The Harford County Council has confirmed the appointment of Wilson R. Rutherford III as head of the county's Department of Procurement.
County Executive Eileen M. Rehrmann named Mr. Rutherford to replace John J. O'Neill Jr., who took over as warden of the Harford County Detention Center last month.
Mr. Rutherford, a retired Army colonel who spent two years as commander of support activity at Aberdeen Proving Ground, most recently was director of the Maryland International Division of the state Department of Economic and Employment Development.
At DEED, he was responsible for promoting trade for Maryland's small- and midsize companies, and for attracting foreign investment.
The council, at its meeting Tuesday, also approved the annual update of the county's recycling plan after a public hearing. There was no citizen comment at the meeting.
Public works officials reviewed their plan to adopt a new, alternating-weeks schedule for collecting recyclables that is expected to save the county $500,000 over 15 months.
Beginning April 3, the county's three residential trash haulers will begin a "split-collection" schedule, picking up mixed paper one week and mixed glass, plastic, aluminum and other metal the next.
Frank Henderson, deputy director for environmental affairs, said the county expects to save about $400,000 in fiscal 1995-1996, in addition to saving $100,000 in the remainder of the current fiscal year, on the new schedule.
The recycling program has been costing about $900,000 a year, he said.
Recycling officials told the council that collecting paper separately from other items will reduce contamination and will make the paper more marketable. Besides picking up newspapers, haulers also will be collecting junk mail, gift wrappings, paperboard boxes, cigarette cartons, paperback books and scrap paper.
The increase in recyclable paper is expected to divert an additional 3,600 tons of waste from the county landfill each year, Mr. Henderson said.
In 1994, more than 10,000 tons of material was recycled in the residential curbside-pickup program.
Councilman Barry Glassman expressed concern that the cost of recycling is still too high. He said Harford will not actually be "saving" $400,000 next year because the projected cost of the "blue bag" program when it began in 1992 was $500,000 annually.
"Still, the program seems to be progressing," he said in voting to approve the plan.
There were no other questions or discussion from the council, which voted 6-0 for approval. Councilman Robert Wagner was absent.
In other business that stirred little discussion among members, the council unanimously approved the creation of a three-member building committee to study the council's impending move from the Circuit Courthouse on Main Street.
The basement level of the courthouse, now occupied by the council, will be renovated to accommodate a fifth judge for the Harford Circuit Court, who is expected to be appointed by the governor this year. The county has considered several options for relocating the council, including renting existing space and building new offices.
Council President Joanne S. Parrott told the council that she has had several informal discussions with county Administrative Director Larry Klimovitz and Administrative Judge William O. Carr but that "the time has come that we expand [the discussions] beyond the council president."
The committee, which will consist of Mrs. Parrott, Mr. Wagner and Councilwoman Veronica Chenowith, will provide a forum for discussing specific office needs and the design of the space, she said.
Mrs. Parrott said after the meeting that the most recent viable option is to rent a small building that would be constructed on a privately owned lot at Fulford Avenue and Barnes Street.
The council chamber and offices would occupy most of the building, and the remainder could be rented to other government entities, she said.
William D. Schaefer, then governor, approved a fifth Circuit Court judgeship for Harford County last year, but the actual appointment, to be made by Gov. Parris N. Glendening, is not expected for several months.
Mrs. Parrott said she does not anticipate that the council will move out of the courthouse before fall.
The 6-0 vote to approve the three-member building committee included making Councilwoman Susan Heselton the "subcommittee on computers."
Mrs. Heselton had complained early in the new term when her fellow council members voted to remove her from most of the boards and commissions on which she had served in her previous term.
She voted in favor of creating the committee after commenting, "I've never been a whole subcommittee."
The council also approved spending $3,000 to hire a management consultant to study the structure and efficiency of the council staff and consider potential reorganization.
"There are things that could be streamlined and duties that could be assigned differently," Mrs. Parrott said, explaining her reason for initiating the study.
The consultant, Paula M. Singer, also is conducting a $28,900 review of pay classifications and job descriptions for the county government. That work does not include the council staff.
Mrs. Parrott said the council can afford the consultant because it is operating without a chief attorney. Edward Andrews, who resigned in December shortly after the new council took office, has not been replaced.
Mr. Andrews, who was paid $27,500 a year on a contract, was the panel's chief legal adviser.
Mrs. Parrott said the council staff study will concentrate on full-time, classified employees, including the council secretary, assistant secretary, assistant attorney, legislative drafter and four secretaries.
She said she hopes the study will be completed by early April, when the council will begin reviewing Ms. Rehrmann's fiscal 1996 budget.
But it will not be done before the council hires a chief attorney, she said.
The council's personnel committee began interviewing candidates for that job Thursday. A decision is expected by early March, Mrs. Parrott said.