Ms. Shields addressed Mr. Campbell from Eastern Shore Undercover and said I finally met who you are and I want to say that I agree with you and one of the things I want to say is you have to love people. She said we are Elected Officials and I'm sitting here because I love people, otherwise I wouldn't do it. She said I have projects I would like to see done, that's why I came back to politics. She said you have to love people and you have to be caring, you have to be respectful. She said, when you're an Elected Official you not only represent your District, I represent District 1, the minority district; however, I represent the whole County, it's not limited to the County Council, I represent Bivalve, I represent Pittsville. She said, if somebody from Pittsville calls me today and tells me to check something out, I will be right down there. She said I went to Bivalve the other week to look at something. She said you have to love people and you have to respect each other. She said we're going to disagree with issues, but all that had to be done is something simple — communication. She said bring the community that is going to be disrupted, if it's going to be disrupted, together and educate people on the event. She said those kind of things you need to do before you sign something on the dotted line. She said bring it before the Council, get our blessing, bring it to a work session, have a public hearing. She said, if those things were done, some of the misinformation would not have gotten out and we wouldn't have had to hear about it on Facebook. She said I don't do politics on Facebook, I talk about my grandchildren and birthdays and stuff. She said don't do things on social media before you even talk to us or the community you represent. She said you don't attack people, you don't accuse them of harassment. She said those are the kind of things the neighborhood heard. She said you don't call someone to cry when she's never been talked to a certain way, you sit down and take your medicine and be strong when somebody is talking against you. She said I had to endure with a blogger when I was on the City Council and I just sat there and smiled, and after the meeting I would go up to him and say you showed me with my Heineken and Absolut. She said he put me on the blog with the Absolut and I would joke about it, but the thing is you have to be thick skinned, that's what I'm trying to say, when you're in this position, and you can't be vindictive. She said you can't say it's my way or the highway, you have to be respectful. She said I apologize personally to Mr. Hoffman because he was put in a position when he didn't have to be put in there. She said I apologize for the condition the place was found with trash as that should have been prepared for the event since you wanted the event and you were promoting it. She clarified, I'm talking about the County Executive who was promoting it, and she should have made sure that no one should have had to pick up trash. She said the bottom line is respect and caring and loving people, not yourself. She said I don't have anything against County Executive Giordano, I don't have a thing about it, but I just have a problem with it's either her way or no way, and that's not how you work in County Government.

Shanie P. Shields, District 1

Mr. Baker said the way I see it, this wasn't about the Safari at the Quarry, this was about the roll out. He said I sat here two months ago and said this could have been a great event, I said it on record. He said then I said I can't support it because the community was terrified. He said they didn't know how many events it was going to be, they didn't know if it was going to turn into motorcycles, four-wheelers, what was going to happen, they weren't getting the input they needed, and they were scared. He said we started getting more and more text messages, phone calls, Facebook messages, and I'm going to back the community, they didn't want it.

Mr. Baker said Bob Harris and I talk on occasion and Earl Campbell came tonight and said you guys have got to start working with the Council. He said, that being said, Bob and I have had many disagreements, but I can't get up because he's in this room and go back and watch this on PAC 14, I have to face Bob no matter how tough it gets. He said Mr. Campbell is back there, I look at his Eastern Shore Undercover and sometimes he has some things to say about the Council that are not very nice. He said maybe it's true, maybe it's not, but I don't get to run back there and watch it on PAC 14. He said the County Executive, in my opinion, as a leader is representing this Jeep Club, the Safari at the Quarry. He said you guys are hearing from people that it is no good and that we shouldn't have had it, it's ruining our community. He asked, where is she at? He said she's sitting in her office watching it on PAC 14. He said she represents all of you, she is the Executive of Wicomico County, but she should be in here representing all of you and listening to your concerns because this is the one place that all citizens get to go up to that podium and speak to us, to PAC 14, and the County Executive. He said she blew in here, she made her statement, and she blew out while you guys were sitting here and left to get up here and fend for yourselves. He said I will apologize to Mr. Hoffman, you went through a lot, and so did we, so did everybody. He said this could have been a good event. He said the rollout was terrible, and here we are and now we have to deal with it. He said my point is, I reached out to Mr. Campbell I think yesterday evening. He said even though I'm sure we've had our differences, I don't know Mr. Campbell, but the things I've seen him post and the things he has probably seen me post, we sat on the phone and said let's set our differences aside and meet and see what we can agree with and meet each other. He said it was very civil, no problems, no issues, he thanked me for calling, I thanked him for taking my call, and we're going to meet. He said that's what you have to do. He clarified, that might be a little uncomfortable for me because of some of the things I've seen on his posts, and it might be a little uncomfortable for him, but we have to work through this uncomfortableness. He said we are in positions where we have to talk it out. He said you can't walk away, you can't hide, and that's just where I'm at. He said I agree with the whole thing of working together, but when you have somebody who won't stay and won't talk and won't communicate and they won't listen to a body of people, how am I supposed to work with that?

Shane Baker, District 3

Mr. Holloway said first of all thanks everybody for being here. He said I want to address some things that were said tonight. He said first off, in 1977 I was at a music festival in Virginia when I was witnessing these guys with these 1400 tires on these Chevy pickups and Bronchos and I came back to the Eastern Shore and said I have to have those, so I was mud hopping and deer hunting with 1400s on a ‘71 Chevy pickup a lot longer than some people in this room were alive. He said in ‘79 I ended up with about a ‘73 CJ5 that when you got it in the mud deep enough it sounded like a marine motor. He said we used them to pull tractors out and whatever, so I'm not against four-wheeling, I'm a motorsports fan. He said I go to drag races and stockcar races and tractor pulls. He said I heard Mr. Hoffman say awhile ago at the podium that he has been working on this for a year and a half. He said I can't recall just exactly when we found out about this on Facebook and the Shadow Hills people found out, but I think it was sometime around September of last year, so you had almost a year of when this started to come to fruition there to let people know. He said you got dealt kind of a bad deal I think, but I'm not going to apologize to you because you signed a contract for 364 days and as a businessman I think you should have questioned that, I really do. He said I've signed a lot of contracts in my life, but a 364 day contract would have sounded pretty fishy to me right off the bat.

Mr. Holloway said it was said at the podium that this violated the City zoning code. He said I don't know if you ever went to the City and tried to alleviate those issues or not, but if you didn't, you should have. He said we are going to have some Legislation that I have asked to put forward, and believe me, I hate Legislation. He said I look at what Maryland does every year during their Legislative Sessions and I shake my head at all the new laws they put in, and if you go back during the time I've been on the Council, you can probably count on one hand or maybe two the number of times I've asked for Legislation to be put forward. He said in this case we have to protect the citizens, and that's what this is about, it's about protecting the citizens. He said, if this had been brought to the Council, the citizens would have had a chance, and I see Julie shaking her head no, but that is fine, that's where I'm at, we have to protect the citizens. He said it doesn't matter if it's Shadow Hills, it doesn't matter if it's Nutters, it doesn't matter if it's the people who live in Pittsville or if it's the people who live on the west side. He said it doesn't matter if it's a Jeep event, it could be anything. He said we've drawn this up to address motorsports specifically because that's the problem we're having right now. He said unfortunately, hopefully we don't have to, but we might have to add to it at some point in time if something else pops up that's not right, but we have to protect the citizens. He said we will be talking about this in a little while.

Joe Holloway, District 5

Mr. Winn said it seems to me that one of the big problems is the park, but it's not a park. He said a lot of people are using it and shouldn't be using it and they're causing a lot of problems, and that is part of the reason why this has erupted. He said I don't know if it's feasible, and this isn't technically a park, but a piece of property that is in use by law-abiding citizens could prevent un-law-abiding citizens to enter the property. He said I'm just thinking out loud because I can't make this decision on my own, but if the property was allowed for residents in the community to walk or access the property, I could see that preventing a lot of motorists that aren't even supposed to be on dirt bikes there from using it. He said maybe you will be allowed to pick up trash and keep it clean. He said, on the other hand, I think if that was to be allowed then there would be some middle ground to where if a Jeep event wanted to happen on a weekend, there could be some sort of ground where we could put it on a schedule if it works out. He said obviously I think nobody here is upset about Jeepers, they are more upset about the motorists that aren't even supposed to be on the property and are causing a lot of problems, and I recognize that and see that. He said I'm repeating myself a bit, but if the residents were allowed to use the property that is in their own backyard, they would be able to keep the illegal motorists out and when the time comes to allow a legal event that has guidelines, then maybe that would be acceptable. He said other than that, this has been a very educational night and a lot of public comments and a lot of input. He said I have everyone's name written down, but your input was great and I hope that we can make everyone happy in some sort of middle ground. He said I don't want to shut the door on one avenue, but I also don't want to not allow the residents to be able to use a piece of property that's in your backyard. He said the State of Maryland has public land all over that is accessible. He said you can go down Sixty Foot Road and there are hundreds of thousands of acres all over the place, but you can't use it for motorized vehicles. He said we have a particular piece of land that you could as long as its construed to what the County wants. He clarified, I don't agree with motorized motorcycles, dirt bikes, anything like that you can really hurt yourself on, but to me, personally, I don't see the issue with a Jeep thing. He said maybe the way it was handled wasn't the right way, but I don't want to shut the door on this.

James Winn, At-Large

Mr. Merritt said I want to thank everybody for coming out tonight. He said it's always important that we hear from everybody whether it's stuff we agree with or stuff we don't agree with. He said your concerns, like Shanie said, we have to deal with it and we have to work through it and have discussions.

Mr. Merritt said thanks to everybody up here and all the comments, my page and a half on Safari at the Quarry is now down to one paragraph. He said we talked about lack of discussion and I think that was the catalyst that got all of this started. He said, had there been proper discussion with all the stakeholders in the very beginning as opposed to a unilateral decision, I don't think we would be sitting here listening to almost two hours of comments about Safari at the Quarry. He said hopefully we can get past that. He said I did receive over the past week and a half over a hundred emails all in opposition of this event. He clarified, disclaimer here, they were all canned emails, but somebody took the time to send them, and if we're keeping statistics, I did not receive one email in support of the event. He said, for those of you who are going to go home and fill up my inbox tonight, it's too late, you missed your chance. He said the threats of arrest, wow. He said at 1:00 a.m. the night before the event there were dirt bikes going through the quarry. He said I wonder if they were threatened with arrest? I'm pretty sure they weren't. He said the bottom line is that the property is unsecured and poses a liability risk. He said, if somebody gets injured or killed, the County is going to be on the hook for a lawsuit, you can bet that will happen.

Mr. Merritt said the press release that came out said the hotel rooms were filled and the restaurants were packed, and that's true, the parking lots were packed, but they were not packed with Jeeps, no offense. He said, in the five hotels in North Salisbury between 5:30 and 6:00 a.m. on Sunday morning there were twelve Jeeps. He said the reason they were packed is that there was a wrestling tournament at the Civic Center that had 2,000 wrestlers there plus their parents, and the reason I know that is I went by the Civic Center to take care of a meeting and I saw all the cars parked in the parking lot, over at Wi High, and across Glen Avenue in the auxiliary parking lot, and I thought for a fleeting minute that early voting was being overwhelmed, but they weren't, it was a wrestling tournament. He added, there was a lacrosse game at SU with Christopher Newport and there was another event going on down at Crown Sports, so there was a lot going on this weekend including the Jeep event.

Mr. Merritt said, as for the trash on the property, the Jeep folks did not put that trash down, the folks in Shadow Hills did not put that trash down, the trespassers put that trash down, and I thank you all for cleaning it up. He then addressed Mr. Dahien and said it is a pleasure working with you cleaning up litter, you and your family, because we have been out there numerous hours and I appreciate your work on the 700 miles of road that we have in this County.

Mr. Merritt said we talked about what's going on with social media and I think it's safe to say there is some very divisive rhetoric on social media and I'm not going to go on and on about it, but it's exactly the type of thing that we tell our kids not to do. He said it's called cyberbullying. He said, to both sides, cut it out. He said, if you don't have something nice to say, take your finger and keep scrolling, it's very easy. He said share the good stuff, share the fire department chicken dinners, the sports events, share the good stuff. He said keep the bad stuff to yourself.

Jeff Merritt, Vice-President, District 2

Mr. Hastings said what I'm hearing tonight, I think we need to get an idea, by the way, of how much soil is left on that property. He said, for the Jeep folks who are here, you all are waking up to this issue. He said, for the Shadow Hills community and the community around that, I have been hearing from them since I have been on the Council in 2018. He said I started hearing about this when I was running and ten years before that I started hearing about that issue when I worked for the local Land Trust and we were working to preserve the property and the adjoining property. He said none of this issue is new, but for them, they went through a very, very, very long, iterative, tough process in order to try to get to a point where they could close up this situation. He said, for the Shadow Hills community folks, I appreciate the integrity with which you all have interacted again and again despite the fact of all of this going on. He said the quick things I think we need to do are find out how much soil is left on this property and then let's start to get a masterplan for this property in order to turn it over. He said, when we voted five years ago to do this, it was literally we are going to get the soil, it's going to be good for the County, and then we're going to turn it into a park, that's the plan. He said they said it would probably take seven years, so we're at about that time, so let's start to get to the point where we can figure out how much soil is left and then let's turn it into a park, let's get the masterplan together.

Josh Hastings, District 4

Mr. Cannon said we really appreciate all the input and everybody taking the time to be here, but I will say that I agree that it wasn't so much about the event at all as it was about the process that everybody found so challenging during this whole time. He said, as Joe said, it started with a 364 day MOU. He said we had never heard of that before, and all that did was begin immediately to alienate this Legislative Body and worse, more so, to alienate the public as a whole. He said that's the reason that you don't have 364 day contracts because you do want engagement from the full Government Body as well as the public. He said it's important, that's the democratic process, so it didn't have to be this way, not at all.

Mr. Cannon said this isn't the first outdoor event we've ever done in Wicomico County. He said Mr. Steve Miller, Director of Recreation, Parks & Tourism, does this stuff day in and day out and he does an excellent job with it. He said he seeks input from the community, comes before Council, and engages the public in everything he does and I guarantee you there's not one event Mr. Miller has ever put on where there has been any of this type of a backlash from the community or concern from the Council.

Mr. Cannon said I think the takeaway is that the Council and the community for the most part would just like to see us getting back to the processes that are in place and hopefully we'll have a more efficient government and a better community as a whole and we won't have to engage in such toxic atmosphere.

John T. Cannon, President, At-Large