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To say that Oxford Town Commissioner Meetings feel different in the Fall of 2025 is a huge understatement. After several years of controversy and contention surrounding the actions of the previous town manager and administration, the new attitude in town meetings is one of addressing important issues head on with full transparency.
Tuesday, September 8th's town meeting was a bit longer than usual, lasting approximately 90 minutes, but it was substantive. While many topics were discussed, three priorities were pushed to the forefront.
ELECTIONS: Most people in Oxford agree that the election of June 2025 was one of the most organized and well run elections in Oxford's recent history. Election Commission Chairman Debbie Krolicki addressed the Commissioners with ideas presented by the current election commission to tie up any possible loose ends and to address the ever-present issue of voter eligibility in town elections. Here is a downloaded copy of these notes:
Oxford's Current Charter:
The main election issue hinges on how the town defines voter eligibility. While the State uses the "domicile" of a person to define their ability to vote, it also allows municipalities to maintain their own rules and a municipal log of eligible voters in their towns. That's what frames the discussion in Oxford.
Oxford Resident Scott Rensberger delivered an impassioned speech about this issue:
I’m Scott Rensberger and I live at 102 Stewart Avenue.
Dear Commissioners,
Oxford has part-time residents and domicile residents — but some domicile residents only live in Oxford part-time. Several domicile people have homes scattered across the United States and the world.
If someone claims Oxford as their “domicile” and has never slept inside the town for one night — but is still legally allowed to vote in Oxford, while residing in Florida, which actually happened in our 2024 election — it only makes sense that we should grant voting rights to all residents. A part-time resident is still a resident. Please stop treating part-time residents like tourists who can’t find the ice-cream shop. These part-time residents love our Town as much as anyone and they help pay a lot of our Town bills.
Before the 2024 town election we kept two voter lists. We did this for decades. One list was made up of around 98% of our population. These people registered with the County. The other 2%, give or take, simply registered inside our Town Office. These people all followed our Town Charter. Our Charter has always been black on white on this issue.
And until recently this has never been a problem. This “two list system” has given us Commissioners like Gordon Fronk, Tom Costigan and Katrina Greer. Maryland has several municipalities that keep two different voter registration lists.
Riverdale Park, a Town 15 times larger than Oxford, keeps a County list and a Town list. Riverdale also allows 16 year olds to vote. Many Maryland municipalities allow 16 year olds to vote — which is proof that these municipalities don’t force its residents to register with the County.
Takoma Park, a Town 30 times larger than Oxford, allows non U.S. Citizens to vote. Any resident who’s at least 16 years old can simply register directly with the City — on the same day as the election.
Hyattsville, a Town 41 times larger than Oxford, keeps two lists. It has a County registry and a City registry.
If anyone can handle a County and a “very small” Town list it’s Debbie Krolicki. She ran the last election like a Navy Seal operation.
I personally think that residents, like myself, who pay a mortgage, property taxes and a water bill should be allowed to vote. If a homeless person walked into Oxford and pointed at a sidewalk and called it his domicile — by federal law he would be allowed to vote in Oxford. So, it’s my great hope that the three Commissioners of Oxford will allow someone like myself the right to vote in a Town Election — I live here full-time with my 14 year old daughter on Stewart Avenue.
At the very top of our Town Charter it reads, Charter for Oxford — The Municipal Corporation. Please don’t confuse municipal elections with County, State and Federal elections. They are completely, and legally, different. You all three have the power to make Oxford inclusive. Other municipalities do it. Why segregate our beautiful Town if you don’t have to?
Scott Rensberger
Another resident of Oxford, Russell Gray, stated that the crucial issue is how the town defines "domicile" and how that definition fits into the election process.
"It's not as clear as it seems," Gray said. "There are other issues aside from domicile."
Gray advocated for conditions to be met such as living in town full time for six months and 1 day and showing a voter registration, vehicle registration, and other documents to prove that a person does live in town as a full time resident.
He stated that clear conditions for eligibility must be in place prior to another town election.
The next election in Oxford is in the Spring of 2026. The Commissioners will have a workshop on these issues in the near future.
Special Note: Town resident Richard Wahlgren spoke in a previous town meeting about having to show an I.D. to vote. Walgren said this defies his Constitutional Rights. He refused to show I.D. and was given a provisional ballot, which he claims was not counted. Walgren is a long-term resident of Oxford. He demanded that the Commissioners count his vote from the last election and change the results accordingly. THE EASTON GAZETTE has no information as to whether this was done or not.
SHORT TERM RENTALS: Commissioner Dave Donovan raised the topic of short term rentals in town. Donovan stated that, through his research, he found 26 short term rentals in town, many which have expired licenses for over a year.
Donovan discussed looking at the regulations for short term rentals and, most important, the enforcement of these regulations, including fines for those that do not comply. Short term rental regulations cover parking, number of occupants, insurance coverage, etc. Many resort towns are grappling with the steady increase of these short-term rentals as they sometimes bring occupants who do not follow town laws, noise ordnances, etc.
COMMITTEE/COMMISSION TRAINING: Issues with some of the town's committees in the past few months, including actions by members of committees that prompted their removal from committee positions, have brought to light the fact that many of the people who volunteer and get placed on these committees don't understand that duties and responsibilities of these committees before they apply. Many do not know how they should conduct business and/or deal with the public professionally and without personal bias. This leads to suspect actions and decisions that can, in some cases, cause residents of Oxford large amounts of money, time, etc.
Commissioner Norm Bell suggested that all prospective committee members receive generalized training on expectations of committee members before they apply for positions.
Publishing these duties and responsibilities and other basic information about being on a town committee is "not rocket science" according to Bell. Town lawyer Lindsey Ryan stated that the town should adopt outlines for commissions which would define authority, roles, etc.
Note: The town has received many applicants for committees and that the application process has become much more transparent, with application information being published on the town's website and applicant interviews with the commissioners being livestreamed for the public to view. This has removed the town manager as the "gatekeeper" and single arbiter for which volunteer applications get seen by commissioners.
OTHER ISSUES DISCUSSED:
THE OXFORD POST OFFICE: The remediation and rebuild of the post office is ongoing. Architect Dennis Still has created plans for the rebuild. Requests for Proposals will go out soon.
FEMA GRANT TO LIFT HOMES: Two homeowners will participate in the FEMA house lifting. There was originally fourteen on the list.
BANK IN OXFORD: The town is currently in negotiations with SHORE UNITED bank to put a full time ATM in the bank building. Commissioner Dave Donovan asked why, if no full-time bank is on the current site, the town doesn't either sell or rent that building for something else. Town manager Wahl stated that there are banks doing feasibility studies of opening in Oxford.
STRAND BEACH: After concerns voiced by a town resident regarding the stability of the poles placed on the shoreline, the public works crew checked the poles and corrected any that were unstable. The town engineer is investigating possible ADA accommodations on the Strand Beach. Commissioner Donovan said that the ADA issue is concerning and needs to be put on the front burner. Problems such as handicapped parking for the Strand and permitting from the Board of Public Works exist. The commissioners will schedule a separate meeting on the topic.
TOWN AUDIT: Auditors are currently on site in the town office this week as they audit the financial processes, procedures, and records for FY2025. The town hired a new auditing firm this year. In previous years, auditors relied mostly on mailed reports to conduct their findings. There have been questions in the past as to why the town did not follow auditor recommendations that were stated for 8 years.
TOWN OWNED BOAT SLIPS: Town Manager Wahl stated that she and her staff cannot verify that the town has been following the boat slip license policy that has been in place since 2000. The policy stated that the right to use the town boat slips was given in the following order: Watermen who are in the fire company, full time residents in the volunteer fire company, and then working watermen. Wahl said they may need to rewrite the policy.
