Mayor Sydnor looks back on first year

By ALINE BEHAR KADO

Mayor Keith Sydnor strode to the front desk of the Laurel Municipal Center in early October, talking about his work, his hopes and his goals for the city. Then, with a smile, he looked over at the receptionist. “I used to ref her basketball team,” he said proudly.

In November 2023, Sydnor made history when he was elected as the city of Laurel’s first Black mayor. His election also marked the end of former Mayor Craig A. Moe’s 21 years in office. Moe chose not to run for reelection,

Sydnor, who has a background in law enforcement, served three terms as a city of  Laurel councilmember and was council president prior to running for mayor. His top priority is interacting with the community.

“As a leader, you want people who bring knowledge to you,” Sydnor said. “We want to have the input from the community, because we all have to work together to make our community a great place to live.”

During his campaign, Sydnor focused heavily on economic development, housing and the environment. A year into his term, he has launched several initiatives to address these issues. 

Syndor worked to establish the Laurel Thrive Small Business $10,000 Grant Program, which aims to attract new businesses to the city and incentivize small businesses to stay. The program helps  to cover staffing equipment and furnishing expenses. (The deadline for applying to the program was in September; the city is currently reviewing  applications.)

“Laurel was the first place that allowed me to have space for my business,” Shajira Brown, the owner of ABT Collective,

a soy wax candle business, said. The city helped Brown promote her shop and host classes through popups and local events, including one at The Mansion at Laurel. 

In late October, Mayor Sydnor announced the city’s First-Time Homebuyer Assistance Program. Sydnor allocated  $60,000 from the city’s fiscal year 2025 budget to provide $5,000 grants to 12 qualifying low-income, first-time homebuyers so they can  settle in city limits. 

“The city of Laurel is a city that’s very supportive of growth and looking at different avenues to grow,” Burrough said. “One thing I know about Laurel is [that] Laurel supports each other.” 

Sydnor introduced the Youth Apprenticeship Program earlier this year which supports after-school activities and the Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Council by training high school students in various job fields to prepare them for the workforce.

“I’m very excited about that program, because if we can do this inside the city of Laurel, just imagine(the)  other 27 municipalities throughout Prince George’s County,” Sydnor said. “They’ll start hiring kids, and then businesses will start hiring kids and they earn while they learn.”

Sydnor also works as a substitute teacher, a high school basketball and football official, and as a mentor with Prince George’s County Chapter of the nonprofit mentorship organization, 100 Black Men of America Inc. . These interactions allow him to see firsthand what children, youth and families need.

“Folks, they don’t see the work we do behind here, you know, but they see you in the community, and they want you in the community because they want to talk to elected officials,” Sydnor said. 

Sydnor is also collaborating with the Prince George’s County Crisis Mobile Team to help the city’s departments deal with mental illness incidents. 

Councilmemberwoman Kyla Clark supports Sydnor’s efforts. “I am appreciative of the progress we have made together fostering a stronger, safer community,”  she said. “As we move into the new year, I am hopeful for increased collaboration, allowing us to further strengthen our efforts, implement impactful initiatives, and achieve even greater outcomes for the people we serve.”

Sydnor aims to establish programs and partnerships to address the needs of underserved populations, including veterans and seniors. He is also interested in funding English language education for the city’s immigrant community. 

“We are only going to thrive when we have people engaging in the community,”  Sydnor said. “We only can be successful as a community, getting involved … so that’s why we have those coffee with the cops, town hall meetings and everything. We want to have the input from the community, because we all have to work together to make our community a great place to live.”