HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Mayor Bill McIntire is urging city and Washington County officials to meet again, saying it is time for both governments to put aside their differences and work together.
McIntire made the request at the end of the Hagerstown Mayor and City Council’s Aug. 18 work session, inviting Washington County leaders to meet with city officials to discuss issues that affect both sides.
“I think we need to sit together. We need to bury the hatchet,” McIntire said.
The mayor said city staff and council members are ready to join another meeting. He wants the discussion to focus on finding common ground instead of repeating old disagreements.
McIntire looks for compromise between the city and county
McIntire said he wants both sides to share their concerns and find common ground.
He said he does not want future talks to turn into arguments. Instead, he hopes the city and county can openly discuss what each side wants and see if they can meet in the middle or make compromises.
The mayor said another joint meeting would show residents that the two governments can work together, even if they do not always agree.
“I think that would be a really good idea to show the constituents out there that we’re working for everybody,” McIntire said.
These comments came after a work session where the relationship between Hagerstown and Washington County came up during talks about development, annexation, infrastructure and city services.
Earlier, during a discussion about the proposed annexation of nearly 172 acres along Burkholder Lane and McDade Road, city officials questioned how county land-use planning affects the city’s ability to provide water and other infrastructure to areas planned for future development.
Staff members pointed out that this area was previously discussed in negotiations between Hagerstown and Washington County, as the county wanted services for certain areas marked for economic development. City officials said Hagerstown’s upcoming planning process will require another review of the larger urban area and its water capacity.
Community groups could serve as mediators
McIntire also suggested inviting outside community organizations to a future city-county meeting.
He specifically mentioned that the Greater Hagerstown Committee and the Chamber of Commerce could join as mediators and help both governments find issues that need to be resolved.
The mayor said it is time for officials to stop just talking about another meeting and actually make it happen.
“I think it’s high time that we stop the rhetoric that we’re going to do it and actually show the public that we are going to do it,” McIntire said.
McIntire ended by saying Hagerstown is ready for the conversation and again invited Washington County to join.
“So I know we’re ready,” he said. “And I just want to extend that invitation out to the county.”
