After about a year of borrowing the board of education's chambers, the Harford County Council announced Tuesday it will be moving back into the so-called "Black Box" in February.
"We fortunately are moving home, back to 212 South Bond Street," Council President Billy Boniface said during the council meeting Tuesday night.
He said the council will hold its first meeting back at the Black Box at 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 7, when it will hear public comments on the proposed 2012 county master plan.
The council offices will remain at 18 Office St., where they were moved in early January 2010 after an engineer deemed 212 S. Bond structurally hazardous.
The county administration said the building was safe to reoccupy in late July.
Boniface said only council meetings will be relocated to the Black Box.
"As soon as the county said we have the chance to go home, we took it," Boniface said, thanking the school system for letting the council use its chambers on Courtland Place for the past year.
"They've been extremely accommodating," he said. "Hopefully we won't have to move again."
Water and sewer rates
Boniface also used Tuesday's meeting to announce he is withdrawing his support of Bill 11-60, which would put forward new water and sewer rates for the county.
He said Harford County Executive David Craig was a co-sponsor.
"I've gotten to an impasse that I don't think I'm going to get past," Boniface said. "It still has time to be moved on Feb. 7, so the county executive, if he still wants to do the bill… he's going to have to get support for this one."
Surplus land; PILOT agreement
The council introduced two resolutions, for which public hearings will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 21.
One would declare 11.14 acres on Oakington Road as surplus in exchange for 0.98 acres on the same road, owned by Griffith H. Davis.
Oakington Road is near Swan Creek Country Club, between Havre de Grace and Aberdeen.
The other resolution is for a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) agreement with St. John's Commons Inc., a 40-unit affordable housing project for seniors in Havre de Grace.
St. John's Commons would pay $175 per unit in lieu of taxes in the first year, $200 per unit the second year, $225 per unit the third year, $250 per unit the fourth year and $275 per unit the fifth year.
In the sixth year, the amount will increase annually at 3 percent per unit, starting July 1, 2016.
Councilwoman Mary Ann Lisanti said the agreement is similar to an agreement already in place with St. John's Towers, owned by the same organization as St. John's Commons.
The council also introduced two bills that would appropriate funds to reimburse bonus funds to Harford County Public Schools, for a total of about $1.6 million.
Another bill would also provide for the completion of the closure of the former Spencer Rubble Landfill East Side.
Boniface said he had just received the bills, and the resolution on the surplus property, and had not had time to look at them yet.
George S. Silling Jr. was appointed to the Mental Health and Addictions Advisory Council, Willie R. Walker was appointed to the Department of Social Services Advisory Board and Roland Beckman was appointed to the Historic Preservation Commission.
Also at the meeting, George and Mary Elizabeth Rigdon were recognized as Harford Living Treasures.