Queen Anne’s County this week became the first new jurisdiction to join the Baltimore Metropolitan Council (BMC) since the organization’s inception in 1992. The BMC acts as the regional planning agency for metropolitan Baltimore.
The Council is composed of nine members. One member each is appointed by the Mayor of Baltimore, the County Executives of Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Harford and Howard counties, and the County Commissioners of Carroll and Queen Anne’s counties.
According to a press release:
While BMC’s Board of Directors has expanded in recent years to include members of the Maryland General Assembly and other state-appointed representatives, adding Queen Anne’s County is a historic move. It is the first new jurisdiction to join the membership in BMC’s and its predecessor organizations’ decades-long history, reflecting the growing number of families that cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to learn, work and play in the Baltimore region.
“Queen Anne’s County sees joining the BMC as an asset, as more of our residents traverse the Bay Bridge for work and essential services,” said Queen Anne’s County Commissioner James J. Moran, who will serve as the jurisdiction’s representative to the BMC Board of Directors. “Together we can work toward the betterment of Queen Anne’s County and the Baltimore region through the coordination of initiatives from transportation investment to new cooperative purchasing opportunities.”
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Through the Baltimore Regional Transportation Board (BRTB), BMC supports state and local government in transportation planning efforts in what is known as the “Urbanized Area.” Based upon population trends in the greater Baltimore region, the U.S. Census Bureau expanded the Baltimore Urbanized Area to include the Kent Island area of Queen Anne’s County. As a result, in 2015, Queen Anne’s County became a non-voting member of the BRTB for purposes of coordinating federal transportation investment in the region. In 2016, Queen Anne’s County expressed interest in becoming members of the BMC.
In November 2016, the BMC Board of Directors voted to extend an invitation for membership to Queen Anne’s County. The Maryland General Assembly passed SB212/HB173 and Gov. Larry Hogan signed the legislation into law. Soon after, the BMC’s Board of Directors formally amended its by-laws to add Queen Anne’s County.
Read the full press release for more information.
