News
|
2010
August 8th - Inaugural Fort Ritchie Triathlon
The first
annual Triathlon held at Fort Ritchie was a great success! Race director Ken
Racine of Racine Multisports said about 370 people participated in the
triathlon. About 205 of the participants competed in the Olympic-distance
version versus the shorter sprint version. The
Olympic-distance version consisted of a 1.5-kilometer swim, a 38K bike and a
10K run, The sprint version consisted of a .75K swim, a 24K bike and a 5K run.
The overall
winners were:
Olympic
distance: Men: Rick Fesler, Carlisle, Pa., 2 hours, 4 minutes and 14 seconds;
Women: Megan Martin, of Greencastle, Pa., 2:27:59.
Sprint
distance: Men: Geoffrey Irwin, Frederick, Md., 1:16:10; Women: Lexa Gass,
Crescent, Pa., 1:26:11
All but
a portion of the cycling event was held on the grounds of Fort Ritchie.
Contestants commented that the setting here is beautiful, but also one of the
tougher Olympic Triathlon events because it has so many hills. Click through to Racine Multisports for complete race results.
June 26, 27 - 5th Annual Mountaintop Heritage Days Fun for Thousands!
Perfect for the sprawling lakeside parade grounds at Fort Ritchie, this 4th of July event (held Sat & Sun June 26, 27) is growing bigger and better every year. Over 100 vendors and countless attractions drew a crowd estimated over 10,000. This was the first year all events were held at Fort Ritchie, with fireworks over the lake at 9pm Saturday. It is really becoming an impressive annual invent, featuring just about anything you can imagine: live bands, a car show, horse rides, petting zoo, kids game, a civil war encampment, steam engines, saw mill demonstration, a living history exhibit, and more. The two day event even offered helicopter rides and a chance to get out on the lake on a canoe or paddle boat! This was the first year all events were held at Fort Ritchie – except the parade in Blue Summit and a scavenger hunt that led participants from Blue Summit to Cascade! COPT, the owners of Fort Ritchie, hosted the event, but the event itself is produced by One Mountain Foundation, a group that works to improve the quality of life in the four county, “mountaintop” area. Check their web site for additional fun events they are planning throughout the year.
May 15 - Inaugural Fort Ritchie Duathlon
Fort Ritchie was excited to host this new event, offered by Racine Multisports. It was an Olympic style event: 5k Run, 10k Bike, 5k Run. Fort Ritchie proved to be a beautiful setting for the competition, and a challenging one for participants and fun for spectators. Click through to Racine Multisports for details and the list of winners.
May 8 - The 3rd Annual Fort Ritchie Criterium
It was an intense day of bicycle racing with more than 300 riders competing! Great for the participants and almost as exciting to watch... Sanctioned by the United States Cycling Federation, these races were held
on a 1.3-kilometer loop that weaves through Fort Ritchie and around Lake Royer,
featured both men and women in flights for youth (as young as 14) to masters
(ages 60 and over) and from beginners to nationally ranked veterans. With eight
races. the competition started early in the morning and went almost to evening. For race results and more details on the event, go to The Antietam Velo Club. This race was sponsored by Corporate
Office Properties Trust and benefitted the Fort Ritchie Community Center and
Hagerstown BMX.
2009
October - Fort Ritchie Community Center Earns Gold LEED Certification!
Officials from Corporate Office Properties Trust recently received notice from U.S. Green Building Council that the Fort Ritchie Community Center has achieved LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification, and thus becomes the first LEED-Certified public building in Washington County at any level. The Gold certification was awarded after the Fort Ritchie Community Center reached a stringent set of performance goals and earned a required number of points on a complex rating system. The rating system covers five environmental categories: Sustainable Site Development, Water Savings, Energy Efficiency, Materials Selection and Indoor Environmental Quality. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™ is the nationally accepted standard for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. Click for the full story including names of several local companies that helped build the community center.
August 13 - Fort Ritchie Community Center Hosts "Take Flight" Sculpture
Now installed outside of the Fort Ritchie Community Center you will find one of thirty butterfly sculptures distributed by the "Take Flight" project. Corporate Office Properties Trust (COPT) has recently sponsored the Hagerstown, MD project to help raise money for the Barbara Ingram School Foundation.
The COPT butterfly, "Metamorphosis In Flight," was manufactured at Maryland Metals in Hagerstown, MD and painted by local artist and teacher, Ann Hess.
Using acrylic paint on an aluminum butterfly, Ann has illustrated hands joined together in flight, and in promise for the future to reflect the theme of art as a contributor to harmony among all people. The backs of the hands celebrate differences while the palms, which come together, show harmony in color and intensity.
COPT is pleased to contribute to the "Take Flight" project, which has raised more than $400,000 for the Barbara Ingram School Foundation.
June 27-28 - Mountaintop Heritage Days
This 4th annual celebration was held all on the grounds of Fort Ritchie, with a car show, live entertainment, kids games, and a civil war encampment. There was also a parade, a 5k run and an auction for charity. And of course, FIREWORKS!
May 9 - Antietam Velo Bike Club Races
This was the second annual Fort Ritchie Classic Criterium b race. and it took place on Saturday in Cascade. If you've never seen bicycle racing up close -- it is an intense competition! The races, licensed by the United States Cycling Federation and held
on a 1.3-kilometer loop weaving through Fort Ritchie
and around Lake Royer, featured both men and women in flights for
youth (as young as 14) to masters (ages 60 and over) and from beginners
to nationally ranked veterans.
More than 300 racers, including a handful from Washington
County, took part in eight races that began in the early morning and
continued until dinner time. The event, presented by the Antietam Velo
Club and sponsored by Corporate Office Properties Trust, benefited the
Fort Ritchie Community Center and Hagerstown BMX, not to mention the sport of cycling in the Washington County area.
For more information about the club, visit www.bikecvcc.com/avc.
2008
September 27 - Fort Ritchie Community Center Grand Opening & Dedication Ceremony
The Community Center Grand Opening, attended by 500 to 1,000 people, included a Dedication Ceremony with representatives from COPT, PMDC, Senators Mikulski and Cardin's offices, Congressman Bartlett's office, and the Chair or President of each of the Board of County Commissioners of the four surrounding counties. Activities included a hoop shooting contest hosted by Five Star Foundation, a show by basketball performer Spencer "Spinny" Johnson, live country music, giveaways, free hot dogs and refreshments, an exhibition by the Maryland Flames Elite team, craft activities, health screenings, yoga and pilates demonstrations, daffodil bulb planting and a drawing for a camp scholarship to a Five Star Basketball camp.
June 28 - Fireworks, Mountain Top Heritage Days
A full day of Independence Day celebration culminated in a wall of fireworks, reflected across Lake Royer near the Parade Grounds at Fort Ritchie. Hundreds of area residents enjoyed the free event, part of the 8-day Mountain Top Heritage Day celebration. The day at Fort Ritchie included bluegrass bands, food vendors, historical lectures and displays, a transitional car parade, a petting zoo, a moon bounce, and more. Corporate Office Properties Trust (COPT) and PenMar Development Corporation (PMDC) sponsored the evening fireworks. While the event was free, donations were collected to help fund One Mountain Foundation activities other than the fireworks. Donations also benefited the American Legion's Fisher House, a national program for families of wounded and fallen soldiers.
May 19 - Community Center Board
Members Needed
Applications are now closed for the Fort Ritchie Community Center Board of Directors. The Fort Ritchie Community Center is a non-profit organization providing meeting, recreational, and educational facilities and services to the general public of Washington and Frederick counties, Maryland and Franklin and Adams counties, Pennsylvania. Service on the Board of Directors is voluntary and will require several hours participation each month. Submissions were due June 6th, 2008.
May 10 – Antietam Velo Club Bike Races
About 300 converged on Fort Ritchie, Saturday, May 10 for an amateur competitive bike race, which is presented by Antietam Velo Club (AVC) and sponsored by Corporate Office Properties Trust (COPT). The Fort Ritchie Classic Criterium challenged up to 75 riders at a time to complete multiple laps on a course which is approximately eight-tenths of a mile long. The course wound around the streets of Fort Ritchie, beginning and ending at Lakeside Drive.
Ten separate were held, starting at 9:15 a.m. and continuing until about 6:00 p.m. Antietam Velo Club is a non-profit corporation affiliated with USA Cycling (USAC), the governing body of competitive cycling in the United States. (Click to see race photos!)
May - Maryland Life Response
Click on the link above to read the letter Corporate Office Properties Trust and PenMar Development Corporation wrote in response to Maryland Life's April article that named the Camp Ritchie Historic District to Preservation Maryland's "Endangered Maryland" list. Published on Maryland Life's web site, see also a response from Preservation Maryland executive director, Tyler Gearhart, applauding the preservation efforts COPT and PenMar have demonstrated to date.
April 15 - Neighborhood Meeting
The quarterly Fort Ritchie residents meeting was held on April 15th.
March 17 - Hagerstown Community College
Classes slated to begin March 17 at HCC's new satellite campus at Fort Ritchie.
March 6 - COPT, PMDC respond to Maryland Life magazine article
"We are both puzzled and disappointed to find the Fort Ritchie Historic District in your March/April 2008 article’s list of 'Endangered Historic Sites.' Had both your magazine and the Endangered Maryland Committee done further research, you would not have missed the preservation efforts already underway at this beautiful site in Washington County, Maryland." (click for full letter)
February 5 - Microtech Solutions
New tenant, Microtech Solutions begins operations at Fort Ritchie on February 5th.
February 4 - Community Meeting
Over 200 residents, community leaders and government officials turned out to hear COPT representatives give a thorough update on the plans and progress at Fort Ritchie. The full 10-15 year plan was shown and discussed, from the Community Center now under construction, to the future office, residential and retail amenities. COPT also outlined their commitment to historic preservation on the site as well as environmentally-friendly "LEED" certified building practices for all new construction.
January 15 - Neighborhood Meeting
The next quarterly meeting held for residents of Fort Ritchie.
2007
November 29 - Final Land Transfer
Ownership transfer of final 91 acres to COPT completed.
October 18 - First Neighborhood Meeting
The COPT Property Management team held the first quarterly neighborhood meeting with residents of Fort Ritchie.
September 24 - Community Center Groundbreaking
Construction of the new, 20,000 square foot community center was kicked off by area dignitaries including Congressmen Bartlett and Shuster, Washington County Commissioner John Barr, as well as representatives from COPT and PMDC.
September - Indus Corporation
Fort Ritchie welcomes new tenant, Indus Corporation.
|
