A virtual public hearing set for August 12 on a proposed 5.0MW solar plant in the town of Betterton has been rescheduled for for Tuesday, September 9 at 7 pm.

Public Hearing Scheduled for Proposed Betterton Solar Project

In April 2025, Halo Betterton applied to the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN)—the authorization required to construct an energy-generating station in the state.

According to the application, the developer plans to build the facility as part of Maryland’s community solar program on a 30-acre site at Howell Point Road and Still Pond-Betterton Road in Betterton.

The PSC has scheduled a public hearing on the proposal. The session will include:

• A presentation by the applicant.
• Brief statements from the parties, including the Power Plant Research Program of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the PSC’s Technical Staff, outlining their roles in the case.
• Comments from members of the public.

How to Speak at the Hearing
Those wishing to provide oral comments must register by August 11, 2025 via the Calendly app on the PSC website (www.psc.state.md.us):

1. Under Featured Topics on the right side of the homepage, click Public Comment Hearing Sign Up.
2. Select Case 9786 and choose the August 12, 7 p.m. hearing.
3. Click Next, enter your name and email, and click Schedule Event.

After registering, you will receive a Zoom link. The hearing will also be livestreamed on the PSC’s Public Utility Law Judge (PULJ) Division YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2X6wLiP.

How to Submit Written Comments
Written comments may be submitted:

• Online through the PSC’s portal: https://www.psc.state.md.us/make-a-public-comment/
• By mail to:
  Jamie Bergin, Chief Clerk
  Maryland Public Service Commission
  William Donald Schaefer Tower
  6 St. Paul Street, 16th Floor
  Baltimore, MD 21202

All comments should reference Case No. 9786 to be included in the correct file.

Additional Information
The complete application is available in the PSC’s online docket and for in-person review at the Town of Betterton Planning Commission, 100 Main Street, Betterton.

 

Starting today, Wednesday, Aug. 6, applications are now open in the remaining Maryland counties served by Delmarva Power including Caroline, Cecil, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne and Talbot counties for the Delmarva Power Customer Relief Fund. Eligible limited- and moderate-income customers can now apply for up to $300 in assistance. More information on where to apply can be found at delmarva.com/ReliefMD.

Funds will be allocated to eligible customers based on the following criteria:

• Funds will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis
• One-time per household; up to $300 per household grant
• Approved grants will be credited to customers’ Delmarva Power account

 To be eligible for the Delmarva Power Customer Relief Fund in Maryland, a customer must meet the following criteria:

• Active residential customer
• 60+ days past due
• Carry a balance of at least $250
• Household that is either limited income or moderate-income
  • Limited income is based on existing state LIHEAP eligibility (200 percent of Federal Poverty Level)
  • Moderate income levels include those making 400 percent of Federal Poverty Level

Local residents and other interested members of the public are invited to comment on a proposal by Halo Betterton, LLC to construct a 5.0 MW solar project in Kent County. The virtual hearing will take place on Tuesday, August 12, 2025 at 7 p.m. before Public Utility Law Judge Christine L. Burke.

In April 2025, Halo Betterton applied to the Maryland Public Service Commission for what is known as a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN), which grants an applicant the authority to construct an energy generating station in Maryland. According to the application, the developer proposes to build the project, intended as part of Maryland’s community solar program, on a 30-acre site at Howell Point Road and Still Pond-Betterton Road in the town of Betterton.

In addition to taking comments from the public, the hearing will include a presentation by the applicant, brief statements by the parties, including the Power Plant Research Program of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and the Commission’s Technical Staff, as to their respective roles in the case.

Those who would like to speak at the hearing must sign up (by August 11, 2025) through the Calendly app on the Commission’s website, www.psc.state.md.us:

• Under ‘Featured Topics’ on the right side of the webpage, click on ‘Public Comment Hearing Sign Up’;
• Click on ‘Case 9786’, and the hearing date and time (August 12 at 7 m.);
• Click ‘Next’, enter name and email
• Click ‘Schedule Event’

Once the sign up process is complete, registrants will receive a Zoom link.

Otherwise, the hearing can be watched on the PULJ Division’s (MD PSC PULJs) YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2X6wLiP

In addition to the hearing, written comments can be sent electronically through the Commission’s online portal at https://www.psc.state.md.us/make-a-public- comment/, or by mail. Comments sent by mail should be addressed to: Jamie Bergin, Chief Clerk, Maryland Public Service Commission, William Donald Schaefer

Town Manager Larry DiRe stepped down from his position on August 1, earlier than his planned resignation in October. Mayor David foster read the town manager’s last and current report during the Monday, August 4^th town council meeting. Until a new town manager is hired, project monitoring will be assumed by the council and staff.

The town manager’s report included capital projects completed:

The Cannon Street public bathroom has been completed and inspected. Plans have been made to add a camera and lighting to that location along with a timed lock.

The Louisa D. Carpenter Park playground has been completed. Councilmember Jose Medrano said that $264,000 to request for reimbursement is underway.

Currently there are 28 operational cameras installed in town. Meetings are also being held about installing cameras at Garnet Elementary School.

Repaving Scheeler Road has been approved and funded.

Rock Hall Seventh-day Adventist Church has received $4,000 from the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation to help nourish neighbors experiencing hunger. The “Nourishing Our Neighbors” grant supports community feeding partners as they tackle food insecurity and promote healthier lifestyles through nutritional education initiatives.

The funds will support the church’s Blessing Bag program, which provides nutritious food to neighbors in Rock Hall and surrounding areas who are experiencing food insecurity. The program, launched five years ago, serves more than 70 families each week.

“This grant ensures that individuals, families and children have access to fresh and nutritious food throughout the year,” said Vickie Anderson, Director. “We are grateful for Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation for providing hope and food to families in our community.”

The Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation is committed to supporting families facing food insecurity across its 10-state footprint. Established in 2001, the foundation provides financial support for programs and organizations dedicated to feeding local neighbors in the communities it serves. Since its inception, the foundation has awarded nearly $23 million in grants.

For more information about our Blessing Bag Program/Food Pantry visit https://www.rockhallsda.org/blessing-bags

Nearly 100 people of all ages braved stifling heat, speeding cars, and finally a soaking rain shower at the corner of Dover Street and Route 50 on behalf of Daniel Fuentes Espinal, the Easton pastor arrested by ICE earlier this week.

They held homemade placards —  some political, others scriptural, a few downright profane — and chanted slogans as passing cars beeped their approval as a news chopper hovered above.

The winner for best dressed was a woman in full Lady Liberty regalia. Best sign: ICE: Insufferable Cowardly Extremists.

The protesters were happy to talk to The Spy, but few wanted to give their names for self-evident reasons.

One woman decried the bureaucratic process of naturalization as odious and prohibitively expensive for most immigrants, who nonetheless play a critical role in providing services to Talbot like construction, painting, landscaping, and agricultural work.

“This is straight out of the fascist playbook,” said another gentleman, among several men and women in clerical garb. “Arrest the leaders to intimidate and disenfranchise their followers.”

A third woman said “Trump pledged to deport the worst of the worst. This is the polar opposite of that promise. This is not good governance.”

Meanwhile, the 54-year-old Fuentes Espinal was transferred to a detention center in Louisiana northwest of New Orleans, a family member stated publicly, adding that he was initially deprived of his daily medicine, but is receiving it there.

Following the arrest, ICE issued a statement saying, “Fuentes entered the United States on a six-month visa and never left in 24 years. It is a federal crime to overstay the authorized period of time granted under a visitor’s visa.”

Posting on Instagram, the Maryland Legislative Latino Caucus “condemns the unjust detention of Pastor Espinal and reaffirms its commitment to defending immigrant communities. We call for his immediate release and demand immigration enforcement focus on real threats not devoted community leaders. Maryland must stand for safety, dignity, and humanity.”

Maryland Representatives Sarah Elfreth and Glenn Ivey, along with Senator Chris Van Hollen, condemned the arrest, calling Pastor Fuentes Espinal a “beloved pillar” of Easton and accusing the Trump administration of “indiscriminately profiling and targeting individuals based on their skin color.”

 

An Easton minister who was born in Honduras and has lived in the United States for nearly 25 years was detained Monday morning by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Pastor Daniel Fuentes Espinal, who has served as the minister of Iglesia del Nazareno Jesús Te Ama church since 2015, was arrested early on July 21 after departing Lowe’s after picking up some construction materials, his daughter told local media. An ICE vehicle followed him to the nearby McDonald’s, and later arrested him on Route 322 after he ate his breakfast.

According to published reports, he was first taken to Salisbury and then transferred to the Baltimore ICE detention center, where he awaits further transfer. The daughter, Clarissa Fuentes Diaz, said Espinal is a father of three with a large extended family, and has no criminal record.  Espinal’s family has tried to obtain citizenship legally for years, but due to backlogs and expenses, Espinal remained undocumented, Diaz told local media.

Matthew R. Peters, executive director of the Chesapeake Multicultural Resource Center, which provides outreach services to immigrants, said such detentions are not new but appear to be ramping up. The detention of a prominent member of his community has raised the profile of the issue and may point to further detentions in the future.

“This is nothing new for this community,” Peters said. “In this case, people on the outside are feeling injustice. But everyone who is taken causes an impact on their family and friends.”

Since the start of the second Trump administration in January, immigration arrests have doubled in Maryland, according to the Deportation Data Project, an academic research-based initiative to track deportations. More than 600 immigrants with no criminal record have been arrested during that timespan.

Community members have come out in vigorous support for Espinal, with over 10 character letters written on his behalf, including Len Foxwell, a retired state official and communications strategist. Espinal spoke at the July funeral of Foxwell’s son Darren, who died in an auto accident earlier this summer and was a friend of Espinal’s son Daniel.

“If there is anyone who exemplifies the teachings of Christ and the true values of the Christian faith, it is Pastor Espinal,” Foxwell wrote on his Facebook page. “This [arrest] isn’t about securing the southern border, nor is it about making our communities safe. This is a human tragedy that has torn apart a hard-working family led by one who has given so much to others.

Peters said anyone who may be vulnerable to ICE detention should have a plan in place and work to understand the process through trusted resources with accurate information, noting the danger of scammers preying on immigrants worried about potential arrest.