Jablon

On Friday January 27, 2006, JACOB C. JABLON, of Chevy Chase, MD, beloved husband of the late Bette P. Jablon, devoted father of Saul Jablon, Arnold (Lisa) Jablon and Ellen Jablon, cherished grandfather of Leslie, Robyn, Sara, Rachel, Rebecca and Seth, also survived by 4 great-grandchildren and brother-in-law of Henrietta Baker. Graveside Funeral Service will be held on Sunday January 29 11:00 A.M. at Mt. Lebanon Cemetery, Adelphi, MD. Family will be observing Shiva following interment with Minyan 6:30 P.M., at the residence of Dennis and Emalie Baker.

Baltimore County Council members said Tuesday that county development chief Arnold Jablon should not have acted as the attorney for a local environmental engineer who has worked for builders on projects in Baltimore County. Jablon, who worked for the Venable law firm before becoming head of the county's department of permits, approvals and inspections this year, is the lawyer of record in a small-claims case brought in Baltimore County District Court this summer by George Perdikakis.

The appointment of a holdover Democrat by Republican Baltimore County Executive Roger B. Hayden to the sensitive post of county zoning commissioner is to be withdrawn, although Hayden denies that political pressure caused the move.Arnold Jablon's name will be withdrawn as a nominee for county zoning commissioner, though Hayden said yesterday that Jablon will play an undefined but pivotal role in administering a reform of the county development-approval process.The move came after a week of quiet but intense political pressure from Republican Party figures and anti-development community activists who view Jablon as a symbol of pro-development interests and of the defeated Democratic administration of Dennis F. Rasmussen, for whom he served.

The land-use lawyer nominated as Baltimore County's new development chief says he intends to speed the building permit process, step up enforcement of county codes and put up a "Chinese wall" separating himself from former clients. Arnold E. Jablon, who worked for the county for 25 years before joining the Venable law firm in 2003, told the County Council on Tuesday that he is withdrawing as the attorney in all active cases that could possibly come before the new Department of Permits, Inspections and Approvals.

Arnold Jablon, the man who for 25 years has had a hand in crafting nearly every nook and cranny of Baltimore County's development regulations, has retired to begin a new job this week at Venable, Baetjer and Howard, the county's most prominent law firm for land use -- a move that makes some community activists nervous. To them, it's like watching the Yankees clinch the pennant and then trade for Barry Bonds for good measure. Already, they feel outgunned by the well-schooled, well-prepared and well-paid attorneys developers can afford to hire and they can't.

Arnold Jablon can't remember the last time a business in Baltimore County was forced to tear down an illegally built addition. But Jablon, the county's chief zoning official, is threatening to force a Catonsville group home to do just that.Jablon said the owners of Parkside Assisted Living flouted the law by building a 2 1/2-story addition when permits called for a one-story addition, and by then using the new space to house elderly residents."He's making money every month," Jablon said. " He's violating the law. Are we going to allow that?"

Angered that a law protecting historic structures was bypassed, Baltimore County's permits director vowed yesterday to seek fines in last week's demolition of a 19th-century house in Green Spring Valley.Arnold Jablon, director of the county's Department of Permits and Development Management, also said he would require the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur -- owners of the now-demolished Maryvale Tenant House -- to seek after-the-fact approval for destruction of the house, because it was listed on the Maryland Historical Trust inventory.

PeopleKayla Tollen of Kayla Advertising in Columbia has been awarded the designation of certified advertising specialist by the Promotional Products Association International. The designation is given to recognize commitment to educational growth. To achieve the designation, industry professionals must complete a minimum of 70 hours of continuing education.Oren D. Saltzman, an independent practicing attorney, and Brian S. Jablon, formerly a partner with Smith, Somerville & Case L.L.C., have formed a new law firm -- Saltzman & Jablon L.L.C.

To help preserve a historic black community in Baltimore County's Overlea area, the county government has agreed to buy 17 narrow, vacant lots to prevent them from being developed alongside cottages dating from 1910.The County Council unanimously approved the purchase last night.Residents of Cherry Heights, just east of Belair Road and the city-county line, appealed to the county government for help last spring, when they received notice that Kayhouse Realty, a local firm, had bought 40 vacant building lots from the third generation heirs of the original 1910 developer, Daniel Murray.

Baltimore County officials are not wasting any time when it comes to enforcing a long-awaited law that takes effect tomorrowand is intended to force adult video stores out of neighborhoods.Councilman Wayne M. Skinner, a Towson Republican, asked zoning officials in a letter this week to inspect two stores, and the zoning administrator said the inspections will be conducted Monday, the first working day after the law takes effect.Zoning Administrator Arnold Jablon said he would order inspections at other adult video stores, if similar requests for inspections are filed.

I'm very disappointed in Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz for nominating Arnold E. Jablon to become head of the new Department of Permits, Inspections and Approval. ("Conflict Feared in Jablon's Balto. Co. Posting," Dec. 12). I'm also disappointed in the Baltimore County Council members who have expressed support of Mr. Jablon, the former county zoning commissioner. Mr. Jablon is returning to Baltimore County after working for the Venable law firm in Towson. His contact there with developers brews a perfect storm for conflict of interest.

The prominent land-use lawyer poised to take over as Baltimore County's land development chief has decades of experience in local government, but some question how he will distance himself from former clients and colleagues doing business with his agency. Arnold E. Jablon's nomination to the new Department of Permits, Inspections and Approvals was submitted to the County Council for consideration last week by County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, who has already moved to address concerns over potential conflicts of interest.

On Friday January 27, 2006, JACOB C. JABLON, of Chevy Chase, MD, beloved husband of the late Bette P. Jablon, devoted father of Saul Jablon, Arnold (Lisa) Jablon and Ellen Jablon, cherished grandfather of Leslie, Robyn, Sara, Rachel, Rebecca and Seth, also survived by 4 great-grandchildren and brother-in-law of Henrietta Baker. Graveside Funeral Service will be held on Sunday January 29 11:00 A.M. at Mt. Lebanon Cemetery, Adelphi, MD. Family will be observing Shiva following interment with Minyan 6:30 P.M., at the residence of Dennis and Emalie Baker.

The Baltimore County Council tabled a bill last night that would have expanded a rental registration pilot program to five Towson-area neighborhoods. Although the bill's sponsor, Councilman Vincent J. Gardina, a Perry Hall-Towson Democrat, said the program was needed to prevent the decline of some neighborhoods in his district, other councilmen said they wanted to hear a report on the pilot program from the county's permits department before seeing it expanded. The report is due next summer.

Arnold Jablon, the man who for 25 years has had a hand in crafting nearly every nook and cranny of Baltimore County's development regulations, has retired to begin a new job this week at Venable, Baetjer and Howard, the county's most prominent law firm for land use -- a move that makes some community activists nervous. To them, it's like watching the Yankees clinch the pennant and then trade for Barry Bonds for good measure. Already, they feel outgunned by the well-schooled, well-prepared and well-paid attorneys developers can afford to hire and they can't.

Technically, it doesn't exist. The Development Review Committee was not created by statute, so the panel has no authority. Because it is an unofficial body, no notes or minutes of its meetings are kept. Yet the six-member advisory board, made up of Baltimore County agency heads, is considered by many to be one of the most powerful in the county. The reason: It determines whether proposed development projects will be subject to public hearings. "I say all their actions are illegal," said J. Carroll Holzer, a former county attorney who two years ago unsuccessfully challenged a DRC recommendation on construction of a convenience store before the county Board of Appeals.

Baltimore County is looking at changing its laws regulating police towing to break up a long-standing monopoly and allow minorities to participate in the $5 million-a-year business. The county hoped it had done that in 1999 when it stretched the definition of existing law to issue its first towing license to an African-American garage owner. However, last month a Circuit Court upheld a ruling that the county had acted illegally because there was no proof of need for additional tow operators.

The unrestricted use of car telephones by more than 70 Baltimore County employees will be sharply curtailed under a new policy.The restrictions, to take effect March 1, were announced Friday by County Attorney Arnold Jablon. They coincided with an inquiry by The Evening Sun into the use of car phones by county employees.A county official said the new policy could cut the car phone bill by as much as $50,000 this year.Under the old policy, the employees had use of the phones 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in the county-owned cars.

Baltimore County is looking at changing its laws regulating police towing to break up a long-standing monopoly and allow minorities to participate in the $5 million-a-year business. The county hoped it had done that in 1999 when it stretched the definition of existing law to issue its first towing license to an African-American garage owner. However, last month a Circuit Court upheld a ruling that the county had acted illegally because there was no proof of need for additional tow operators.

The Baltimore County Council voted last night to fine-tune restrictions on residential development that critics say were passed too quickly and with too little public comment. Council members said they were fixing technical problems created by last-minute amendments introduced when the regulations were approved last month. But critics, still angry at the lack of public input into council redistricting, say the fixes wouldn't have been necessary if the council had acted more deliberately.