For Obama, Early Jump On the Maryland Trail

Iliff withdrew her proposal before the vote.

"I've seen that this whole conversation does tend to pit communities against each other," Iliff said. "I wanted to put something out there that I viewed as an alternative to a collision course. . . . If we tie up all of our money over the next five years in high schools, we're not going to have any other options."

The board passed the Capital Improvement Program, known as the CIP, by a vote of 5 to 3. Iliff, who voted against the program along with Rosalind Johnson (District 1) and Donna Hathaway Beck (At Large), said she will be back with a revised proposal.

"I think in its totality, people weren't ready to move forward with something so large," Iliff said after the meeting. "I think we have time between now and when it's funded for changes to be made. I think the CIP is never really set in stone."

Kids Urged to 'Keep it Green'

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County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D) joined Schools Superintendent John E. Deasy to announce an anti-litter campaign last week.

The two went to Suitland Elementary School last Thursday to announce the initiative targeted at children. They said they hope kids will encourage parents not to litter.

Children will receive plastic bags stamped "Keep it Clean, Keep it Green," and radio ads will run Monday through Oct. 12.

"The consensus is being built in the country today that we are destroying the land, and if we don't do something about it, we aren't going to have a world to give to the next generation," Johnson told a group at the elementary school, including about 30 third-graders.

Saturday will be the county's annual community cleanup day, when 1,100 volunteers will join to clean litter from roadways.