Dear Deal Island Peninsula Partners,

Its been a busy December! Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to share some of the work we've done through our collaborative partnership with the staff at the Maryland Department of the Environment offices in Baltimore, which also gave me the opportunity to highlight some of the ongoing challenges that the Deal Island area and other rural, unincorporated places are facing as a result of permitting constraints, funding limitations, and increasingly problematic environmental changes. We also hosted two excellent community conversations -- a big thanks to all who came out for them! We had some productive discussion about DIPP's future and how to enhance local leadership, as well as about the preliminary findings and recommendations from the County's Ditch Drainage Assessment Report. See below for summaries of what came out of those meetings. Also below is the latest on the Deal Island Shoreline project and Hodson White Ditch Maintenance improvement project. We hope to have more news to share with you next month. If you are local, I've also included some last minute holiday announcements that may be of interest. Wishing everyone a very happy holiday season and a wonderful 2020! 

Sincerely,
Liz Van Dolah

DIPP Coordinator

Update from Recent Community Conversation:

Ditch Drainage Assessment and Next Steps

The Assessment was carried out earlier this year by the contracted engineer firm AMT to examine the network of ditches in Dames Quarter and Oriole, which DIPP previously identified as two areas particularly prone to ditch overflow and roadway flooding and prioritized for adaptation support. The County contracted AMT to conduct the assessment in order to generate additional data to help the County better prioritize ditch drainage improvement needs and potentially secure future implementation funding for new drainage improvement projects. 

Kristen Tremblay, Assistant Director of the County’s Office of Planning and Zoning and Peter Zitta, the lead engineer from AMT, presented the report’s preliminary findings and recommendations, and answered questions from DIPP stakeholders who attended the discussion. You can explore the PowerPoint slides below to learn more about what was shared. The final assessment report is anticipated to be finalized by the beginning of the new year. Once received by the County, Charles Cavanaugh, Woody Barnes, and John Redden from the County Offices will meet to discuss some next steps. DIPP would also like to explore ways that the partnership can continue to be engaged in these discussions as they move forward. 

Participants discussed some of the ongoing challenges with obtaining property owner easements, permitting, and meeting routine maintenance needs, particularly given the County’s limited staffing and budget for ditch maintenance. Local residents can help address some of these challenges by keeping ditches on their property clear of debris and phragmites and outreaching to neighbors to elicit their help in keeping nearby ditches clear. This can reduce the need for permits and wait times for more extensive County maintenance support. To learn some simple ways you can help, check out this guidance document. Please contact Jen Dindinger at Maryland Sea Grant Extension (jdinding@umd.edu) to request hardcopies if you would like to share these tips with others. You can also help the County stay abreast of more extensive ditch concerns by contacting Charles Cavanaugh or Woody Barnes when issues arise (click here for their contact information). 

December 12th Strategic Planning Discussion

To date, DIPP has largely been coordinated by researchers and staff from the University of Maryland, DNR/CBNERR, and Maryland Sea Grant Extension through research grants. Several members of the coordination team, however, are in the process of transitioning into new roles and with funding changes, big questions remain about DIPP’s future direction and stability. Specifically, how do we continue supporting DIPP and what should DIPP’s objectives be for the next five years? To answer these questions, DIPP’s needs more leadership from its local partners. Thursday’s discussion was to explore how to productively develop this. 

At the meeting, participants shared their goals and capacities to support DIPP in the future, and discussed challenges, needs, and opportunities for elevating local participation in DIPP coordination activities. They also identified other partners – such as County government, elected officials, and NGOs -- whose input is also needed in these discussions. As a first step, participants agreed to establish a DIPP steering committee in the new year to help develop DIPP’s strategic plan. The steering committee will include representatives from the local communities, UMD, DNR/CBNERR, Maryland Sea Grant Extension, and other key partners as they are identified. If you would like to be involved, please get in touch with Liz: vandolah@terpmail.umd.edu.

Updates on Ongoing Projects

need to obtain permits from the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) – the Federal branch that regulates US waters, including ditches. Charles Cavanaugh, the director of the County’s Solid Waste, Drainage, and Maintenance Departments, recently met with USACE in an effort to expedite the permitting process. The project is one of nine currently under review, but permit approval may take several weeks to months. We will continue to keep you informed as new details become available

Local Holiday Festivities

Christmas Lighting Contest TONIGHT! Make sure your lights are on full display tonight from 5-7pm for the annual Deal Island-Chance Lions Club Christmas lighting contest! Winners will receive $75, with two selected each from Chance, Deal Island, Wenona, and Dames Quarter. New this year is also the Christmas tree lighting contest. Two winners from the Peninsula will be selected for $75 awards. Submit a photo of your tree to jwoo444@comcast.net by midnight!

Santa's Fire Truck Tour: Santa will be making his annual tour of the Peninsula on Monday and Tuesday evenings with the help of the Deal Island Fire Department. He'll be visiting Oriole to Chance on the 23rd, and Deal Island to Wenona on Christmas Eve.