After 18 years of diligent work, Wendy and Thomas Meredith are waiting to become Baltimore County's newest millionaires.
For more than a year they've waited. Now they're losing patience.
The Merediths own 18 buildings at the Villages of Tall Trees apartments in Essex. They, like dozens of other property owners at the faded World War II-era complex, have been negotiating sales agreements since April 1999 with county officials, who want to demolish the structures and replace them with a park.
The project is part of County Executive C. A. Dutch Ruppersberger's ambitious east-side revitalization plan. But the Merediths, other landlords and condominium owners at Tall Trees complain that their dealings with county officials have been replete with delays, unanswered telephone calls and attempts to wear down the property owners so they'll accept less for their properties.
These perceptions of trickery have further eroded some east-siders' confidence in government and led the property owners to take the county to court.
"We are in our fourth contract with the county and I am not clear when this will end," said Wendy Meredith. The county's offer of $2.7 million for their 142 units is fair, she said, but Meredith and her husband will incur added expenses through lost rent as tenants vacate apartments that cannot be re-rented before the deal becomes final.
Friends joke about the Merediths' looming financial windfall, but she notes that upgrading the buildings and tending to tenant needs for nearly two decades has been a huge commitment that has taken a human toll.
"Having apartments is a seven-day-a-week job with few vacations," she said. "When a unit opens up, I'll have 60 to 80 calls a day. We'll be happy when we can close this deal with the county, but I will be equally glad when the telephone stops ringing."
Shirley Murphy, chief of the county Bureau of Land Acquisition, said her department is moving forward with negotiations as quickly as possible. She rejected allegations that the county is drawing out the negotiations to frustrate owners and force them to lower their expectations.
"This is a very time-consuming process and we have four people in my office handling Tall Trees, myself included," Murphy said."
