Do you like Maryland's system of local government? (Baltimore, North Beach: magnet schools, pros and cons)

[oneworld25]

Maryland has a very unique system of local government, in that towns and cities either don't exist or play or a very small role in governance. I was wondering if people like the system where the counties run everything or if you think we'd be better off with more towns or cities?

As a see it, there are pros and cons to Maryland's current system of local government.

Pros

Government can be more efficient as each little town doesn't require its own school district, police department, etc.

Since all government services are provided on a larger scale they have more resources. For example, Baltimore County has a number of magnet schools and it's public library system has been rated one of the best in the country.

Cons

There may be less local representation and this means certain communities may be neglected.

A heavily centralized form of local government may turn off citizen involvement.

[North Beach Person]

You didn't grow up in MD (or the South for that matter)? Most MD natives don't know any different so they don't have any basis of comparison and those from elsewhere learn to deal with it. I live in an incorporated municipality that has to deal with people from outside the town limits with the town mailing address wanting to use the various amenities or complaining about their street being messed up or their sewer bill when it is in actuality the County government they should be contacting.

[oneworld25]

I've lived in Maryland all my life. I was just curious about what others thought about the County system of local government.

[North Beach Person]

Baltimor County has no incorporated municipalities, Calvert County has two, Prince Georges has a bunch. I'm originally from PA so it took some getting used to. The county based school systm sometimes makes sense-getting rid of duplication of services for example-and sometimes is a pain because of the inherent bureaucracy of large organizations. Towns typically can provide more personalized and more immediate services but in MD it comes with a cost. Property taxes in municipalities are typically higher than in the unincorporate areas. Don't kid yourself about towns, most have, at least in some people's minds, a "good" area and a "bad" area. Where I am the folks living near the Bay on waterview property, no private waterfront in North Beach except for a very small marsh area, are always whining, complaining and demanding.


A link:
http://www.mdmunicipal.org/mmlhome/index.cfm (broken link)