A Baltimore County Circuit Court judge said Thursday that he will issue a written ruling on a request to halt the construction of a new elementary school in Towson.
Judge Michael Finifter made the decision after listening to arguments from attorneys for the county Board of Education and a group of Towson residents who filed the motion for a preliminary injunction along with a lawsuit against the board. It is unclear when Finifter will release his judgment, but he generally does so within two to four weeks, according to his law clerk.
The plaintiffs, whose properties are near the site next to Ridge Ruxton School on North Charles Street, contend that the board failed to comply with laws and policies in its decision to build West Towson Elementary. The board also did not give the community prior notice about that decision, they have said, while they also expressed concerns about diminished property values.
"The facts here demonstrate an extraordinary abuse of the discretionary power of the Board of Education," Margaret Fonshell Ward, the plaintiffs' attorney, said during the hearing. The courtroom was packed with Towson-area parents and residents on both sides of the issue, and a few children.
Ward described what the residents would face during months of construction, including noise as well as cranes and "dozens and dozens of contractors."
"Who would want this? Who would find this acceptable?" Ward said. "This is exactly the sort of substantial and irreparable harm that is intended for an injunction to stop."
But the board's lawyers argued that the plaintiffs have failed to prove that the laws and policies cited - including state and environmental statutes - were not in fact followed.
The residents are "upset and unhappy about the fact that Maryland law doesn't give them the right to veto about a school going up in their neighborhood," said Andrew W. Nussbaum, one of the attorneys. Nussbaum began by making a motion to dismiss the request for a preliminary injunction - a motion on which Finifter said he would reserve judgment.
Thursday's hearing follows one held last month regarding a motion for a temporary restraining order to stop the project - which was denied.
The school is expected to open in August 2010.
