(8/2022) Summer is flying by! Crowds turned out in force for the Walkersville and Thurmont carnivals and Emmitsburg’s Community Heritage Day. It was great to see so many smiling faces return to these traditional events. It’s hard to believe that school starts in just a few weeks. When students at Thurmont Elementary School arrive on the first day, they may not recognize their classrooms. Over the past few months, crews have been doing a limited renovation of the school – a first-of-its-kind project for Frederick County. By redesigning the inside of the building, there is now room for over 100 additional children. I can’t wait to tour this beautiful new space!

Agriculture Innovation Grants

Farmers are vitally important. They produce food and fiber for all of us. When our farmers thrive, the economies of our small towns and rural villages also thrive. To ensure we leave a legacy of agriculture for future generations, my administration has made supporting agriculture a priority.

This summer, the County offered Farmer Relief Grants to help offset the rapidly rising cost of fertilizer. Supply chain issues brought on by the pandemic and the war in Ukraine have forced fertilizer prices to rise significantly. The cost to fertilize a single acre of corn averages around $256, up from $101.87 an acre a year ago, depending on the types of fertilizer a soil requires. Urea ammonium nitrate prices have risen more than 267% in the past year.

In some places, the rising costs have led farmers to leave their fields fallow, which may lead to other shortages for consumers in the months ahead. We need our farmers to continue growing crops. The goal of the grants program is to keep fields in production. Funding for Farmer Relief Grants came from Frederick County’s American Rescue Plan Act allocation. We expect to announce results soon, so stay tuned!

Another way we have supported agriculture is through our Agriculture Innovation Grants. This popular program helps Frederick County’s farms to offer new and creative products and services. Grants are awarded for $5,000 or more to help farmers expand or diversify their business operations so they can remain profitable and viable. Some farmers have told me their grant made it possible to stay in business.

Earlier this summer, County Council Vice President Michael Blue and I announced the latest cycle of grant recipients. We awarded over $500,000 in competitive grants to nine farming operations. We were able to double our investment this cycle by using a portion of Frederick County’s federal American Rescue Plan Act funding. The projects selected are expected to create 24 full-time and 26 part-time positions.

Grants were awarded to:

• Amber Fields Malting and Brewing in Keymar to construct and equip a malting and brewing grain processing facility;
   
• Chestnut Hill Farm and Market in Thurmont to purchase a well and irrigation system and other equipment necessary for growing vegetables, and to purchase a freezer and delivery truck;
   
• Glamourview Creamery outside of Walkersville to create an on-farm dairy processing facility and a market;
   
• Moon Valley Farm in Woodsboro to upgrade an existing packshed to earn Good Agricultural Practices certification.

I am particularly excited by the projects that will help farmers across the county. The impact of having a malt house, craft beverage testing facility, and processing plant will reach well beyond the grant recipients to help many farming operations in our community.

This was the third cycle of Agriculture Innovation Grants awarded by the Frederick County Office of Economic Development. We received 65 applications. Another round of grants will be offered later this year. Information on the program is available by contacting Katie Stevens, Director of Workforce Development and Agriculture Business, at 301-600-3037.

COVID-19 Memorial

We recently dedicated a beautiful memorial at Utica District Park to remember those we have lost to the pandemic and to honor the health care heroes and essential workers who stepped up to help our community during extraordinary times. The memorial is a peaceful area of reflection.

Covid is still running through our community. As I write this, more than 20 patients at Frederick Health Hospital are fighting the virus. At least five more deaths from Covid were reported in Frederick County in July. With vaccines now available for all ages and home test kits to help us limit our risks, we are in a far better place today than two years ago.

Mental health is an important part of our community’s recovery. We need an opportunity to mourn, a place to focus our grief, collect our thoughts, and say a silent prayer. The memorial was created to be a place of healing. If you are an essential worker or you lost someone dear to Covid, I invite you to spend time at the memorial.