County Planning Board

Brushing aside major objections from the community, Baltimore County officials have found little reason to hold back a so-called "megachurch" in Kingsville, a rural area of the county. The 42,000-square-foot worship center is planned by Grace Community Church.Community concerns about the impact of the proposed 500-seat church on traffic, wells and septic service have been adequately addressed, the Baltimore County Board of Appeals said yesterday.But the three-member panel gave opponents of the project a small, technical victory by agreeing that the case should go to the county Planning Board to determine whether it will have an adverse impact on a nearby historic building.

The Baltimore County Planning Board voted unanimously Thursday to allow the former Solo Cup property in Owings Mills to be redeveloped as an office and retail hub called Foundry Row. The 385,000 square foot development is expected to be anchored by a Wegmans grocery store, a fitness chain, and a sporting goods store. There will also be restaurants, more retail stores and 40,000 square feet of office space. The re-development of the 52-acre property will cost $140 million, according to a Thursday statement from project developer Greenberg Gibbons.

An article in Tuesday's editions stated incorrectly that Phillip W. Worrall, confirmed Monday as chairman of the Baltimore County Planning Board, is a member of the Landmarks Preservation Commission. In fact, he is a former member.The Sun regrets the errors.

County Executive Kevin Kamenetz said Friday he has appointed a business attorney, the head of the Towson Chamber of Commerce, and a state administrator to the county planning board. The three new members are set to start three-year terms in January. They are: Jeffrey E. Gordon, a business litigation attorney with the firm Hogan Lovells; Nancy Hafford, executive director of Towson Chamber of Commerce; and Rainier C. Harvey Sr., a retired police officer and chief of administrative operations for the Maryland Department of Human Resources.

An article in yesterday's Howard County edition of The Sun incorrectly characterized an action to be considered today by the Howard County Planning Board. The board will consider approving the land-use guidelines for a proposed apartment and condominium development in Columbia's Town Center.The Sun regrets the error.Pub Date: 11/21/96

An article in Friday's Howard County edition of The Sun about the Howard County Planning Board's approval of the Life Time Fitness facility planned for Columbia stated that the Owen Brown Village Board approved the facility. While the board said in a letter signed by Chairman Neil E. Dorsey that "all of our questions were answered satisfactorily," the board did not formally approve the plans.

More than 150 residents showed up to protest a proposed child care center in their Ellicott City neighborhood last night, forcing the Board of Appeals to postpone the hearing until April 13 because the meeting room was too small. The residents, many from the Hollifield Station Community Association, do not want a 10,466-square-foot child care facility in their neighborhood. If approved, the center would be one of the largest such facilities in Howard County. In October, the Howard County Planning Board voted unanimously to recommend rejection of the center.

The Howard County Planning Board voted unanimously yesterday to recommend approval for expansion of an Ellicott City homeless shelter from eight to 12 people.Nobody at the meeting contested the expansion of Miles House, a transitional shelter on Fels Lane near historic Main Street. The shelter is run by the Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center Inc.The case is scheduled to go before the Board of Appeals on Jan. 18.Pub Date: 10/22/99

Woodmont Academy, which wants to move its campus to Glenwood, has postponed its date with the Howard County Planning Board. The board was to have heard the plans Thursday, but the hearing likely will be delayed for several months. A new date had not been set. Officials with the private Catholic school, now in the Baltimore County area of Woodstock, want to move to a 53.5-acre site in Glenwood and eventually build facilities for 1,100 students. Neighbors object, saying the project is too large for the area.

25 years ago (week of April 4-10, 1971):The Howard County Planning Board approved a $162 million capital improvement plan to be implemented over a five-year period. Among the projects included in the plan were: another county office building; a new building for county police headquarters; off-street parking for Ellicott City's Main Street area, and a second bookmobile for the county library.The Howard County Council adopted a measure to investigate the need to adopt stricter zoning regulations for gasoline stations.

Anne Arundel County residents will have an additional opportunity to weigh in on proposed land zoning changes — a move made in response to community complaints. The Planning Advisory Board will hold public hearings on any amendments to pending rezoning bills, a new step in the county's once-in-a-decade comprehensive rezoning process. County Executive John R. Leopold called for the change in a letter to the board's chair, after residents complained they hadn't had a chance to voice opposition to several amendments affecting their neighborhoods.

Despite neighbors' opposition, a plan to build 325 homes clustered on a portion of historic Doughoregan Manor was unanimously approved Thursday by the Howard County Planning Board. "It's one more step," said Joseph Rutter, the former county planning director who is guiding the project through the county's rezoning system for the descendants of Charles Carroll of Carrollton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Some Carroll descendants still live in the mansion on the 892-acre Ellicott City property -- once a Colonial estate of more than 10,000 acres.

Columbia residents will be given more say in how the town's aging village centers are redeveloped as a result of changes in the zoning process approved by the Howard County Council. The 5-0 vote Tuesday night ended months of wrangling over how to change the 42-year-old system regulating the land, The new law: * Requires early notification of any redevelopment plan and two community information meetings at least 30 days apart before any plan is submitted to the county. * Encourages residents to craft their own plans for their own individual centers before a developer announces any concept and add their own impact statements to county planners' reports.

A proposal to allow major redevelopment of Columbia's village centers has so divided the Howard County Planning Board that members can't even agree how to describe their disagreement. The board divided, 2-2, on the issue March 23 with one person absent. But Monday night, members were still arguing over what the description of their votes should say. After a closed meeting with a lawyer and a public discussion after that, the members agreed to try again to come up with a document they can sign to push the issue to the County Council.

Howard's healthful outlook a good start As a dietitian, I think it's great that Howard County schools are getting students involved in efforts to offer healthier foods ["Students craft their own cafeteria offerings," March 22]. Introducing healthful foods in schools can be challenging, but support from the federal government could help. Congress is revising the Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act, which could help schools afford healthful foods. Under current legislation, the USDA subsidizes unhealthful foods, like high-fat meat and cheese.

Windmills used to provide power to houses would be regulated under a measure being considered by Baltimore County lawmakers. The proposed resolution, introduced by Councilman Vincent J. Gardina, directs the county Planning Board to propose amendments that would regulate the location and use of windmills for residential energy. Gardina, a Towson-Perry Hall Democrat, said the regulations would be designed to encourage residents to install windmills. The measure, a topic at yesterday's council work session and scheduled for a vote during Monday's council session, comes as a zoning commissioner considers the request of a northern Baltimore County couple who want to erect a windmill as part of their plan to build a "green" home that draws energy from renewable sources.

The Baltimore County Planning Board unanimously approved yesterday the latest procedural step in the proposed development of mansions and villas on Holly Neck peninsula on the Chesapeake Bay. The panel voted to allow development of 95 acres on the property that sits in the critical areas zone, a 1,000-foot buffer that starts at the waterline. The board's decision now goes to the county in a process that includes county and state hearings. The 154-acre development has been proposed by Leonard P. Berger of Ocean City.

A proposal to increase the number of housing units at Maple Lawn Maryland was turned down yesterday by the Howard County Planning Board, as had been expected. Several members of the board had expressed strong reservations about allowing greater density at the sprawling development near Fulton, which combines high-end homes with office space and stores. The developer, Greenebaum and Rose Associates Inc., was seeking to build a senior housing complex with 242 units. Technically, the board voted to leave unchanged the development plan approved by the county after marathon hearings five years ago. The 3-1 vote, with one member not attending, had the effect of denying the developer's request to increase the overall density of Maple Lawn to 2.7 units per acre from 2.2 units.

Howard County Council members hope to resolve their differences today on several bills and resolutions set for a July 7 vote, including one intended to help preserve small, open lots in older, developed neighborhoods. The bill, introduced by council chairman Courtney Watson, an Ellicott City Democrat, would allow the owners of developable lots to sell the building rights, leaving the lots vacant and preventing large new homes from popping up amid staid, more traditional homes. Builders who buy these rights would get a 10 percent density increase, allowing more new homes to rise on parcels of more than 15 acres in certain zones.

Ehrlich appoints 2 to school board A community leader from Carney and a former Baltimore County high school principal have been appointed to the Baltimore County school board, and a current member whose term has expired will remain on the board for an additional year, Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s office announced yesterday. Meg O'Hare, a Social Security Administration retiree, will take the at-large seat vacated by Tom Grzymski, a former school board president. She is chairwoman of the organization of area educational advisory councils for the school system and president of the Carney Improvement Association.