completed before James' 18th birthday. James' community service project entailed raising funds for the project, gathering a team of Scouts, and purchasing and assembling basketball backboards for St. John's Lutheran Church in Fairfield.

I have received a number of telephones and emails regarding cell phone service in our area. On August 23rd T-Mobile has been added to our list of wireless companies serving the community. To date, we have AT&T on two towers (Fairfield & Steelman Marker Road); Sprint on two towers (Ski Liberty & Jacks Mountain); T-Mobile on two towers (Fairfield & Steelman Marker Road), Nextel on one tower (Fairfield) and Verizon on one tower (Jacks Mountain).

Over 60 people filled out the Bus Extension Survey in a two week period. While the results of are being analyzing, I would like to share some highlights of the information gathered. Most of the people use their automobiles to travel. Almost half of the people arrive at their destination between 9:00 and 10 am. People travel for transportation either to go to work or shop. After that, it is for medical appointments or visiting friends or family. The majority of the respondents indicated that they would use the bus service if it was available in their area.

How to use the bus service and cost were the major concerns for those who wanted to use the bus service. The majority of the people thought $2.00 one way was fair with seniors 65+ riding free. Few people were interested in a ride-sharing program. The next step in the process is to analyze all of the responses and to discuss the results with Adams County Transit Authority. Wish to thank all who participated.

The Borough has experienced two underage alcohol incidents that resulted in approximately 25 people being cited. Both cases involved parents who were on vacation and the kids taking advantage of the situation. Chief Hileman advises "If you are leaving your kids at home alone, have someone check on them every night." In the words of President Ronald Reagan, "Trust but Verify!" If you see something suspicious occurring in your neighborhood, please do not hesitate to call 911.