Perryville Shuts Public Out of Town Meeting

Perryville, MD – On the first and third Tuesdays of every month, the Town of Perryville holds meetings that are open to the public. In attendance are the Board of Commissioners, the town administrator and town attorney, among other officials.

One of the night’s topics was a discussion on the property dispute between the town and Charles and Amber Maggiore, who purchased 52 acres of land with hopes of starting their own organic farm and claim ownership of 18 acres surrounding the old reservoir.

Cecil County News met with the Maggiores and other concerned citizens who turned out to the meeting in order to protest logging, mining, and the draining of the reservoir which would pollute their wells and destroy the value of their land.

Only, after less than fifteen minutes into the meeting, there was a motion to adjourn and go into a closed session to discuss the property dispute and seek legal advice.

“I went in and took a seat. I was hoping to see Charles and Amber but there were only three other people seated in the audience,” we were told by one person in attendance. “And after about five or ten minutes they showed us the door. Even the Cecil Whig’s reporter had to leave. Makes you wonder what happened to freedom of the press?”

For a short time, we spoke with the Maggiores and a neighbor who regaled us about a previous attempt to mine in the area in the 1990s that was ultimately blocked. As we discussed the topic two uniformed police officers entered the Town Hall and we frequently noted them peeking out the window at us discussing the reservoir.

Vincent Sammons, a friend assisting the Maggiore’s with their land dispute arrived on the scene. After about five minutes of small talk with the officers at the door, they returned saying they were not going to reconvene and that the meeting was done for the night.

In our support for the Maggiore family and desire to see their situation resolved, we are asking our readers, if you are a lawyer or know one specializing in real estate and property law who is interested in taking the case pro bono, please reach out to us so that we can put you in touch with the family.

As always, thank you for reading Cecil County News.