I-68 in Maryland - Statement by Martin Weiss

A statement by Martin Weiss, Team Leader, National Systems and Economic Development Team, Office of Interstate and Border Planning, FHWA.

In early May 2005, I visited the corridor in company with State and local officials.

The visit served two purposes. The first; was to thank and recognize the cooperation of government and non-government officials in the I-68 study that is available at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/econdev/i68md.htm (hence, that work will be referred to as the I-68 study).

The second; was to get a first hand look at the corridor. Part of the context of this second purpose was that the I-68 study methodology resulted in a narrative that could be interpreted as pessimistic regarding economic development in the region. For example, it was easy to, simply by accessing data from the internet, look at employment statistics and conclude that employment was only very slowly growing in Allegany County^[i].

However, it is difficult to understand the potential for new development without actually getting a first hand look. Although there is no completely objective way to look at what would have happened to this corridor without I-68, one method of addressing the 'what would have happened' question is by talking with local officials in the context of a first hand look. This is subjective. Nonetheless, it is informed by people with a depth of local knowledge and it allows reference to 'on the ground' reality that would not show up in employment or other statistics for a number of years.

It is clear from both discussion and first hand observation that the area has, for some time, been adapting to the recent change in the national economy. This adaptation has sometimes been painful and was, in part, contemporaneous with the staged construction of I-68 between 1965 and 1991. Large industrial companies have closed production and testing operations in the corridor. Second of all, it is clear that some companies have stayed and some new companies have come in to the corridor.

Note: All images below were taken in early May 2005 unless otherwise noted.

Some of the employers in the corridor are technology related. These include employers in the sophisticated industries involving military equipment and electrical transmission. Employers of this kind are highly sought after. Both employers pictured immediately below expect increases in employment.

One employment sector that is, in some communities, considered undesirable is the corrections industry. A variety of buildings with corrections related activities are located in the corridor and new ones are being built. A number of people pointed out to me that the existence of I-68 makes this concentration of facilities in the corrections industry (and the employment that goes with it) possible. There are some parts of Maryland that would object strongly to housing these kinds of activities in their area and the fact that they are sited near Cumberland indirectly benefits the rest of the State in this respect. A number of other manufacturing businesses are also in the general vicinity of these facilities.

The corridor has numerous tourism related resources and these resources are aggressively marketed. Some have existed for years, some have been improved over the past few years and some are being planned or implemented at the current time. At the time of this trip, Garrett County has had a steadily increasing tax base. This was due mostly to real estate tax paid from new buildings near Deep Creek Lake that are related to tourism. Allegany County has not yet seen much of this kind of development.

Looking west along I-68 from near the summit of Big Savage Mountain at the highest point of Allegany County about 2 miles east of the Garrett County line. See additional note.

In 1995 Cumberland initiated the "Light the Steeples" campaign as a civic celebration. It has attracted tourists. David Rotruck, a local resident, took this image in Spring 2003. The bridge in the foreground carries I-68. Ms. Anna Custer, Executive Director of the Greater Cumberland Committee, provided it to FHWA.

Virtually every person I spoke to indicated that without I-68, none of the positive developments in the corridor would have taken place and, in fact, there would likely have been more business closings, there would be fewer tourism based developments and the State's investments in educational infrastructure (e.g., at Frostburg State University[ii]) would have been less likely.

The Appalachian Laboratory of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science is a part of the University of Maryland and housed at Frostburg State University. The building, which was completed in 1998, is partly funded by a grant from the Chesapeake Bay Trust and the State Highway Administration. It is about 1 mile from I-68 and about 8 miles north of Cumberland in Allegany County.

There are a number of new developments or pending developments in the corridor of note. In both Garrett County and Allegany County this includes companies in the wood products industry.

American Woodmark (kitchen cabinets) opened in January 2005. As of the time of the image, it had about 125 employees and expects to ramp up to 500 within 5 years. It is on US 220, about 5 miles from I-68. The company that owns this plant in Allegany County is planning to open a plant in Garrett County in 2006 in the Keysers Ridge Industrial Park directly beside I-68.

On the general issue of 'what the immediate future looks like', one person with whom I spoke was Casper R. Taylor, former Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates (who is also quoted in the I-68 study). He predicts that in the near future, both Garrett and Allegany Counties will be removed from the State of Maryland's designation of distressed counties. He attributes this substantially to the existence of I-68. He also noted that economic development groups are working to improve a North-South route through these two counties and that such additional access was needed to fully realize the benefits of I-68ⁱⁱⁱ.

In conclusion, the beneficial economic development effects of I-68 may have been understated by the I-68 corridor report. Employment and population trends in 2005-2008 or so need to be examined to more fully understand the impact of I-68 on the local economy.

Appendix 1

Allegany County Employment Picture

Garrett County Employment Picture

These figures are taken from a Maryland labor statistics site and are based on a somewhat different definition of employment than the figures in the I-68 corridor study. Ms. Custer makes the point that the unemployment rate has substantially decreased since I-68 was fully opened to traffic.

*In June 2005, the unempolyment rate was 6.4%.
**In June 2005, the unempolyment rate was 4.6%.

Additional note referring to the image taken from near the top of Savage Mountain above:

According to work done by regional historian and author Al Feldstein, Savage Mountain was named for a member of a surveying party that was sent to the area in 1736 by King George II. Their purpose was to determine the boundary of land under the governance of Lord Fairfax and to locate the headwaters of the Potomac River. The expedition, after battling two snowstorms was running out of provisions. According to some accounts John Savage, whose eyesight was beginning to fail, volunteered to be the provisions. However, new provisions arrived just in time (or according to some, a group of wild turkeys were used). The surveyors recognized Mr. Savage's near sacrifice by naming the raging river flowing near the camp for him. The mountains then took their name from the river, as did a community at the foot of the mountain.

[i] The appendix shows information on employment provided by Ms. Anna Custer, Executive Director of the Greater Cumberland Committee (a group with economic development interests

[ii] Allegany County has a business incubator at Frostburg State University. In the first 6 months of operation it acquired 4 tenants and 25 jobs.

[iii] Ms. Custer made essentially the same point independently.