Lookingbill favors controlled growth, would bring 'wisdom and common sense' as commissioner

Oct. 23—Bob Lookingbill gets heavily involved with any organization he's in. Over the last 50 years he's lived in Thurmont, Lookingbill has been part of several groups and organizations, including the Thurmont Lions Club, Thurmont Little League and the town's Parks and Recreation Commission, Police Commission and Board of Appeals.

Lookingbill was a town commissioner from 2007 to 2011. At the time, he said, he ran because he was dissatisfied with some ways the town operated.

This year, Lookingbill said he is again running for commissioner to try to improve how Thurmont runs and, most importantly, help the residents.

"What I'd hope to bring to the board would be wisdom and common sense," he said. "If I can help people by being a commissioner, I'd be more than happy to do it."

Lookingbill is one of the six candidates for two seats on Thurmont's Board of Commissioners currently held by Bill Buehrer and Wes Hamrick. Buehrer is running for reelection. Hamrick is not.

The other candidates are Marty Burns, Grant Johnson, Ed Schildt and Christopher Stouter.

The election will be held on Oct. 31 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Guardian Hose Company activities building at 123 E. Main St.

Lookingbill said several residents asked if he was considering running for the board after he helped gather signatures for a referendum on an annexation the board approved in 2022.

The annexation would have zoned more than 16 acres of farmland for high-density residential development. Lookingbill was one of several members of the organization Envision Thurmont who went door-to-door getting signatures from residents for a referendum petition.

Residents voted 834-157 in the referendum in January to reject the annexation.

Lookingbill said growth is inevitable for Thurmont, but he favors "small growth." He said he doesn't want the board to think "quick money" from dense development will fix problems in Thurmont.

He used his neighborhood, Catoctin Heights, as an example. He said the development was good when first built, but problems popped up, such as replacing sewer pipes that were deteriorating and fixing malfunctioning transformers.

"What your problems are today are only gonna become worse the more you allow development," Lookingbill said.

He wants to focus on creating controlled growth and eliminating PFAS compounds, or "forever chemicals," in the town's water system. He intends to focus on repairing town infrastructure efficiently, such as refurbishing sewerage first, then fixing roads.

Lookingbill said ideal growth would be creating single-family homes that aren't too close to one another. He said he wants to build smaller homes for older adults, so they aren't living alone in large homes after their children move out.

He proposed a joint meeting between the Board of Commissioners and the Planning and Zoning Commission to explain the different types of zoning, with residents watching.

He said he wants to start a residential advisory committee to gather public feedback for the board. Lookingbill has coordinated his campaign with Burns, who also expressed interest in such a committee.

Lookingbill said he and Burns often disagreed when he was commissioner and Burns was mayor, but now, they share the same stances on Thurmont's needs.

"We both feel that to work together, we can make this happen better and keep Thurmont a town where people want to live and raise your families," Lookingbill said.

On Feb. 2, 2009, while Lookingbill was a commissioner, Thurmont Police Department Deputy Chief P. Allen Droneburg gave a report at a town meeting on recent crime trends and suspect information in Frederick County.

A video of that meeting shows Droneburg discussing a recent string of robberies in Frederick and efforts to make arrests.

Lookingbill asked Droneburg about individuals he saw being arrested in Frederick as robbery suspects and if they were possibly connected.

"This morning, I saw they had four monkeys they had picked up for robbery in Frederick. Well, I shouldn't call them monkeys — I hate to insult monkeys — but four suspects that they arrested for robbery," he said in the video clip. "I think they said they [the suspects] did three armed robberies as a gang."

Lookingbill said the comment was referring to the individuals' actions, not their race. Growing up, Lookingbill said, it was common to call children "monkeys" for causing mischief and climbing everywhere.

Mayor John Kinnaird said people have recently asked him about this exchange. The original clip is part of the meeting archive on the town's website. Kinnaird recently reposted the video clip on his YouTube channel.

"I'm not ashamed of anything I ever said or did," Lookingbill said. "If people take what I say out of context, that's their problem. ... I have nothing to hide."