(3/2014) It is March and with any luck we are over the snow and ice. There are a number of special days that come to mind. March 3rd is a day set aside to recognize the Star-Spangled Banner as our National Anthem, which occurred on March 3, 1931.

Are you familiar with the guidelines for displaying the Stars and Strips? The flag should only be publicly displayed from sunrise to sunset. However, the flag may be displayed in the evening if it is illuminated. When the "Pledge of Allegiance" is recited; National Anthem played; the flag passes in a parade, military in uniform render a military salute. Civilians should remove any headdress and hold it with their right hand at their left shoulder, the hand resting over the heart. In 2008, a law was passed which allowed veterans and active duty military not in uniform to render the military-style hand salute to show respect.

Daylight Savings Time begins Sunday March 9th at 2 a.m. Remember to set your clocks forward one hour, "Spring forward – Fall Back!" March 12th is Girl Scout Day. This day celebrates the creation of the first Girl Scout group on March 12, 1912 by Juliette Gordon Low. She started the group in Savannah Georgia with 18 girls. The Girl Scouts became a national organization and chartered by the U.S. Congress on March 16, 1950. The Ides of March is March 15th. It is the day back in 44 B.C. that Julius Caesar was stabbed by Marcus Brutus and other members of the Roman Senate. We celebrate St. Patricks Day on March 17th. The 2014 Men’s NCAA March Madness Tournament Play-in games will begin on Tuesday, March 18th. The actual tournament will begin on Thursday, March 20th and the championship game will be held on Monday, April 7th. The Vernal Equinox is March 20th. Spring starts. Equinox means "equal night". The day and night are approximately equal (12 hours each).

The Carroll Valley Police Department under the command of Police Chief Richard L. Hileman reported to Carroll Valley Borough Council that the Department responded to 2622 calls for service, a 2.6% increase over 2012. Calls for service are incidents requiring a police response and do not include vehicle stops or other routine duties. The 2622 calls for service resulted in 236 Uniform Crime Reports or UCRs.

A UCR is crime as defined by the FBI and categorized into Part 1 and Part 2 Offenses. Part 1 are homicide, forcible rape, robbery, assault, burglary, theft and arson and Part 2 are everything else except traffic offenses like stop signs or speeding. Part 1 offenses increased about 14% and Part 2 remained unchanged. Ignoring seasonal ski thefts, overall crime increased 1% overall. The Police Department cleared (solved by arrest or other means) 44% of the Part 1 crimes.

The state averaged just 30% cleared in 2012 (most recent statewide figures available). Carroll Valley Police cleared 45% more than the state average. 69% of Part 2 crimes were cleared compared to 58% state-wide. How safe are we? The state-wide rural crime rate for 2012 was 18.9 Part 1 and 40.6 Part 2 crimes per 1,000 residents. Our 2013 Part 1 is 18.7 crimes per 1,000 (2% less) and Part 2 is 25.5 crimes per 1,000 (37% less) respectively. In 2013, we had about 26% less crime overall than similar rural areas in the state. Police issued 885 traffic, non-traffic and ordinance citations in 2013 including 404 for speeding, 323 for other traffic, 2 for ordinances, and 21 for criminal violations.

Our police officers also participated in roving patrols and a local checkpoint. These Adams County DUI Task Force patrols were funded by state grant funds. Carroll Valley Police arrested 36 DUI operators in 2013. Of these, 5 were under the influence of a controlled substance or drugs and alcohol. Of the remaining 31, 14 had BAC of twice the limit or more. Of the last 17, 11 were more than 25% over the limit. If you would like to view the video presentation that Chief Hileman gave, view the January 2014 meeting. We all can be proud of the service provided by our Carroll Valley Police Department.

Based on my conversation with those who manage the firehouse, the Fairfield Fire & EMS needs your support by volunteering your time to help out in fund raising events, by volunteering your time in responding to an emergency if qualified or by volunteering your advice on how the fire company can continue to remain a volunteer service. Every Tuesday evening is training night at the fire company. If you have a moment, stop in. Talk to them.

Also this March, Liberty Resort (aka Ski Liberty) will continue their multiyear resort renovation and master plan project. Last summer, the resort reinvested 1.2 million dollars at the recently acquired Carroll Valley Golf Course, replacing the 40 plus year old irrigation system and a third of the tee boxes. More golf course improvements are scheduled for this spring and summer. Beginning in late March or early April, the resort will demolish and replace the existing club house with a new 90,000 square foot building.

The new Carroll Valley Lodge will include 2 restaurants, several meeting rooms as well as a large banquet space that will have seating for 350 people. A new pro shop, spa, indoor swimming pool and additional hotel rooms will also be added. In addition to the new building, the intersection of Sander Road and Country Club Trail will be realigned to facilitate improved traffic flow both around and into the resort. The road construction is expected to begin in mid-April or May and be completed by early August. I have been told that interruption to normal traffic flow is expected to be minimal and no road closures are expected as part of this project.

Remember to mark your calendar for March 3rd to attend the Planning Commission meeting. Two topics to be discussed are: Amendment to the Zoning Ordinance and Chickens being grown in the Borough. At the council meeting, Ski Liberty is planning to brief the council on their near term plans regarding the demolition of the Carroll Valley Resort building and the work that will be accomplished on Sanders road. Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend the Council meeting. I am having surgery and hope to be back on the job in a few days after the 11th.

The Borough will be holding the following meetings in March: Planning Commission (Mon-Mar 3rd); Public Safety Committee (Mon-Mar 10th); Borough Council (Tues-Mar 11th); and Parks and Recreation Committee (Wed-Mar 26th). If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me by email at mayor@carrollvalley.org or by cell at (301) 606-2021. Please slow down while driving in the Valley!