Office Sought:   Harford County Council, District B

Name:   Val Twanmoh 

Age:  49

Marriage Status:   Married for 25 years to Joe Twanmoh

Website:  www.ReadyforVal.com

Education:

J.D. Univ. of Connecticut School of Law 1982

B.A.  Hamilton College 1979

Work Experience: 

Practiced law 1982-1994 and 2002-present.  Primarily trial work in areas of zoning and employment law.  Currently serve as People’s Counsel for Harford County.  Former Zoning Hearing Examiner.

Political offices held:  None

Brief Biography: 

As well as being Mom to three children (Kai, age 19, college junior, and twins Darren and Ross, age 15, sophomores at Fallston High), I have a solo law practice in Bel Air and serve as People’s Counsel for Harford County.  Other public service and activities include: Trustee for Harford Community College; Citizens’ Budget Advisory Committee; Adequate Public Facilities Task Force; Greater Fallston Association MTBE Task Force; Harford County Commission for Women; Zoning Hearing Examiner; Board member of Friends of Harford; and graduate of the Harford Leadership Academy.

1.  Why are you running for this office?

For the past twelve years, I have been involved as a citizen in efforts to keep development in designated growth areas which should be planned and designed as neighbor-friendly communities, and to preserve farmland, forests and open space.  I want to see Harford County keep a balance of working agricultural and rural areas, along with the more developed areas, and I will work to achieve that goal.  I also believe that residents should have more of a say in the decisions that are made by the county on issues that affect them, and I will work for changes to help that happen.

2.  If you are elected, what do you intend to do to improve the quality of education in Harford County?

First, increase and improve communication and cooperation between the County Council and the Board of Education and administration, so that we can work together on issues like school overcrowding and funding for buildings and resources.  Development pressures seem to be driving the system instead of the best interests of the students and their families.  I will support changes in our laws that will affect school capacity and the enforcement of residential building moratoriums, and other laws that will help reduce class size and increase classroom resources.  I will work with our legislators in Annapolis to be sure that we get the funding from the State that we need.

3.  What do you intend to do to slow residential development in Harford County?

We need to make changes in our laws and regulations that will require planning and available funding for needed infrastructure, including schools, and necessary services before new residential development can be approved.   We need to improve the process of comprehensive rezoning to be sure that we limit development to areas designated for growth, and better preserve the agricultural and rural areas.  We need to enforce the moratorium on approval of new subdivisions when schools are overcrowded and we need to give residents a greater voice in decisions that involve new development in their communities.

4.  What in your mind is the biggest problem facing Harford County as it enters the twenty-first century and how do you expect to correct this problem?

The biggest challenge we face is deciding what our vision is for the county over the next century,  how we are going to grow, and then putting the rules and regulations in place that will help us reach that vision.  If we are going to limit development in designated areas and preserve our agricultural and rural heritage, we have to have a Code that has effective rules to accomplish that goal.  We need to find a way to increase our business and agricultural economy and provide jobs, while accommodating a growing population in communities that are neighbor-friendly and maintain a desirable quality of life.  We can work on this by making changes to our zoning code that encourage livable communities, preserve farmland, forests and open space, create design standards that allow for business development that fits with neighborhoods, and re-establish community councils that have input into land use decisions that affect their areas.  We need a commitment to maintain a balance of rural and developed areas and then work to find effective ways to achieve that balance.