Unfortunately that is not where this $ will go. The part of Fort Ritchie that is being renovated is by a 2nd developer..Cascade Properties LLC...they are Ritchie Revival and are the ones repurposing the old buildings. ALL of the progress people see on "Fort Ritchie" is by Cascade Properties LLC, who own the front part by the 2 big gates and back through the part of housing that has been finished and re opened known as "Whistling Ridge", not Cascade Towne Center LLC or JGBLI...if people want to see where all of this money has gone they can look into the far corner of the fort, past the 2nd gate and across the lake, where the grass is tall and the buildings continue to rot! JGBLI has 7 acres of Boyd Street for sale for $3M, and currently have the broken, dilapidated housing for sale fir $200k per 1/2 unit, without utilities...this money is giving them utilities to those properties while they will let them sit expecting people to pay $200k plus for those buildings.
In comparison this year the county has awarded both developers $ for various"improvements"...
1..Cascade Towne Center LLC has been given over $2M this year for whatever is listed above.(Take a wall around and see if you can find it on that side)
2. Cascade Properties LLC(the developer actually re-building the front of fort, including the cafe, taproom, ice cream shop, and soon to be golf course and hotel) was awarded $300,000 to help build out the new hotel in the oldest building on the fort..the original Ice House.
I'd seriously encourage everyone to visit Fort Ritchie this Friday the 25th from 12p-5p and into the evening at the Top Secret Taproom. Ritchie Revival is hosting an event to showcase the many businesses and new experiences on the horizon for the next few years while the 1st round of new businesses and residents celebrate with raffles, music and fun memories while being a part of the amazing transformation over the last 5 years. Visitors can see what has been done, but should also keep in mind everything they see is from Cascade Properties LLC....
Since the far 63 acres were given to Cascade Towne Center LLC (JGBLI) zero movement, redevelopment or community involvement has been done. When questioned about that at the May meeting they had responded the $ had been spent on inside improvements on just 1 building, and according to Clines comments about the latest $1M, that will be used at the same building to repair the roof.
People should get to know the 2 different developers because 1 is currently rebuilding an entire town and economy while the other is trying to sell off their free land and expecting tax $ to pay for their free water and electricity.
I started asking that back in 2016 when they squandered $6M away "wining & dining potential investors" with a dozen trips over seas with JGBLI...that ridiculousness ended when Cline was hit with a sexual harassment charge and the $ was gone. What is so irritating now is that original $10M given to the county from the US was for the exact upgrades(except it was supposed to be for the whole acreage not just 63 acres)they keep using tax $ for now. Cascade was supposed to get upgraded infrastructure like, roads re paved, water lines, underground utilities etc to help any new redevelopment but they never did any of it. Everyone who lived on the hill during that time remembers reading those articles and watching it all happen..we emailed, called, and went to meetings...it never mattered, we could tell they walked into the room with the deal already done.
I own a studio on fort and the biggest issue is people always ask why I'm mad about $ being spent when everything looks so much better there now. They have very little knowledge about the 2 different developers on either side of the big lake and neither the county nor developer (JGBLI) is correcting that of course. According to JGBLIs own website, they claim their entire build will cover 591 acres of the property but 520 plus of those acres belong to the other developer now, and the county consistently, and publicly uses the 1 developers progress to feed the 2nd "dead end" developer our $ quietly. It's disgusting!
Once these folks are out of power I encourage you to teach a course in an urban planning or political science framework on small town corruption and misfeasance. Maybe even malfeasance
Why is JGBLI continuing to seek County backing for additional funding when they’ve done virtually nothing for years with their 63 acres at Ft Ritchie? Buildings are still in disrepair, the grass is overgrown, and their section of the townhouses is a magnet for vandals, druggies, and others.
Contrast that complete lack of development by JGBLI with everything Ritchie Revival has done with their part of the Fort property.
The County should be suing JGBLI to reclaim those 63 acres for failure to develop them as initially promised, not bending over backwards to give them even more money to do nothing.
I am glad to see Fort Richie renovated and reused. However it seems to me that Jeff Cline should have recused himself from a vote on this grant as it appears he has a conflict of interest with JGBLI. Is there a mechanism in the grant that prevents a business from applying directly for the grant? Last year I encouraged the support of a Long Covid research grant within Maryland. The research entity had its own money to fund the research, but there had to be a state or local entity to oversee and serve as a pass through for the grant monies. It was not, to my knowledge, granted.
Unfortunately that is not where this $ will go. The part of Fort Ritchie that is being renovated is by a 2nd developer..Cascade Properties LLC...they are Ritchie Revival and are the ones repurposing the old buildings. ALL of the progress people see on "Fort Ritchie" is by Cascade Properties LLC, who own the front part by the 2 big gates and back through the part of housing that has been finished and re opened known as "Whistling Ridge", not Cascade Towne Center LLC or JGBLI...if people want to see where all of this money has gone they can look into the far corner of the fort, past the 2nd gate and across the lake, where the grass is tall and the buildings continue to rot! JGBLI has 7 acres of Boyd Street for sale for $3M, and currently have the broken, dilapidated housing for sale fir $200k per 1/2 unit, without utilities...this money is giving them utilities to those properties while they will let them sit expecting people to pay $200k plus for those buildings.
In comparison this year the county has awarded both developers $ for various"improvements"...
1..Cascade Towne Center LLC has been given over $2M this year for whatever is listed above.(Take a wall around and see if you can find it on that side)
2. Cascade Properties LLC(the developer actually re-building the front of fort, including the cafe, taproom, ice cream shop, and soon to be golf course and hotel) was awarded $300,000 to help build out the new hotel in the oldest building on the fort..the original Ice House.
I'd seriously encourage everyone to visit Fort Ritchie this Friday the 25th from 12p-5p and into the evening at the Top Secret Taproom. Ritchie Revival is hosting an event to showcase the many businesses and new experiences on the horizon for the next few years while the 1st round of new businesses and residents celebrate with raffles, music and fun memories while being a part of the amazing transformation over the last 5 years. Visitors can see what has been done, but should also keep in mind everything they see is from Cascade Properties LLC....
Since the far 63 acres were given to Cascade Towne Center LLC (JGBLI) zero movement, redevelopment or community involvement has been done. When questioned about that at the May meeting they had responded the $ had been spent on inside improvements on just 1 building, and according to Clines comments about the latest $1M, that will be used at the same building to repair the roof.
People should get to know the 2 different developers because 1 is currently rebuilding an entire town and economy while the other is trying to sell off their free land and expecting tax $ to pay for their free water and electricity.
Yes, people need to demand answers from the commissioners who keep sending JGBLI companies taxpayer money.
Why are they prioritizing one company?
What has this company actually done with this money? Is this an efficient use of taxpayer funding?
Why are Jeff Cline and John Barr so focused on sending JGBLI companies our money?
What are Jeff Cline and John Barr getting out of this?
I started asking that back in 2016 when they squandered $6M away "wining & dining potential investors" with a dozen trips over seas with JGBLI...that ridiculousness ended when Cline was hit with a sexual harassment charge and the $ was gone. What is so irritating now is that original $10M given to the county from the US was for the exact upgrades(except it was supposed to be for the whole acreage not just 63 acres)they keep using tax $ for now. Cascade was supposed to get upgraded infrastructure like, roads re paved, water lines, underground utilities etc to help any new redevelopment but they never did any of it. Everyone who lived on the hill during that time remembers reading those articles and watching it all happen..we emailed, called, and went to meetings...it never mattered, we could tell they walked into the room with the deal already done.
I own a studio on fort and the biggest issue is people always ask why I'm mad about $ being spent when everything looks so much better there now. They have very little knowledge about the 2 different developers on either side of the big lake and neither the county nor developer (JGBLI) is correcting that of course. According to JGBLIs own website, they claim their entire build will cover 591 acres of the property but 520 plus of those acres belong to the other developer now, and the county consistently, and publicly uses the 1 developers progress to feed the 2nd "dead end" developer our $ quietly. It's disgusting!
Once these folks are out of power I encourage you to teach a course in an urban planning or political science framework on small town corruption and misfeasance. Maybe even malfeasance
Why is JGBLI continuing to seek County backing for additional funding when they’ve done virtually nothing for years with their 63 acres at Ft Ritchie? Buildings are still in disrepair, the grass is overgrown, and their section of the townhouses is a magnet for vandals, druggies, and others.
Contrast that complete lack of development by JGBLI with everything Ritchie Revival has done with their part of the Fort property.
The County should be suing JGBLI to reclaim those 63 acres for failure to develop them as initially promised, not bending over backwards to give them even more money to do nothing.
I am glad to see Fort Richie renovated and reused. However it seems to me that Jeff Cline should have recused himself from a vote on this grant as it appears he has a conflict of interest with JGBLI. Is there a mechanism in the grant that prevents a business from applying directly for the grant? Last year I encouraged the support of a Long Covid research grant within Maryland. The research entity had its own money to fund the research, but there had to be a state or local entity to oversee and serve as a pass through for the grant monies. It was not, to my knowledge, granted.