Charlie Paparella witnesses the reopening of Barren Creek Road

MARDELA SPRINGS, Md. – In this week’s edition of Back on the Road with Charlie Paparella, brought to you by Furniture & More Gone Coastal, Charlie witnessed the reopening of Barren Creek Road following its decade-long closure.

It’s been ten years since the river overflowed its banks and blew out the bridge on Barren Creek Road. Proposals for expensive repairs delayed the reopening of the area. County Executive Julie Giordano told Charlie that the original design proposed to replace the bridge was a fish ladder — a way for fish to head upstream when construction changes the angle of a river or stream. 

“As we moved on we realized that wasn’t the case and so it’s a very reasonable cost, the state was able to give us funding and that’s why we’re able to do the work in-house. That’s very exciting,” Executive Giordano added. 

Not everyone knew that Barren Creek Road was critical link to Route 50 for farmers to get to grain mills with their corn and soybeans. One lady at the reopening told Charlie that she is the wife of a fourth-generation farmer, and every farmer she knows has been eagerly anticipating being able to travel down Barren Creek again. 

But not everyone was ecstatic to see the road reopen. Protestors gathered at the site to condemn social media activity on Executive Giordano’s Facebook pages.

“Some of the schools need to be demolished. They have roaches and mold that the children are being educated in. And that money could have gone to schools,” one protester told Charlie. 

But ultimately, Charlie says he’s on everyone’s side.

“At the end of the day, it’s always the same problem: there’s never enough money to do everything that needs to be done,” Charlie concluded. “Farmers need every break they can get, and parents need to keep their children safe, and elected officials have to make difficult decisions… and keep hanging on.”

To learn more about the reopening of Barren Creek Road, check out WMDT’s coverage here. And, if you have a story idea that you’d like to see Charlie tackle, email them to papa@wmdt.com.