Councilman Todd Crandell joins Joe Gold of Key Brewing at Costas Inn on the Maryland Crab Cake Tour to discuss the issues around life, work and transportation for everyone in Sparrows Point and Dundalk affected by the collapse of the Key Bridge.
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
bridge, day, jobs, bethlem, place, port, happened, people, business, hope, told, part, looked, talking, response, steel, community, joe, morning, put
SPEAKERS
Joe Gold, Nestor J. Aparicio, Todd Crandell
Nestor J. Aparicio 00:00
Welcome home we are W n s t task Baltimore. Over positive we’re at the Costas in stablish. In 1971. I was established in 1968. But I haven’t eaten here. I had to think about this. My dad probably was in here but 7475 76 He would bring me shrimp home on Friday afternoon Sunday, Mr. Joe, would he get a ride home from point I got Maryland lottery scratch offs could win the big machine around the corner. They have the PAC man’s in there. I got 10 times the cashier. Joe gold was my guest. He is the general manager of Key Brewing and the journey I will take my beer he did. He took a positive mental attitude. What are you doing, man? You get my beer away.
Joe Gold 00:39
I wouldn’t touch it.
Nestor J. Aparicio 00:42
You know what, John Allen. I gave him a part in my 25th anniversary documentary. Greg Landry of Towson transfers and Blue Rock productions came to me a year ago talking about a documentary. I hit him back like February said, look, let’s get this thing out by April. I’ll dive in to a deep dive with you. And, and then it came to like, who was going to be the documentarian who’s going to be the narrator? Right? So I had to ask some friends. So Gina shock is one of our narrators. Ray Bachman, my longtime producer, Keith Brewer is the voice of God Mickey could show up. Yeah, Mickey’s done. Mickey was here visiting here with us last time we were here. So all these folks have come together to help me out. Bill Cole from coal roofing. But John Allen has been my oldest. I mean, I’ve known John since I was nine years old, right? So John and I grew up together. And I asked him to do it, because he’s got that soft voice. And I thought, you know, the sad parts of my life and would be great that John talked about when my wife got sick and things like that. So I asked John to do it. And I know he’s got professional recording, but you got a whole studio in his house, right? Drums, microphones, the singer, you know, and I asked him to do and I sent him over the script. And he doesn’t say anything to me. And two days later, I get it back. He’s like, it took me six hours. I’m like, dude, four minutes, these imperfections, man, you know, I gotta get it perfect. So I thought I was asking him for like, a quick favor. You know, something may take 20 minutes for him to do half an hour, maybe? Six hours later. He’s guilted my ass terrible, right? So like the fact that you gave him free beer. Thank you. Because I mean, I Oh, I you heard me when he left. Dinner. I owe you. I owe you because it took him six hours to do this reading for me. And I didn’t. I didn’t think I was good. But I didn’t think I was asking him for like a heavy lift. You know what I mean? I asked real hard to read it. 10 minutes later. I got my real hard it’s back. It’s professional. It’s this is what he does all day long. Chief Brewer cheat. You know, Keith from the from the Ravens. Yeah. Chief is is a professional voicemail. Like, he’s so good at it. I felt bad for not paying him for doing it. But I’ve known him forever. And I gave him a little bit to do. He turned around like he’s like, I’m really St. Patrick’s Day. I’m really busy. But I’ll get this done. Next day. I get it done. And it’s like God did it. He wasn’t born nasty yesterday. That’s good. Yeah. So the doc comes out in a couple of weeks. Hoping to add a raffle for the NFL Draft Joe goals here. Todd krandalls. Here to come up us wanting to come here. What do you want to chill out? Because I mean, suit. You want some of this? I got local businesses here. Good. Good. Dad said here. We’ll make room for you. They’re gonna pull the chair around. I told Todd to be here at 1230 He’s early. I got crabs who put that on for yourself there. I mean, so this is the part of Dundalk that I love when I did the show here at once I put the microphone off. He’s gonna get his choice. Do you want your phone to? I know one thing it’s not going to happen during this segment. Nobody’s going to call and say to keep rich got hit and fell. That already happened. That’s done. Which is the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. Todd and I have only been known each other till Joe because he thinks I know everybody in Bumble. I kind of do but you kind of come a little closer.
Todd Crandell 04:05
That’s fine. Come in tight. Yeah, sorry.
Nestor J. Aparicio 04:08
It was. I want you to be in the shop. That’s all
Todd Crandell 04:11
I had to get a caffeinated drink here because I want to share with you as a whole experience. You gotta keep up I
Nestor J. Aparicio 04:16
am if I lived in your district, I would wear your ass out because I know you. I wear you out when I’m in your district. Right just showing up here. How are you? And I’m gonna eat a little soup. And just so yeah, you guys know each other? Yes. We have met new real
Joe Gold 04:32
briefly each time because you’re
Nestor J. Aparicio 04:35
here from around here. He should have a shot at the bridge. No,
Todd Crandell 04:38
I haven’t. Yes. But he’s found God country sitting right here and
Nestor J. Aparicio 04:43
that’s a good thing. He knows what’s good. So God you’re gonna meet him, Costas.
Joe Gold 04:46
Um, you’re always so busy when I meet him at events and stuff like that. Even over the brewery for sure.
Todd Crandell 04:51
I have a blast on was there it was Friday when Key Brewing did the fundraiser General Manager here so that’s right. And Um, you’re like, what? A year in something like 10
Joe Gold 05:02
months yet? Yeah.
Todd Crandell 05:03
So let’s say you’re here. You guys did absolutely incredible job over there.
Nestor J. Aparicio 05:08
I know. There must have been 1000 people. At least it was it was more than that. I think it had the park it cost us a walk probably. Yeah.
Todd Crandell 05:15
And that’s great. Yeah, we’ve known each other for a long time. He’s dating back to junior high,
Nestor J. Aparicio 05:21
I think I think I’ve known you since 1980. Your dad and wrestling and absolutely a lot of my friends wrestle for the Hawks. I want to wrestle the buckeye. But yeah, yep.
Todd Crandell 05:30
And, you know, we’ve, we’ve stayed in touch. And you know, the what happened at tea brewing last Friday was just indicative of the strength of our community. It’s just new people that come into the area like he grilling, and various other businesses have joined businesses like the one we’re sitting in that become part of the fabric of the community. And he really has this embrace that. And I think embrace the blue collar hard working, proud people that we are. And I think that this community has certainly shown that there is strength here through adversity, absolutely. That we can we can rally with each other, we might disagree and fight tooth and nail and the alley neighborhood where you grew up. And you know, where you grew up Nestor, we could we could we could meet each other immediately meet each other’s neighbors in the alley and go at it. But when times get tough, we pull together. And we’ve always been able to do that. And I’m just really, I’m proud of our whole community for how they just rallied behind the families and rallied behind the port workers and, and really expressed a lot of sentiment for the Cambridge and I don’t think that we realized that it was such a huge part of our identity. Oh, I didn’t know it was gone. We could at least took it for granted. It was the bridge that we use, but it was part of our skyline.
Nestor J. Aparicio 06:56
It’s been 13 days, right? It’s been two weeks, right?
Todd Crandell 06:59
We’re, yeah, we could go two weeks ago today. For today. It’s
Joe Gold 07:03
been 14 days or seven days. Yeah.
Nestor J. Aparicio 07:05
And we’re, I mean, I was in Orlando, Florida. I was down there covering the Orioles and the NFL owners meeting. And I got a text at 550 in the morning from my web developer. And I thought Jed three texts at 555 in the morning, I wake up I got my blood. I looked down. Luke’s in the other bed. We’re rooming together on the road. I looked down and I got three texts from Jessica and I’m thinking well, website must have went down the middle of the night. Well, why would she be texting her husband zone in response to he’s one of the divers, you know, very involved. So he was down at three in the morning. So her texts came to me at 330 in the morning she sent me a headline from The Guardian UK. You mentioned Paris, Paris was that have tea brewing fan out about it. We talked about the last segment that Europe woke up earlier and started texting local people here backward because they knew about it. We were asleep. So I woke up at 535 540 in the morning. And I got three headlines at the key Bridgeville and this is Jessica telling me this is not an April Fool’s joke. She’s serious person, Jessica Harford designs McQueen. And I looked at as five and I’m like, remote control. I’m in the Marriott boom with TV on CNN boom. And there’s Johnny Yeah. Like, first thing I saw was Johnny. And I’m like, I’m in Orlando, the lights are off. I’m in his hotel room, and kids aren’t even up screaming at six in the morning. I’m looking at trying to process it. And I had to run Luke over to the NFC Championship NFC coaches breakfast. So he was getting ready. And I’d run them out the door and ran them over and I came back 10 minutes over the hotel came back probably was back by 730. And maybe seven o’clock at CNN store and I’m sitting there and I’m all alone in a hotel. 80 degrees out, and I can’t stop looking at it and I’m on a timeline. And I just started sobbing. Like I I lost it in a hotel room and I’m like, What is this? What is this emotion? You know, but where were you Tom was? I mean, this is you’re one of the guys that gets the bat phone right? Yeah, you get a bad girl. Yeah,
Todd Crandell 09:09
the phone was going off. First messages started rolling in about three in the morning.
Nestor J. Aparicio 09:17
So your phone’s got to be on right elected
Todd Crandell 09:19
yesterday. Yeah, that’s my that’s my alarm clock as well. Believe me
Nestor J. Aparicio 09:23
when Johnny Oh, standard error on national television at 545 in the morning. I knew your phones are on
Todd Crandell 09:27
man. Yeah. So yeah. So the message is rolling in and my thought was what the world’s going on by you know, that that hour of the morning. Like you flip on the news and saw it and made a couple of phone calls one to our local police precinct person 12
Nestor J. Aparicio 09:47
They were already waiting and
Todd Crandell 09:50
they’re awake and then and then to my staff and then I went down to the they were not awake, right? You’re waking people up. Staff was awake. So He headed straight to the Command Center, which was at the end of running Highway at the Maryland State Police building, and, or MDOT building. And I had seen the footage on the news and I had seen the pictures that the media was showing. And the command centers incited the bridge, it’s right at the foot of our side of the bridge. And to see that close up. And personally, I just went out to the point and just looked it over for a while and tried to take it all in was just surreal. It was this iconic piece of architecture that, as I said, I think what we took for granted is really part of our community’s identity. And we just stood out there by myself and just trying
Nestor J. Aparicio 10:53
to stand out. That’s how I feel about Yeah, I didn’t realize that until it was down. I was like that’s done Oxbridge. We claim everything. No, but we don’t claim Essex. I got nothing to do with that. Trust me. I claim. I don’t I don’t I’m not trying to get voted on over there. You are
Todd Crandell 11:11
part of my constituency. Yeah, so. And then just it was kind of surreal. And it was it was hard, emotionally to, to put it together. And we we knew at that point that the workers were probably gone. That was tough to take as well. And then to add to the surreal part of the day, I’m now in a briefing with the county executive, the mayor, the governor, to US senators, and to Congressman, the Comptroller, Maryland, and various other officials from from various other agencies. And that was this is I think, this is way bigger than this.
Nestor J. Aparicio 11:56
Well, you the President was going to be here in a week and the feds are going to be here and the Army Corps. I mean, I had Bill Cole on the morning after it happened. We were talking Army Corps engineer like right right away. They’re only you knew this was going to be a federal project. It
Todd Crandell 12:07
was. It was evident to me, just based on the personnel that was there that first day on Tuesday at the command center, there were at least 200 people there from various agencies, FBI, Homeland Security, transportation engineers, and US Department Transportation Secretary buta gag, who came in and booted Right, yeah. Never get his name. Right. Sorry. So just the the level of professionalism that I saw, and there were I didn’t see any interagency conflict. I didn’t see where people were stepping on each other’s toes. One gentleman when I walked in, was law enforcement from somewhere and knew me from somewhere and he said, you know, tada, I don’t really know what I’m doing. And then someone overheard that and said, Neither do any of us.
Nestor J. Aparicio 12:58
But there’s no playbook for this. There’s no handbook. Well, they
Todd Crandell 13:01
train and they train for a day that they hope never comes. And it was clear that they had trained for this. And then they were scrambling to put together the response team. And we were briefed throughout the day. And it was a very tough day, local businesses who are already coming out to provide food for the first responders. Like I said, there were 200 people there as a spur of the moment. And they were taken care of by members of our community. Just make sure they had enough food to keep them going. And different places offered up places for the divers to change clothes and get a warm cup of coffee, stuff like that. Just an amazing response.
Nestor J. Aparicio 13:46
When those first couple hours with the sun came up. I can’t you know, when you still feel like you could save a life that was not really realizing how many people were on the bridge. So the bridge went down. The first thing I saw cars were going across it. It’s miraculous. They shut those gates in that 30 seconds where
Joe Gold 14:02
the Mayday went out, you know more than me, but I mean, the fact
Todd Crandell 14:04
that two workers survived, right, that’s incredible. One swam to shore apparently. Yeah, that’s amazing. Incredible. You know, it? Yeah. I mean, the the response of the police to close the bridge once the Mayday went out, was is heroic. The attempts that divers made originally was heroic. We got the bad news later on that afternoon, that the structure was so unsafe, that divers could not get to where they thought that people might be still moving underwater. Sure. It was just a structurally unsafe, you move one piece and you could have 100 tons of
Joe Gold 14:49
Greek tragedy on top of the tragedy. So they were
Todd Crandell 14:53
they were taking every every precaution that they could and trying to recover.
Nestor J. Aparicio 14:59
You can’t even just That’s it that one just even even in bright sunlight
Todd Crandell 15:01
without weather anything. It’s the waters very Mercury murky and of course, you have the sediment that sure water just based on the collapse. So visibility was definitely difficult. I’ve talked to some some first responders that were out there and you know, they wanted to they wanted to be in the water as soon as they could. That was that was their mission is to rescue and recover.
Nestor J. Aparicio 15:29
Then it moved to they had a playbook for this.
Todd Crandell 15:32
Yeah, yeah, they have a playbook they do. And that’s in all that I saw was people working together, which was just refreshing.
Nestor J. Aparicio 15:42
Why people from all over the world which you may talk krandalls Here Joe go from keep rolling as well. We’re constantly and people reaching for me from everywhere. And I specifically remember my wife markets. Rat Jean, who I love reached me because you’ve been talking before, and she has a golden I’m like, you know, we stick together. Like day one. I’m like, we stick together. That’s why I came down here and drank on Wednesday night had dinner with my wife the first day. We planned on going somewhere else for dinner. I’m like, Yeah, we gotta go. Gotta get it figured out. You know, and I still haven’t looked. I’m a coward about it. I’m not a coward. I I couldn’t see it. The first time I look for the second time. I was on my phone. I was driving around the city. And I came through the tunnel and I just kept going. And I realized just no tollbooth anymore, right. So just keep going. I don’t live downtown anymore. I don’t take the tunnel as much as I used to. I’m on the Towson side. I’ll take the top side of the beltway going to BWI. But I didn’t look up. And I realized, like when I got to the split at eight and I get to like Moravia, I’m like, Oh, I didn’t look. I didn’t look left. I’m probably going to see it for the first time today. Because I’m going back after you are going where I would always see it as like Walmart NorthPoint Boulevard, Colgate down Merritt Boulevard, you would just see it rise above the horizon. Because you’re you’re high up if
Todd Crandell 17:00
I remember, just as a kid just being in the building, the bridge was built in 77. So that makes us but
Nestor J. Aparicio 17:08
I was 69 years old.
Todd Crandell 17:11
I was nine. When you were nine. I was eight I think and build again. Remember? If you remember, as a kid, you could see it clearly from the top of Eighth Avenue. Oh,
Nestor J. Aparicio 17:22
yeah. It was just frustrating. Gene shops neighbor.
Todd Crandell 17:28
Yeah, Gina was used to live right off in between Germany and Spain. Absolutely. It’s your family place, right. And you could be at the top of that hill and see it or various other viewpoints around the community where you can see the bridge and it was just as I said, it’s part of our, our skyline. So I did have a few people share with me and I, I’ve done this too. Like, I’ll just pop over the bridge, go to Glenburnie
Nestor J. Aparicio 17:57
I want to go to Dick’s Sporting Goods. Oh, I mean, Joe brought the map here. You know when you see the map on Google Maps, it’s an it’s a bridge.
Todd Crandell 18:03
I saw that. Yeah, I saw that post somewhere personal things.
Nestor J. Aparicio 18:07
I mean, there’s so many thoughts in the early first thing is survivors death, destruction, terrorism that pops in and like because the terrorism part I started getting a whack job. No offense on the on the political front. With the whack job. People were hitting me. In Orlando, I’m at the airport. And a friend sent me Lara Logan text about terrorism analyst says three, four hours later, these people have no clue about any. I don’t mean to retweet this crap. No, I’m not doing that. But immediately in the first hour before it became a meme or whatever, I thought of all the times we’ve had orange alerts, we’ve had serious federal alerts, the tunnels have always been targets, right? Like that. If you damage the tunnel, you would damage the port, you would damage the country, right? So so when it went down, I thought to myself, it would be a very credible way to hurt our economy, a very credible way to hurt the poor, right to hurt industry in our country. So that was always a target. So the minute it happened, my firt you know, I’ve tried to get my equilibrium. Like, how the hell does a bridge here? Like you know, I mean, most people the first time they saw I thought it was fake. It looked like an AI generated craziness.
Todd Crandell 19:26
It just fell too easily like dominoes. So all of
Nestor J. Aparicio 19:30
this for me with the the immediate death I’m solving I’m in the hotel, then I started to think about oh my god, the port shot right. So in the transportation, then I thought the bridge is gone. It’s not coming back. How are people going to get from point A to point B? And then I thought about people like Utah and people on this peninsula Johnny Oh, lives down here. All my business friends down here, that the trapped part of what would it look like without that road? But then I thought About tree point that my dad working at the point and how how hard Jim Smith Kevin cam and it’s Johnny Oh every elected everybody that’s out here every minute Arctic deposit everybody that came before you stone all I know all these names but you know voted for against all these people so Democrats in their Crandall I’ll give you as well but good people good Democrats that’s fine but in all sincerity how hard we all had to work to get industry back down to get employment back yeah hope that jobs back right that’s what had me crying
Todd Crandell 20:43
no it has been a long road and as part of the the adversity that you and I have talked about before
Nestor J. Aparicio 20:50
on your fish giant road we have back here that nobody used because all the industry one you know, like all it was built with 100,000 people to be working
Todd Crandell 20:58
last night we lost their job base Bethlem steel, GM gone. And we fought through that adversity, adversity and we basically hit rock bottom. The jobs were gone, property values are falling, homeownership was down. And Tradepoint has been a huge spark for the economy. locally and regionally. There’s about
Nestor J. Aparicio 21:22
keep up the side, we’re gonna make it a place to just pull out Chinese I get the polar Chinese guys right there come down today because they give me for their grand opening of their business happening down. Absolutely.
Todd Crandell 21:34
There’s a lot of exciting things happening. And Tradepoint I think we’re a spark because it showed the global business community, and especially the regional business community that we were right for investment. And this is a good place to come. And there’s a port well, and there’s a port and with respect to the port Tradepoint was the only accessible port operation once the bridge fell down outside the bridge, so trade points, right, exactly. So they’re more at the end of the Capstone, you don’t have to go under the bridge in order to reach their port facility. They certainly don’t have the infrastructure that that Siegert and Dundalk the roll on. So they’re doing roll on roll off. And they’ve been able to, and they also do commodities like chicken feed coal, things like that on the old heavy work gear that was part of the shipyard back when we were
Nestor J. Aparicio 22:29
I love them by smart people. They got the answers.
Todd Crandell 22:33
They were smart. They were, they were able to make it, they were able to work out partnership with the court to at least accept some of the commodities and vehicles that are coming in to a point that was geographically suited to do that. Tradepoint also has a plan to develop a container port on their property at the old coke point, which has been a subject of sort of environmental controversy and controversy for years. But they’re going through their due diligence, due diligence right now to create a container for not to compete with the Port of Baltimore, but essentially to make the Port of Baltimore even bigger and better than it was so we can accept more more goods and they’re going to be there in partnership with the largest shipping company in the world with MSC to create that container. So that is going to bring another 1500 jobs, longshoreman jobs that that’s a probably a conservative estimate plus the other jobs that go along with it.
Nestor J. Aparicio 23:44
How many folks are employed
Todd Crandell 23:46
that are right now? About 15,000?
Nestor J. Aparicio 23:48
So how many, how many 11 years ago was zero, your is your
Todd Crandell 23:53
revenue is zero. There are about 15,000 people and a variety of jobs. The logistics jobs like Amazon, Amazon UnderArmour McCormick, they’re down there, but Purdue is down there with chicken feed coming in. There’s a company called Gotham greens there that’s growing hydroponic lettuce, and I think some other vegetables for distribution to restaurants. So they’re employing botanists, and people that are schooled in agriculture. There’s a water bottling plant down there. So there’s a variety of different jobs and if wind energy becomes viable, and the offshore wind project that is proposed for automation city Tradepoint has the opportunity to be the hub of the wind industry for the whole east coast, which means welding jobs, manufacturing jobs, there’s even talk of fabricating steel at that
Nestor J. Aparicio 24:52
site. Would that be something which is bring it back again? Yeah, exactly.
Joe Gold 24:56
So I mean, thought ahead, not to get into No, I want you to just So when the bridge was built in 7072 77, I believe Bethlem steel was supplying steel.
Todd Crandell 25:07
So I’ve asked that question Bethlem steel was taking steel
Nestor J. Aparicio 25:12
smelter that bridge get built without Bethlem steel steel? Well,
Todd Crandell 25:16
Bethlehem at this very point facility, I was just talking with someone that was down and that’s his father worked there and my father were working. They didn’t do structural steel at Sparrows Point. So structural steel could have very well been made by Bethlehem Steel, but probably in one of their other plans out they made a different kind of steel they did. So it is it is possible. There is some some steel plate that was part of that bridge construction that could very well come out of spares point. You know, Bethlem steel is as a corporation is no longer around. So there’s records maybe somewhere so we’re not sure
Nestor J. Aparicio 25:55
my mom got the pension till five years ago, so I know all about how they’re not around, you know, yeah, I remember that little logo on the paychecks when I was little boy, you know, every every thing everyone my mouth, you came from Bethlem steel, right? Like literally. I mean, that was that was it.
Todd Crandell 26:09
So it is conceivable, but
Joe Gold 26:14
it’s thought of as there was a gentleman at our fundraiser who did work on it. And he was one of the workers and he said some of the steel came from that density.
Nestor J. Aparicio 26:24
Hey, tell me about your party down there because you do that big party two Fridays ago keep doing what 1000 People were to help them a park. I mean, like, I mean, it was it literally overwhelming. Was it the biggest crowd you’ve ever seen in your place? Because you thought some power show?
Joe Gold 26:38
Yeah, it was one of the biggest events. We have the hosted people, you get lucky you have a sizable parking lot on the front of the building. And then we have a satellite parking lot on the side. And then grays road is open to the public. So we parked them in our satellite parking lot as much as we could. The back parking lot was where the crowd was and food trucks and stuff and we sold and then we have people the business next to us wellness, their parking, then we have people on the roof. And I was never up this floor. But I had confirmed reports that people parked at least a mile away from us on Grey’s road. And that’s
Nestor J. Aparicio 27:13
how bad they wanted to support the cause at Juilliard. So we always people were really this makes me proud of being from Dundalk. I mean, I’m proud every day everybody knows me knows that. And we kid around about politics and this and that and we can go back and forth. But when when something like this happens, you know, everybody
Joe Gold 27:30
wants an easy thing as we call it. An auction together. We had the bands played for free. We donated our time in our facility we sold beer certainly gave because there was a member of T shirt made sales went on. And so right now we’re just probably $31,000 raised in that one event, which is pretty damn good for a little while.
Nestor J. Aparicio 27:51
We got spring and so we’re gonna good good weather chokeholds over Key Brewing, I would hold up the key positive mental athlete, but John Allen stole my beer. So you know, bring friends at Dundalk. You need beer laying around you know it’s gonna disappear. Now Ty Crandall of course a councilman we’re in the seventh district right I had to look at the numbers confused I had Zach Blanchard on running for city council mo okay 11 i The numbers all you know mixed together so seven told me about your district cuz I I’m in Dundalk, I’m at Dundalk guy I don’t just poop on SSI people at the taps go all of them. So and you know, so I but I know you do serve sex and I want to point that out. So
Todd Crandell 28:34
yeah, the Southern District in Baltimore County is the southeastern part of the horseshoe of Baltimore County that brings brings Baltimore City so I represent Dundalk, Essex. Sparrows Point Edgemere. Ford Howard. Little bit of Rosedale. Okay. It’s about 130,000 people in the district that I’m fortunate to represent. The best district in Baltimore County now okay with the other members,
Nestor J. Aparicio 29:04
that’s it? Well, we
Todd Crandell 29:05
just simply, that’s not the I’m not trying to win votes or anything, but we are we are a passionate passionate people. And, and sometimes it takes an event like this, to bring us together and remind us how special a place that we actually have. And you know, people people in the seventh district or salt in New York people, some of them might be millionaires, some of them are just scraping life scraping scraping by but they’re all salted the Earth. They’re all coming from the same standpoint that I care about my community. I care about my little neighborhood. And if somebody’s in need, we help Well, that’s what we do.
Joe Gold 29:49
We saw that the keeper sure for sure. Well,
Nestor J. Aparicio 29:51
it’s good to have you guys. I want to go watch the ballgame. You gotta get to the Ortles play, you know, by leaving anything out here we got elections coming up. We got things happening, but Like we had the legislature breaking apart on Monday we got the Orioles under new ownership, you know, which I know you’re at the bad news sports guy. So
Todd Crandell 30:08
I am very, very happy about that just had my fantasy baseball draft.
Nestor J. Aparicio 30:13
You gotta Tane now,
Todd Crandell 30:16
American League only America. So I got some cold and Couser hoping that I’m not hoping for an injury that I’m hoping to find some time in the lineup and Dean Kramer I lay there my big, big Orioles couldn’t get gone or couldn’t get athletes
Nestor J. Aparicio 30:31
cost too much cost too much. You sound like Rubenstein? That’s you, Sam. Well, again,
Todd Crandell 30:37
I go there from just for political perspective. Every not once has it been mentioned in political response to this tragedy, that about party, and I hope it doesn’t get there on a national level, thinks that Congress needs to do
Nestor J. Aparicio 30:56
other stuff with Western brands to deal with racism. That is
Todd Crandell 31:01
that has no place and I’m part of it. I mean, party has no place in this. And you know,
Nestor J. Aparicio 31:10
it wasn’t a Democratic or Republican bridge. It was
Todd Crandell 31:13
not the people affected. The people affected are largely not political. Anyway. So they
Nestor J. Aparicio 31:19
just want to get to work and get their job. Well, exactly. He wants to get his craps in the airport. And that time here. No,
Todd Crandell 31:24
it’s never been mentioned in the two weeks that I’ve been involved. That party makes any it’s not it’s not even part of the
Nestor J. Aparicio 31:33
conversation. Like I didn’t noise you for 30 minutes, and you’re Republican that shows I’m I’m a centrist here, you know, I’m reaching across the aisle. I’m reaching across the aisle here.
Todd Crandell 31:42
That’s a conversation for another day. But yeah, I mean, it, you know, there, you’re elected to do a job. And this is a time when there’s no room for partisanship, and there hasn’t been any of that. But I do want to let your viewers and listeners know, if you’re a Baltimore County resident, or even if you’re not Balmer counties have a webpage up on the county website. If you go to Baltimore County md.gov. Right on the top is a link to I think it’s called FSK resources, and any business that has been impacted by this. If you know the families, if you know, some of the first responders, there’s a mental health emergency line on there 988 For people that might need some help getting through this. But there’s a ton of different resources from the Small Business Administration site that was set up in Dundalk to help businesses
Nestor J. Aparicio 32:46
to theirs. It is amazing how quick all it was 14 days into this. And we’re talking about it like we attacked in every way we could, other than rebuilding the bridge in five minutes, which isn’t gonna happen, right? But we’re dredging, we’re trying to get the port open. It just feels like if Don Mohler were here right now. He would, he would be proud of all the good elements of Don’s a believer in government and the power of government to do well. And that’s his thought from being a principal all the way through. It’s like, sometimes government fails us, right? We can all point that out. I’ll be pissed off about things and you know, politicians have their own place right next to sports radio show hosts, sports owners and used car salesmen, that sort of thing. But when it works, and when we all see it, when I put a tweet up the morning of opening day about Westmore, it, you know, and I got boxed out of Weston’s press conference. I’m a little pissed. I don’t like that. I don’t like that at all. Not even a little bit. I don’t laugh about it either. This is me off like for real. But he and Brandon had that picture of them hugging us it may have you seen these guys? Today on opening day tell them we’re doing a good job because like, this was hard. This was something that nobody could ever predict. You know, Martin O’Malley always tells a story about being down at the Gannett Crisfield at their little clambake when when a train caught on fire on the tunnel. And he had been the mayor of he told me store in the arrogance. It’s a funny story, but it’s not funny at all. He’s the governor of the state. He had been the mayor of Baltimore and didn’t know that there was a ton of legitimacy. Like even as the man he didn’t know it. So like when these emergencies these crazy things that you talk about all these cities on fire, you know, Freddie Gray trains on bridge falling? No, we didn’t have that on the dance card. And nobody’s ready for that at three o’clock in the morning. Not the councilman, not the county executive, not diver nobody’s ready for that. But two weeks after this. You know, I give us high marks for the way we’ve come to the end. Just what you’ve done in your life, what everybody’s done.
Todd Crandell 34:53
I think the response from from all involved has been outstanding, really good and But no, we did not plan for it, which is obvious. But resources we put together quickly in response was almost right away. And I think that the response is still evolving. There are things that may have not been considered yet. In terms of traffic patterns, we’ve heard the rebuilding the bridge, getting the port open. What does that
Nestor J. Aparicio 35:24
mean? It’s felt sensible to me the first two weeks, given the circumstances, yeah, it’s felt like the response has been as been what as a citizen I would want. Now how this comes together the next six months, a year, three years, I saw the first lady opening data not see West, but I saw her and she’s talking to me, I’m Dundalk. I’m like, man, it’s gonna take you know, five, six years, she’s the better nine. Yeah, that’s what she said to me better not take five or six yet, but I like to hear that from Wes Moore’s wife. I do. I
Todd Crandell 35:51
would, I would hope that given modern technology and modern construction techniques that we could, we could move a lot faster. I’d love
Nestor J. Aparicio 36:03
to be wowed by wouldn’t be under you what is now not involved
Joe Gold 36:06
here. Well, I want to share a story with you guys real quick, just an image image of the bridge, you’re a bit younger. So in bicentennial year, became 76. The bridge was fully constructed, boarded open. Yep, it was fully constructed. And the city had a fireworks display on Fourth of July morning, and they let people sleep in Fort McHenry. So I spent the night at Fort McHenry the night before to see the dawn’s early light firework guides. And the amazing part was I had no clue. I wasn’t looking for the bridge, but the sun comes up. And it’s under the bridge. And then the fireworks went off. And I mean, I was like, That image is seared in my head down the bridge is calling. It was it was it was a memory before. But now you never thought about never never. But then until that kind of like oh my god. The sun came up the bridge was there and then fireworks went off. That’s the thing of freaks me
Nestor J. Aparicio 37:01
out is how many places you could see it from him from where I live and work and play my whole life. And that’s all I can think of because I haven’t seen it yet. I’ve said this I said it 10 times. I haven’t seen it yet. But in my mind how many places that I see the top of that bridge in Dundalk. You’re driving down Barrett Boulevard taking my mother to IHOP like literally you look over above miracle Americans, you know, Peninsula highway, and you just see it, it’s there. It’s always there. So
Joe Gold 37:31
you’ve been on site. It’s good. So I’m from Baltimore, that native. So I went to Fort homestead the first day because of having closed yet because I’m from that Saturday. So I wanted to see what it looked like for for Armstead now that Ford is closed right now because it’s a staging site. And then it Tradepoint Atlantic coming to work one day, I wonder what to look at it from that side. Just I wanted to see the perspectives of something that I grew up with like you guys, the thing
Nestor J. Aparicio 37:56
is flipped me. I’m in Orlando, and I got these wackos telling me terrorism and waiting on a plane. I got on a plane three hours or we got home way early that night. My wife had a cheat sheet. Because I got on earlier nonstop. I was on this connection with Lou, jump on a plane. And as I’m sitting on the plane, like it’s five o’clock on that Tuesday, I was supposed to fly home to like eight o’clock or five o’clock. I’m on a plane I looked at Dan Rogers put up a picture that someone had flown that morning of it. And when I saw the sky, it was from the Dundalk side. It was clearly a plane that was coming this way to land the way they would always go right up on the right. And they would land from the east toward the west right land going where the Key Bridge would be on your right and see this goes up to seven right. Land over port Smallwood road literally going in that way. My plane didn’t go that way. But I got on the plane and I looked at this picture. And I thought, and I’m an hour and a half away from flying over that I can. I’ve been in the room crying. I’m gonna be a mess. Like, I’m gonna be a man. Everybody was blown a photo. Like, are you okay? Are you okay? Are you okay? And I’m like, I’m in Florida worried about me. We’re both people that were there. But I guess that puts my iconic Baltimore thing that anything that happens in Baltimore, if you know me, most have happened to me. My wife, she’s, she’s in New Hampshire licensed but she’s like, I probably know them. Yeah, right. Right. Right. It’s like don’t
Joe Gold 39:24
take it personal. If it’s happened to Baltimore, you take it.
Nestor J. Aparicio 39:26
You talk about that fireworks thing, but I’m here on the back of my neck stood up about that. Because my wife she’s flying back tonight. She went up for the eclipse on her own. She went up to the Canadian border, and she completely locked down. She got the wide open sky, no one anywhere. Like I saw she stayed in a little bed and breakfast that like in a cornfield in the middle and she’s three miles from the Kenyan border. She has picked she called me like, like she’s like, was the most emotional, crazy thing. I’ve ever seen in my life and I feel awful because I wanted to go, I didn’t go I almost got the car and drove to Rochester. She told me these moments you don’t forget something. You see. Our eyes are powerful man. You know, once you see it, you cannot see it. You can’t not see it. No, that’s probably the hardest part of the bridge. So it’s getting back up quick. All right. Todd Crandall, he is elected on the other side of the fence. We get along just famously, after 40 years, what’s going on, give me a little Dundalk update. Because before I throw you out here, because there are other things going on, if I would have had you on the day before the bridge collapse, you would have had things that tell me that are about Dundalk what’s going on at the plant at the combine to smell it. So I got to ask him. I said that to the end of the year you’ve been doing, you’re on the front end of being grouchy about that.
Todd Crandell 40:43
So I’m a little less grouchy, okay? The plant has been in compliance to my knowledge, they’ve been in compliance with the effluent that the plants were putting out. It was a battle for a while and you and I talked about it on the show where we weren’t, we weren’t getting great response. And the plant was mismanaged to the point where it was beyond fixing. I
Nestor J. Aparicio 41:11
had I have a childhood friend, one of my best friends in the world like that. I’ve known him since I was three years old. He and I were drinking together and Dundalk. You can imagine I know, you know. Imagine not at your place because we get trapped. You’ll appreciate this. I was at the Heritage trip. We got we got trapped a year and a half ago. So it’s almost two summers ago. And we kind of reunited anyway, I’m gonna be your edge. It’s gonna rain. Oh, shit. Let’s get we went above the airport in the old airport. Right? I went because bro Hart was throwing a party over there
Todd Crandell 41:44
that night. Mike in a party. Nobody is
Nestor J. Aparicio 41:47
Mike’s part. By the way. Mike is one of the narrators of my 25th anniversary document. So I’m gonna give Mike some love. Love you Mike Dillard, Gina shock. John Allen. Chief Brewer, Ray Bachman. Mickey. Coachella. They’re the Narrows. So I want to give some thanks. But But I was with my buddy, who worked at the plant is whole life. It’s the only job you ever had. You grew up together and Colgate he took a job there when he was friggin 90. Like literally he was a kid. And he worked there all these 30 workers. And he told me sat with me that night drinking beer and telling me how effed up it was. He’s like, it’s so he said, they brought people in that don’t know what they’re doing. And it’s too important a job and not know what they’re doing. And that like he’s like, it drove him crazy at the end of his turn there that things weren’t being done. And he literally told me about that. And it kind of scares me He scares the poop out of me.
Todd Crandell 42:39
No, he wasn’t he wasn’t wrong. It was. It was so bad that the holding tanks that needed to be regular maintenance had trees growing out. It was unbelievable. You could just tell that the place had not been taken care of. There were I think either going back a little bit away. I think it’s nine or nine sort of filtration things. I’m not a
Nestor J. Aparicio 43:09
financial oversight issue. What as a government, we have to pay to get clean water man talk about Liberty pure oil, like clean water and sewage is huge
Todd Crandell 43:18
budget was never the problem. It was complacency. It was lack of regulatory oversight. From Baltimore City. It was an I think your friend probably hit the nail on the head. They’d had people in jobs have responsibility. They didn’t know what they were doing. And it was pretty obvious that when you have nine filtration units, and only two are operable, that’s not if you’re a pizza
Nestor J. Aparicio 43:48
shop and you have nine pizza ovens and only two are cooking game you may compete. Right. So like, yeah, really a business.
Todd Crandell 43:54
So that’s not a serious thing. The plan has, has been in compliance and all the appropriate
Nestor J. Aparicio 44:02
online things are running now. They are okay. I don’t
Todd Crandell 44:05
know freezing nine or 11. But yeah, so the other the other things going on that folks should be aware of is the Midge fly, which I never knew about until I got elected is a nuisance fly on back River and the county and the state got together after some years of political wrangling to treat those the minutes fly. They swarm and they are a huge nuisance and people aren’t able to like just even hang out in their backyards or their their boats on back river. So the county with state cooperation is it was applying larvicide that only affects the midst why it’s not poison science naturally occurring substance. So if folks around back River as such STAND UP side both sides see or Ellicott After flying around and dropping things in the river, that’s that treatment. So that’s a, that was another sort of, there is a lot of political wrangling between previous administrations on the state and local level. And we were finally able to get that worked out. And we’re seeing that nuisance by population dropped drastically in the area, which is good for the businesses because the residents.
Nestor J. Aparicio 45:26
So while I’m stepping on those other ones that are eating the trees, that pretty redwoods, my wife’s out. Yeah. Yeah, that well, yeah. They’re pretty step on. Yeah,
Todd Crandell 45:37
exactly, exactly. And Tradepoint keeps, keeps coming along, and just met with gentleman this morning, who is looking to invest in the area and is looking for opportunities to invest in residential residential development. So that is something that we’ve been focused on for the last decade is reinvigorating our older housing stock,
Nestor J. Aparicio 46:04
that it’s a good place to live. Your son lives here. That’s a good place to put it. So yeah, so we’ll get that we turn to continue to, might
Todd Crandell 46:13
be, there might be some disputes on how it turned out.
Nestor J. Aparicio 46:16
But, you know, different but the same,
Todd Crandell 46:18
we’re still a community. We have challenges. There’s no question. As one of the older parts of Baltimore County, we have some, both public and privately owned areas that are in need of some TLC and need of some some, some investment. So we’re not we’re not done yet. We have a ways to go. But the job base has been created. We are on the map in terms of being a viable place to invest where investors can come in and do right by the community and make a profit all at the same time. And that hasn’t always been the case in the last couple of decades. So I’m still I’m definitely bullish on the future of our district. We are we’re we’re kind of back on the map. We’re not
Nestor J. Aparicio 47:14
ignored. I mean, I would say the well that’s something to say because I
Todd Crandell 47:17
mean always been ignored. But yeah, we’re not ignored any longer people are paying attention to
Nestor J. Aparicio 47:21
all the tragedy brewing. It’s been this tragedy also. I mean, I’ve seen you in the news a Key Brewing. I’ve tried to keep Costas in the light I saw with teachers doing I invited again Johnny or Westworld. I think all the electeds and different people will be down here to shine a light on it and I hope that that brings key more I hope I hope it invigorates this area so whenever that bridge goes back up 10 minutes from now five years from now whenever they somewhere between 10 minutes and five years now when that bridge goes back up that you find this to be a healthier area. And the things you talked about with giving getting governmental help if you need it down here to keep these businesses thriving data because we I know what it looks like when it went dead down.
Todd Crandell 48:02
We don’t write we do we hit rock bottom. You know the coolest thing he really does. Every piece of their swag and every candy put out has the word Dundalk says Dundalk, Maryland,
Nestor J. Aparicio 48:14
which is pretty positive mental attitude shirt. It says Done. Joe gold is here at somebody how long you’re open and what’s your opening? everywhere. I mean, I bought it over a drug sitting like it’s
Joe Gold 48:26
expensive for the tap rooms open Thursday and if Sundays we have live music every Saturday. Yeah, come on by and take a visit. We’re beautiful, beautiful oasis. At the end of the long road nexuscrowd can come and you can crabs here on the way over and away out to eat them in their place. Kenya. I’ve done it. He gives him a dozen crabs and go back to the brewery and even drink the beer.
Nestor J. Aparicio 48:47
Does. Where else you doing it? They do it and Glen Burnie I’ll tell you that right now.
Joe Gold 48:51
We have done to Colleen Costas
Nestor J. Aparicio 48:55
I’m a positive mental attitude. Well, I guess I’m more about pills. John Allen stealing my beer hope he’s enjoying it. Ty Crandall he’s here from the 70s He’s our Councilman on this side of town and trying to keep the Cambridge situation in the light for people because it has been two weeks letting people know come out support local businesses like Joe and a good folks over your keep brewing as well as anybody else. And if you need some insight on where to get a good snowball and a peninsula or something I’m good I know my way around down here. I haven’t been I haven’t studied edge mirrors much lately but but Todd will give you some information on that. All right, we appreciate you thanks for coming out and that’s Joe appreciate you as well. positive mental attitude. I am here on behalf of the mayor of the lottery are friends at Liberty pure solutions as well as Jiffy Lube MultiCare I had to 10 times to scratch off Oreos gained on here how about the news?
Joe Gold 49:49
One error we sweep that just have no
Nestor J. Aparicio 49:54
I’ve been talking a lot about that. I’ve been saying you got Colton cows are on his on his so it was rotisserie taxpayer I am Nestor we are wn st am 1570 We are a Costas in come down and get a bolo by the way it’s a pretty good segment polish off a whole cup of Maryland crab soup here back for more on wn st stay with us
