17 Speak At Comp Rezoning Hearing, Red Pump Development Chief Concern

A sparse crowd, concerned mostly with development in the Red Pump area, turned out Wednesday night at North Harford High School to lodge official comments regarding Harford County’s Comprehensive Rezoning.

In total, 17 people addressed 11 different topics with the majority, four, opposing the upzoning of the Blake Property in Red Pump from R1 to the more dense R2 designation

The 80 or so people within the auditorium consisted of roughly 20 officials/representatives from Harford County government, about a dozen lawyers/attorneys/legal representatives and a group of about 20 people focused on opposing a single issue (Blake Property rezoning in Red Pump). Other speakers made their cases for the protection of Deer Creek and Bynum Run watersheds and expressed a general attitude against expanded business and residential zoning.

In total, and in chronological order, here were the issues raised by the 17 who spoke Wednesday night:

– A Cedarwood resident opposed upzoning the Blake Property at Red Pump from R1 to R2.

– A young woman was against rezoning a nonspecific trailer park.

– Another Cedarwood resident opposed the Blake Property upzone. She was the first speaker to invoke “BRAC.” She also invoked the Red Pump vs. Campus Hills elementary school construction debate.

– The Deer Creek Watershed Association opposed the request by H.P. White Laboratories to convert 75 acres of Agricultural land in Street to General Industrial use for ballistics testing.

– A woman was opposed to the expansion of the Harley Davidson motorcycle shop in Darlington.

– A woman was against further residential development in Whiteford and Cardiff due to flooding problems.

– A man opposed increased residential development in Perryman because of exisiting problems at nearby Perrywood.

– A man was vaguely against a vague business use somewhere.

– Another Cedarwood resident opposed the Blake Property upzoning.

– The Magnesses of Magness Farm supported upzoning to R2 in their area, where a new pumping station will be built.

– Jim Jewell, budget director for Harford County Public Schools, testified as a member of the Rock Spring Swim Club in opposition to R2 zoning of the Blake Property. He asked who will pay for the extra security once all the new townhouses are built.

– A man was against a business zoning at the intersection of Routes 7 and 24 in Van Bibber.

– A neighbor had concerns about the Magness Farm rezoning.

– A man, citing destruction of native tree species and degredation of Bynum Run, was against commercial use of wooded land along the Hickory Bypass.

– A woman was opposed to residential development along Bear Hollow Court in Forest Hill.

– A woman was against the proposed industrial rezoning by H.P. White Laboratories on Scarboro Road.

– A woman was opposed to business zoning at the intersection of Routes 7 and 24 in Van Bibber.