CUMBERLAND – October 6, 2026

Senator Mike McKay is bringing $829,000 in tax dollars back to Western Maryland this week, with five projects across Allegany, Garrett, and Washington Counties on the agenda for the October 7 Board of Public Works meeting.

“Western Marylanders send plenty to Annapolis,” said Senator McKay. “This week some of it is coming back for the basics: clean water, fire stations, and places for our kids to play. That isn’t new spending. It’s our money, back where it belongs.”

The biggest piece is water. Allegany County will receive up to $334,000, a $262,537 grant and a $71,601 loan, to replace the aging water lines that serve homes in the area around Frostburg. Old pipes mean breaks, boil notices, and repair bills, and families out here shouldn’t have to put up with that.

Two volunteer fire companies are getting help with their buildings. The Oakland Volunteer Fire Department in Garrett County will receive $50,000, and the Maugansville Goodwill Volunteer Fire Company in Washington County will receive $70,000. Neither has to put up a matching dollar.

“Our volunteers leave their families in the middle of the night to protect ours,” said McKay, who chairs the Maryland Fire and EMS Coalition. “The least Annapolis can do is make sure the station they report to is in good shape.”

In Washington County, $225,000 will renovate the pool at Marty Snook Park, with new locker rooms, a new pump and filtration system, a splash park, and shade for parents watching from the deck.

In Garrett County, $149,890 goes to two community spaces: a rebuilt field with goals, seating, and fencing for kids’ lacrosse at Eastern Garrett Community Park, and a new parking lot, pathways, and lighting at the Grantsville Community Recreation Center, so families can get in and out safely after dark.

“Water lines, fire stations, a pool, a ballfield. Nobody in Annapolis dreamed those up,” McKay added. “Our communities asked for them, and I’m going to keep making sure Western Maryland gets its fair share.”

The Board of Public Works takes up all five items on Wednesday, October 7, 2026.

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