Council Hears Testimony for Rezoning, Approves Workforce Housing and Overturns Vote on Park

More than 60 residents from Districts 2, 3 and 5 lined up to speak out on their round of comprehensive rezoning Monday night at the Anne Arundel County Council meeting in Annapolis.

Once every 10 years, the county undertakes the process of combing through each district to address areas of the zoning maps that need to be updated. These updates can come from public solicitations or directly from the planning and zoning office. Either way, all the requests eventually land in the lap of councilmen.

Up to bat this round were areas of the county including Severna Park, Broadneck and Glen Burnie. Most people came either advocating or opposing commercial upzoning. The proposed changes could open the doors to a new senior community, a potential Lowe’s hardware store, and .

Also at stake were several auto repair shops scattered across Arnold that wanted closure to 10 years of non-conforming zoning for their businesses. Several of these properties were zoned C3, but operate at a C4 level under an agreement with the county as a non-conforming use. But that agreement creates difficulties for owners, both with paperwork and the bank, said Jack Bell, owner of Dorsey Transmission. Bell and several others wanted once and for all to get C4 zoning on their businesses.

A list of 65 residents signed up to testify on their affected properties, and more showed up after that list was exhausted.

District 2 Councilman John Grasso, District 3 Councilman Derek Fink and District 5 Council Chairman Dick Ladd stoically listened to the more than three hours of testimony, but gave few replies.

The first round of the public hearing concluded late Monday, and a second round is scheduled for the council’s next meeting at 7 p.m. on Oct. 17. A final vote on the measure is not expected until November.

For a complete list of all comprehensive rezoning requests in this round, visit the council's website.

Workforce Housing Guidelines Approved

Developers were given a road map with incentives for building more affordable housing units in the county under new legislation approved Monday.

The county passed the final hurdle on a landmark policy that sets guidelines and incentives for developers interested in building workforce housing units.

The term "workforce housing" is used in the planning world to describe multifamily homes and rental units that are designed to be affordable to those with salaries in the range of police officers, firemen, teachers and nurses.

The legislation sponsored by District 1 Councilman Daryl Jones passed by a 6-1 vote with District 7 Councilman Jerry Walker dissenting.

Under Jones' legislation, builders who agreed to construct workforce housing units would receive incentives in the form of a so-called density bonuses, allowing them to build the land up to R-22 (multifamily residential) standards, potentially making it a much more profitable property.

Alan Friedman, of the county's office of government relations, had been critical of Jones' bill until Monday night, when he finally signed off on it. Friedman said the of discussion had “strengthened the bill.”

Chairman Overturns Prior Vote on Potential Park Property

At the outset of the meeting, Chairman Dick Ladd turned the tables on a vote taken during the council’s last session by amending his stance. District 4 Councilman James Benoit made a motion last month that would express to the State Highway Administration (SHA) that they were interested in property on Highway 32 in Gambrills for a park. The motion failed by a 3-4 vote.

But Ladd explained on Monday that he didn’t fully understand what Benoit’s resolution was all about. He changed his vote, saying that he wanted to keep all options on the table for the property. His change shifted the resolution from a 3-4 failure to a successful 4-3.

Still, the shift only amounts to a slight change in stance for the future of the property. It’s still in the SHA's control for now. Benoit’s motion merely “endorsed the transfer” of it to the county.

Benoit said after the meeting that he has high hopes for the land.

“It allows the conversation to continue on what to do with that property. It’s a great opportunity for the county,” Benoit said.

Ladd said he had no intention of trampling Benoit’s dreams of securing a park for the county. He said he was just confused about the wording of last month’s motion on the issue.

“I firmly believe in his right to find a place for a park in this county,” Ladd said.