Bowers

Bowers named to tax board By LAURA ERNDE / Staff Writer ANNAPOLIS - Former Washington County Commissioner Ronald L. Bowers has been appointed to a paid state government job, Gov. Parris Glendening announced Friday. The Maryland Senate must confirm Bowers' appointment as administrator of the Property Tax Assessment Appeals Board office based in Annapolis. "It's an honor to have been recognized. It's kind of been one of those storybook finishes to a career," Bowers said.

chambersburg@herald-mail.com CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - Former Washington County Commissioner Ronald L. Bowers was in Franklin County Court answering to alcohol-related charges two days after he was arrested for drunken driving in Maryland earlier this month. Bowers, 59, of 13933 Distant View Ave. in Maugansville, was accepted into Franklin County's Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program on Jan. 8, which could erase the Aug. 18, 2002, charges from his record if he complies with the conditions.

by Joe Crocetta / staff photographer see the enlargement SMITHSBURG - Former Police Chief Tommy Bowers was elected Smithsburg's mayor Tuesday, defeating by an unofficial six votes incumbent Mildred "Mickey" Myers, who had fired him. --cont. from front page-- Bowers got 291 votes to Myers' 285 votes, Town Clerk Betsy Martin said. There was one write-in vote for mayor, and seven ballots that did not include votes for either mayoral candidate.

Bowers proposes expanding parking deck By SCOTT BUTKI / Staff Writer A plan developed by former Washington County Commissioner Ron Bowers calls for expanding Hagerstown's North Potomac Parking Deck by 137 spaces in order to provide more parking for the University System of Maryland Hagerstown Education Center. continued The plan, which has not yet been submitted to the governor's office, also calls for turning the center into a two-building campus by using the 21,000-square-foot building now housing the Frostburg University Center in Public Square, Bowers said.

By CLYDE FORD Staff Writer, Charles Town SMITHSBURG - About 120 people attended a rally Friday night for former Smithsburg Police Chief Tommy Bowers who was fired Aug. 13 by Smithsburg Mayor Mildred "Mickey" Myers and the town council. "I'll tell you one thing. We're going to get that man back," said Jake Keller, 51, of Smithsburg, who has protested outside of town hall since the firing. Sherry Owen, who organized Friday night's rally at an auction house on Maple Avenue, said a candlelight march will be held tonight with protesters meeting at 7:30 p.m. at the baseball fields by the fire department and walking to Bowers' house.

Washington County Commissioner Ronald L. Bowers on Tuesday proposed creating a Washington County Commission on Minority Affairs. Bowers said such a commission would look at minority issues from a countywide perspective, and could address everything from hiring practices to crime. Bowers made the suggestion as Carolyn Brooks gave the Washington County Commissioners an update on the state-funded Hot Spot program that she coordinates. The county has initiated several programs to address needs in the Jonathan Street community.

gregs@herald-mail.com Former Washington County Commissioner Ronald Lee Bowers on Tuesday admitted he is an alcoholic and pleaded guilty to one count of driving under the influence of alcohol, but he can maintain a clean driving record if he complies with the terms of his probation. Washington County Circuit Judge Donald E. Beachley sentenced Bowers, 59, of 13933 Distant View Drive to 30 months probation. For the first nine months, Bowers will be monitored through a Department of Parole and Probation drunken driving program.

marlob@herald-mail.com Two weeks after a wreck forced former Washington County Commissioner Ron Bowers to face up to a problem with alcohol, he said he has begun outpatient treatment and is working with a Health Department counselor. "I have addressed the issue that I have a problem with alcohol," Bowers said Monday from his Maugansville home. Bowers was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol Jan. 6 after the sport utility vehicle he was driving crashed into a mailbox on Maugansville Road and plunged down a 10- to 15-foot embankment into a stream off Village Mill Drive, Washington County Sheriff's deputies said.

By STEVEN T. DENNIS| Staff Writer Washington County Commissioner Ronald L. Bowers called for an independent audit of the county's Water and Sewer Department Tuesday and said the commissioners need a long-range plan for reducing $3.53 million in subsidies from the general fund. Bowers also asked staff members for an accounting of debt at the Water and Sewer Department. He said he keeps hearing different numbers quoted to him and doesn't want a "moving target. " County Administrator Rodney Shoop said the debt was in the "mid-fifties" - meaning millions of dollars - and said staff members could detail the debt for the commissioners at a future meeting.

Bowers challenges Davis on hiring policies By STEVEN T. DENNIS Staff Writer Washington County's personnel director was criticized by one County Commissioner and defended by another during a heated discussion about affirmative action policies Tuesday. Human Resources Director Alan J. Davis told the commissioners that the county needs to update the short-term goals in its affirmative action plans, which haven't been updated since April 12, 1994. County Commissioner Ronald L. Bowers criticized Davis for not keeping the plans up to date.