County Adds Escrow Option to Permitting Services

ELKTON, MD. -- Contractors, businesses and many regular patrons to the County’s permitting office can now take advantage of an added service when completing their transactions — escrow accounts.

The new service, which will be available beginning April 23rd, is part of County Executive Alan McCarthy’s initiative to improve customer service. “Every new development in streamlining our citizen’s experiences with Cecil County Government and improving the process in which we work is the goal,” explained McCarthy. “We have quite a few builders and contractors coming in for permits on a regular basis. If allowing them to set up escrow accounts helps their businesses run more efficiently, then we want to make that happen.”

The process involves filling out a brief form and depositing funds into the account. Patrons can choose any denomination and can opt to close the account at any time. There is a 14 day waiting period to receive reimbursement checks on closed accounts.

“This is simply an added service for our customers. There’s no added fee. We’re not charging people to create or maintain the accounts. People have businesses to run. The goal is to lessen the transaction time so they can get back to doing what they need to do,” explained newly appointed Director of Finance, Lisa Saxton.

The accounting software used by the County was easily configured by Saxton to allow for escrow accounts to be easily maintained. “We’re not sure how many people will take advantage of it, but internally the functionality was simple so there’s no reason not to offer it,” she added.

A cashier’s window was recently installed in the permitting office and has received overwhelmingly positive feedback. “The installation of the cashier’s window was a major improvement. We’ve received many compliments from customers who are impressed with the simplicity of our permitting process, comparing it to the hassle and amount of time it takes in other neighboring counties and states,” said Eric Sennstrom, Director of Land Use and Development Services. “Offering the ability to establish escrow accounts is just another functionality of that improved service.”

To learn more, contact Constantina Lambrou at 410-996-8056 or clambrou@ccgov.org. Escrow applications can be found online at http://www.ccgov.org/government/finance.

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