In preparation for producing the Master Plan 2030, the Department of Planning has been holding virtual town halls around the county, including a virtual town hall for greater Timonium. There were several takeaways from the local meeting. First, the Master Plan 2020, prepared eleven years ago, encouraged the development of mixed-use properties, featuring high density residential development combined with office space and retail uses. Some of the citizens at this virtual meeting rejected that approach, saying that they wanted to maintain a suburban feel for Timonium. Another concern expressed at the meeting was the need for greater traffic management in many neighborhoods. Traffic safety can take multiple forms, including more traffic control devices, such as speed bumps, as well as more pedestrian sidewalks and reduced speed limits to encourage greater safety. It was also suggested that the County should take steps to encourage that the fairgrounds remain a viable part of the community, and a fallback plan should be in place for use of the property if the directors would ever elect to move the fairgrounds from Timonium. These were the most overarching comments made at the town hall, along with many more localized comments that would not impact the area at large.
The Olszewski administration and Baltimore County Public Schools seem to be backtracking on the pledge to build new high schools at Towson and Dulaney. A consultant claims that spending the large sums to replace these two schools will impact the ability to renovate and construct additions for other schools. See the article in this newsletter from a group of elected officials that rebuts the notion that Dulaney and Towson should be renovated.
The image that John Olszewski, Jr. had cultivated as a reformer took a hit recently when his administration introduced legislation to limit the authority of the County’s Office of Inspector General. That office has a mission to uncover waste, fraud, and misconduct in the day-to-day operations of County government. The uproar over this proposed legislation was so strong that the administration swiftly withdrew the bill, but the optics had been set. Two Democratic members of the County Council had also been critical of the Inspector General during recent budget hearings, and it remains to be seen whether the Council will try to limit that office in the future.
Local community association leaders from diverse areas in Baltimore County, such as Pikesville, Essex-Middle River, Perry Hall, and Timonium, among others, have criticized some of the zoning and development regulations that govern new development. Recent legislation that allowed changes for single properties in the Pikesville and Cockeysville areas prompted these community leaders to speak out. In addition, some community leaders have also called for the County to convene a panel to re-examine the current PUD regulations with an eye towards ensuring that PUDs are truly used for mixed use developments and not merely a way to circumvent existing zoning on any given property. The leader of the Perry Hall Improvement Association also proposes that future comprehensive zoning map changes should occur after the production of future master plans, not before the plans as currently takes place.
It was good to see the Maryland State Fair back to its normal routine at the end of August. With residents enjoying all the entertainment provided by the fair, it was easy to forget that just one year earlier the corona virus put a major damper on the fair experience and much of our “normal” lives.
Eric Rockel
Vice President, GTCC