Wednesday, Jan. 7, 1998 --

• Eastern Shore lawmakers are expecting their western shore colleagues to introduce several punishing measures in an effort to combat Pfiesteria piscicida. “What we’re afraid of is we are going to see mandatory nutrient management plans that will not allow us to use fertilizer on about 80 percent of the land down here,” said state Sen. J. Lowell Stoltzfus. Wicomico County Councilman Russell Molnar has planned a public hearing for this week at the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center to address misinformation that, he said, has been spread by the news media regarding Pfiesteria.

• The Salisbury City Council has requested that city Executive Officer John Pick be allowed to meet with his county counterpart, Wicomico Administrative Director Matt Creamer, and an independent facilitator to guide consolidation negotiations. Joe Ollinger, who served on a county panel that studied consolidation, presented the City Council with a plan for a facilitator to jump-start consolidation negotiations. The council’s action does not guarantee the administrators and facilitator will ever meet. Consolidation talks have the support of the County Council, as well as area business leaders. 

• Rebecca Taylor-White, a 54-year-old Pittsville native, has filed to run for an at-large seat on the Wicomico County Council. A Republican, Taylor-White said she is concerned about protecting the local water supply, increasing local employment and improving housing. A Realtor with Cooper-Stewart Realtors, she was previously co-owner of Johnson’s Seed & Co. for 15 years.

• A three-day warm front that has seen daily temperatures rise to the mid-70s is expected to end tomorrow, and winter will be in full effect by the weekend. Lower Shore recreational areas, beaches and parks have been crowded since Saturday, as the unseasonable weather has allowed a winter reprieve.

• Dave Machemer has been named to replace Tommy Shields as the 1998 manager of the Delmarva Shorebirds. Machemer, 46, previously managed in the Milwaukee Brewers farm system for eight years. He was a roving instructor for the Montreal Expos organization for three years. Shields was named the new manager of the Frederick Keys. 

• Former Wicomico County Councilman Rudolph C. Cane has filed for a seat in the House of Delegates. This will be Democrat Cane’s second attempt at winning the District 37A seat, now occupied by Republican Don B. Hughes. Cane lost the 1994 race by 21 votes in a three-way race that divided votes in the minority-majority district. Cane said among his many priorities is bringing more industrial jobs to the district that includes portions of Wicomico and Dorchester counties.

• An electrical malfunction caused the eastbound span of the Route 50 Bridge over the Wicomico River in Salisbury to be stuck in an open position for several hours. Traffic was hampered as the Salisbury Police Department was forced to re-route traffic to Isabella Street and West Main Street.

• Wicomico Magnet School parents held a forum at Bethesda United Methodist Church to discuss their desire to see the program expanded to all elementary schools, rather than continue busing Magnet students to North Salisbury. The program, which has been in effect for 10 years in the county, creates a separate curriculum for nearly 700 2nd- through 6th-graders.