Wegmans is welcome, but not at Solo Cup site

As a small business owner in the Garrison Forest Shopping Center and a police officer who has worked the Reisterstown Road corridor, I think your article about development in Owings Mills ignores the local and regional impact this type of project would have ("Jobs, taxes promised for old Solo Cup site," March 27).

Although I like Wegmans and also agree that the jobs and increased economic activity it will bring are very good things, the proposed location just doesn't make sense. Instead of a spot in the new Owings Mills Mall, where the infrastructure is already in place to support the increased traffic, Greenberg Gibbons is proposing a development at one of the worst intersections on what is arguably the busiest road in Baltimore County.

I also fear that adding 385,000 square feet of retail space in addition to the long-planned redevelopments at Metro Centre and Owings Mills Mall will threaten the viability of businesses up and down the corridor. In these challenging economic times, we already have enough vacant storefronts in the area without flooding the market with more retail space.

Let's welcome the Wegmans to the corridor but at a location that makes better sense for the well-being of our businesses and our community.

Gary Pfaff, Owings Mills

The writer is owner of SportClips in the Garrison Forest Shopping Center.