February 16, 1995|By Adam Sachs | Adam Sachs,Sun Staff Writer
To make up for excluding those 370 acres, Rouse placed other properties totaling about 1,100 acres under the levy, including the 700-acre Dorsey Hall neighborhood. Those lands had not been included in Rouse's original plans for Columbia in the early 1960s.
"Our requirement was that we wouldn't leave CA in worse shape in its revenue stream," Mr. Scavo said. ". . .It's not our business to make tough deals with CA. CA's health from day one has been fundamental to Columbia's growth and the health of the community."
When General Electric abandoned its park in the 1980s, Rouse reacquired the land. It has redeveloped parts, including Snowden Square and Gateway office park. Rouse placed Gateway under the levy, but only in exchange for excluding a 700-acre undeveloped parcel at Route 216 and Interstate 95 near Scaggsville.
Mr. Scavo said the Rouse Co., in agreement in with CA officials, determines what properties will be subject to CA's levy, depending on proximity to established Columbia villages and CA's costs of providing services to the new areas. For example, the Scaggsville-area property is not contiguous with --- and is fairly isolated from -- Columbia, he said.
In land-sales agreements for Snowden Square, Rouse included a provision allowing it to place each of the shopping center's businesses, such as Hechinger and BJ's Wholesale Club, under CA's levy within five years, Mr. Scavo said.
The Snowden Square option gave Rouse more leverage in later asking CA to accept responsibility for serving new residential developments, such as the townhouses that are part of the RV park deal.
Rouse prefers to put such residential projects within Columbia's structure because it attracts buyers. But residential areas cost more to provide with services and generate less revenue than commercial projects, Mr. Scavo said, so CA needs incentives such as lien revenue from Snowden Square to accept them.
