City Finds Part Of Wastewater Plant Lies On FDK Property

The resolution to an ongoing dispute between Frederick, MD officials and the Federal Aviation Administration over the location of a wastewater treatment plant may be as simple as a schoolyard lunch trade: can we swap?

Officials in the city of 52,000 recently discovered a part of the city's wastewater treatment plant sat on two acres of land purchased with FAA money to support a future expansion of Frederick Municipal Airport (FDK) -- which may not be at hand, as part of the airport's 2006 Master Plan.

While investigating the error, city public works director Fred Eisenhart also discovered some of the land used by the airport belongs to the city. To clear up the mess Eisenhart proposed reshuffling property boundaries at Wednesday’s workshop to clear up the mess.

A similar predicament occurred in 1992, according to the Frederick Gazette. When the city was building its new Department of Public Works building, the city approved a swap of property at the airport, with land the city was to acquire at a local college.

The solution agreed to then will likely be used once again here. In the plan presented by Eisenhart, the city proposes giving the FAA 271,097 square feet, valued at $373,253.75 in exchange for 121,388 square feet of FAA-funded property, valued at $334,872.

Alderman Donna Ramsburg, one of only two in attendance at the workshop, questioned how the city could have made the error.

"Can someone tell me how this happens without complicity of the elected body?" she asked.

Eisenhart replied his staff concentrated on finding a solution, and did not investigate the cause. According to a memo cited by the Gazette, a city surveyor said the error was due to an improperly recorded land deed.

The FAA is holding off on making a decision on the deal until the Master Plan is completed in August 2006, according to airport director Charles Abell.

FMI: www.airnav.com/airport/KFDK