Our News

“There are a lot of federal dollars allocated for programs at Fort Meade, which will increase demand for workers,” he said. “It’s difficult to see how they are going to be able to find the workers for all of the activity that is coming down the pike.”

While the jobs seem prevalent, access to housing and affordable childcare isn’t.

With a new set of laws regarding public education reform in the state taking effect recently, including an expansion of pre-Kindergarten, that means fewer young children in child care and less certified providers, which will drive up the costs for those who remain, Bauer noted.

“It’s an unfortunate side effect of providing universal pre-K,” he said.

On the state’s Eastern Shore, the Community Conversations team visited the towns of Denton and Federalsburg in Caroline County, the town of Easton in Talbot County, and the town of Cambridge in Dorchester County. They heard similar concerns about finding willing workers and the need to provide steady childcare for the population that is employed.

Concerns also were expressed by those trying to stay in business.

“When people think of the Maryland Eastern Shore, they tend to think of the waterfront, but Caroline County is landlocked and doesn’t have a tourism lure,” Dolkart said. “This was a good place to have conversations with farmers and others in the agricultural sector, who shared their challenges.”

Farmers continue to contend with supply chain issues stemming from the pandemic, which have kept the cost of supplies, and doing business, historically high.

A hopeful note in two of the county’s small towns the team visited are two large development projects that are underway – a new regional hospital in Easton and a waterfront development project down the road in Cambridge.

Additional good news is the rollout of broadband on the Eastern Shore, Bauer said. “There’s a lot of confidence that they’ll have this area covered in a couple of years.”

Those who want to provide more housing in the area have been challenged by residents who want the region to remain undeveloped, said Dolkart, noting that a significant concern is whether inviting more homeowners will challenge the school system’s capacity and environment preservation.

“This tracks with what we heard in Anne Arundel County about housing development,” Dolkart said. “Leadership in Ann Arundel seem to realize they need to change that approach and they are working on how to resolve their issues with the permit process. The challenges are still being addressed in the Eastern Shore counties.”

The Community Conversations team left the region with a goal to closely follow the growth that will occur as development in both areas expands.