Dorchester County Owes Me $125

About a month ago, the county mowers came through on their last run for the season.  They cut into my yard demolishing a tree and some bushes.  This isn't the first time the mowers waged war on my yard.  Six years ago they did the same thing.  This time, I'm sending the bill to the county.

For my readers who may not be familiar with phragmites mentioned in the letter, phragmites are commonly called giant or common reeds.  They grow eight to twelve feet in one season and die back in the winter.  They are highly invasive and grow so thick in one season, they choke out waterways.  Mowing them doesn't kill them although mowing does weaken them, but it takes years of continuous mowing to have any impact.  Skip a year and you have to start the battle all over again.  It is phragmites that causes the view obstruction mentioned in the letter, not our native plants and bushes.


Dear Mr. LeBlanc,

Six years ago, your mowers extended their blades into my yard and cut down some bushes, bushes that were supposed to be replaced in the spring, but never were and I chose not to follow up on it.  I don't remember who came down to look at the damage, but he agreed the mower cut too far in.

"People complain they can't see the deer, " he explained, "so we cut wide to increase visibility.  Our mowers are supposed to know not to cut into people's yards, though."

Before he came down to assess the damage and explain things to me, I went to the county yard to ask what the county's right-of-way is.  A young woman explained, "It depends on the property.  The right-of-way can extend anywhere from fifteen feet in to thirty feet in."

"So your mowers have a map of the road depicting how far they should be mowing and adjust the blades accordingly?"

"No.  They mow as far in as the blade extends."

May as well bring the paving machines down
and make it a four lane highway

After the disaster six years ago, the county didn't mow much past the ditches.  This year, the wide mowing began again.  If obstruction of view and deer are the concern for the county, why wasn't there a concern in July?  The phragmites grow eight to twelve feet high by July every year and the deer are out year round.  If you don't want your mowers carrying right-of-way maps to do the mowing correctly, at least mow consistently.  Fifteen feet in is about to the roadside edge of a lot of these ditches, twenty-two feet in to the other side of the ditch.  A safe bet would be to mow to the other side of the ditch and no further.  Be consistent with the mowing throughout the growing season and homeowners will know where it's safe to plant their trees and bushes.

What's left of the $70 tree, a unique tree that
takes on the form of the prevailing wind like
a living sculpture.

This year your mowers cut well past the ditch.  On my property, they cut thirty-two to thirty-three feet in.  Your mowers leveled my $70 tree and six bushes that I planted for privacy to the ground.  I calculate $125 should cover the cost.  I based the pricing on the pot size larger than what I bought six years ago to get the new plants closer to the size they were before being razed.  Please let me know when I can pick the check up.

Since I am copying our County Commissioner, Jay Newcomb, in on this email, I hope he takes the initiative to introduce a standard policy that governs consistent mowing year after year.  Yes, Mr. Newcomb, please set a standard compromise that every mowing follows.  Since the minimum right-of-way is fifteen feet and the maximum is thirty feet, compromise and set the standard at twenty-two feet.  Every mowing will be done at twenty-two feet and I'm sure no one will complain - except the speeders who want to feel safe from hitting deer while doing seventy on these back country roads.  Since no one should care about the speeders keeping our vultures well fed, their complaints can, and should be, ignored.

Also, Mr. Newcomb, if the county refuses to pay for my losses, then I ask you to demote the supervisor responsible for training mowers.  He's unqualified for the job of supervisor.  If he spent a couple of years as a mower, he would be a better trainer of mowers in the future. 

Thank you and with regards,


A Drunk Redneck

If you have concerns or comments about mowing practices in Dorchester County:

Contact Person for the Engineering Division of the County Highway Department
Greg LeBlanc, County Engineer gleblanc@docogonet.com
5435 Handley Road Cambridge, MD 21613
410-228-2920
410-228-9516 FAX

Dorchester County Commissioner, District 1
Jay L. Newcomb
Cell: (443) 521-6957
E-Mail: jnewcomb@docogonet.com

If outside of District 1, find your commissioner for your district.

Update:

 

I received an automated response to my email from the County Highway Department informing me that Greg LeBlanc was no longer with the department and all emails should be forwarded to Ms. Stephanie Newcomb.  Her full contact information:

Stephanie Newcomb
Project Manager Dorchester County Department of Public Works
5435 Handley Road Cambridge, MD 21613
410-228-2920
410-228-9516 FAX
snewcomb@docogonet.com

I copied my county councilman (Jay L Newcomb) on the first email and this email, but, no, I do not know if the two Newcombs (Stephanie and Jay) are related.  My councilman has remained quiet, but I didn't expect him to answer.  My complaint isn't about the lack of Mexican workers so probably is of no concern to him.


Dear Ms. Newcomb,

Last Friday night I saw something flopping across the road.   As I got closer, I saw a scared deer, unable to get on its legs, dragging itself across the asphalt trying desperately to get to safety.  I didn't have a gun to put it out of its misery.   I had to leave it to suffer hoping another person would come by with a gun.

A few weeks ago, someone stood by an injured bald eagle on the side of the road.  The big birds take a bit of time to get airborne and the speeders don't bother to slow down to give them that time.

In the last month, I've seen two dead vultures, a dead heron, a couple of dead foxes, and one scared opossum sitting on its hind legs in the middle of the road.  There was nothing I could do for the roadkill, but I did walk up to the opossum to see if I could help it.  It sat there, unaware of my presence...and blind.  A car must've straddled it and its eyes were popped out as it rolled across the asphalt.  Again, I had no gun to put it out of its misery.  I decided to run it over quickly to stop its suffering.

I know.  You could say I should've called the authorities.  A couple of months ago, I did just that when I came across an injured owl.   I was told by the sheriff's department to leave it on the side of the road.  There was nothing they could do and animal rescues wouldn't be opened until the next day.  I disregarded the instructions and took the owl home to keep it safe from coyotes and foxes.  The next night, it flew off into the night on its own.

Why am I telling you this?  Because your mowers and your mowing policies contribute to the killing of our wildlife, wildlife that is often left to suffer before mercifully dying.  In the spring, your mowers chew up our turtles laying their eggs.  In the fall, mowing the roads to look like four lane highways gives the out-of-state hunters and SUV drivers a false sense of security.  They'll do sixty or seventy at night believing they could stop in time if they come across an animal.  They can't.

Perhaps if you send me your full name and contact information, I could investigate your department's mowing policies and practices.  I would like to have that information for my records.

Do you get my point?  In the police state mentality sweeping our country, you get nothing from me "for your records."   I made my complaint.  In a follow up email, I told you I'm moving from Dorchester so I don't want the money since I won't replace the tree or bushes.  If you need to investigate as opposed to building a file of "county troublemakers," tell your supervisor to take a road trip through the tidal marshes of Southern Dorchester if the pictures on my blog weren't enough for the investigation.  Make sure your supervisor comes at night so an accurate count of roadkill and suffering wildlife left to die can be tabulated.

Fix the four lane highway style of mowing and you'll fix the problem of decimating homeowners' properties and people like me wouldn't have a need to write you...and a lot more wildlife might be around to thank you.

Full disclosure:

This email will appear as an update on my blog.  I gave you the option of responding with an email to answer the points I made to tell your side of the story and explain what homeowners can do if they have a problem with the mowing in their area.  You have sent me a response stating the people who worked in your department are no longer there and two separate requests for my personal information.  I have not reproduced those emails on my blog.  Any emails from here out will be reproduced.  Don't you think it's time to address some of my questions and concerns instead of asking for my personal information?


Regards,

A Drunk Redneck