From Gloria Moon:
I don’t know who owns the Mixed Office (MO) zoned properties on 543 at I-95, but I know two things about them. First, they are very capable puppet masters when it comes to getting County government to do their bidding. And second and more importantly, they have no marketing or long-range visionary skills.
The MO concept started in 1996 with the small and finite Planned Employment Centers. Since then it has been massaged, enlarged and changed at the behest of the MO-owners. Each proffered concept for this area has met with financial disaster due to the horrible timing of the project. Each idea came too late in the game.
First the PEC had no employers wanting to move there. Then came the corporate campus concept with attendant gorgeous drawings but it too had no takers. Finally the County was forced to actually define what the MO would be – a center for quality office jobs because they all had the inside dope that BRAC was coming to Harford County. The BRAC fever struck and its wimpy outcome left the MO bereft of any buyer in need of “prime office space”.
Back to the drawing board and the MO-owners decided that nothing would do but that Lodging Houses be built for “defense contractors and their support” with a shopping venue for the hotel-apartment residents. The County dutifully changed the Zoning Code to the MO-owners’ specifications. Alas, there was no need for these “transient dwelling accommodations”. Someone, most likely their beleaguered financial advisors, told them there was enough already built for BRAC weekday quarters for the New Jerseyites working at APG.
So now one must assume this land is eating up its owners in mortgage payments, taxes and interest payments without a single brick or inch of paving to show for it after over 15 years of maneuvering. The MO-owners started a major bullying tactic to get the County to get them upfront money to start building something – at least the public water and sewer system. They dug around and found the Tax Increment Financing (TIF). So the County sponsored a $23,000,000 million bond to help them on their way. Unbelievably, that too failed and the TIF fell by the wayside.
Today as an early Christmas present, the MO-owners want the County to change the Zoning Code again so they can have apartments (not lodging houses) and shopping – which could include big box stores on their parcel of land. (One must remember that through all of this jockeying, the County still insists that this is not inside the Development Envelope).
The MO-owners are behind the 8-ball once again. To date, there are approvals in the pipeline for over 2,500 new apartments in Harford County and around 2,000 new townhouses. What folly to plan for more. Will the County knuckle under to their demands again? We’ll have to wait and see how the County Council votes on Bill 15-036.
Gloria Moon
Same thing is going on with the Bel Air Academy property behind Bel Air Elementary School. Developer wants to build 4 story apartments instead of 3. They were denied by board of appeals now they are filing to be rezoned with the Bel air planning board. The meeting for that is this Thursday at Bel Air Town Hall at 7pm. If you can’t make it make sure to write the town commissioners and tell them to vote NO and preserve the history of that building. Bel Air town especially is way over built.
If you dig deep enough you will probably find out that this project will enrich dick street, bob hockaday,or bill cox in some way. Barry glassman owes his soul to the developers and their rich friends. Hes been kissing their asses from the beginning of his political life. He and slutsky and boniface are puppets of the developers and dont have any backbones at all. Ive been told that slutsky has already threatened people who have questioned this project.
If Slutzky is threatening the other council members over this he should be thrown out. He voted for the development envelope restriction when it was first created.
Why do you people care? It’s not costing you a dime and someday the County or City will reap the benifits of collecting taxes on the improved property.
Because ruining your own community through sprawl and poor planning pulling that trump card whoppee we’ll get taxes is stupid.
Recent history paints a picture of TIF recipient filing for bankruptcy, retail development on Federal Government Land offering no taxes to Harford County and waste processing profits leaving the County. Meanwhile, housing development continues when our schools are over percentage (which should stop development), current citizens’ taxes paying for new water and sewage OUTSIDE the development envelope and not in sustainable alignment with the Master Use Plan (just revised). The future prognosis is falling home values and more taxes needed, yet our police, fire and teachers are leaving the County for lack of follow through on promises made.
No schools in Harford County are anywhere near the capacity threshold which would put a school attendance area into residential development moratorium. Most schools throughout the county are currently under 100% of available capacity. Some are very much under capacity. New permits on residential development continue to be very low and are predicted to remain so for the foreseeable future.
Harford Tech is overcapacity.
Harford Tech is a countywide magnet school and different from all other community schools which have specific attendance boundaries. It is over capacity because the school system allows it to be but this has no impact on placing any part of the county in building moratorium.
“Housing development continues when our schools are over percentage “.
Not sure what decade you are living in. Housing development is at historic lows in this County. But don’t let facts get in the way of your NIMBY diatribe.
Residential development can continue in school attendance areas beyond 100% capacity. County law stipulates that no new building permits will be issued when capacity reaches or exceeds 110%.
Well aware of how the APF law works, but the reality is it ain’t happening now. No moratorium would exist even if the cap was 100% and not 110%.
Gloria Moon is 100% on target!
Haha, I was just talking to someone about these cookie cutters people love, for some reason.
I don’t get what the interest is, especially living less than 40 feet from your neighbors in a +2,200 square foot house?
I love the gimmicks too. Gotta pay extra for a deck, you think its a big deal to build a deck when the house goes from site work and silt fences to siding, windows and doors in 3 months? lol
Pay extra for ceiling fans? Can’t go to Home Depot and get cheap? You think these homes go up with the best in class windows, siding, doors, drywall? Lol
This is positive! Make Harford County a place people will want to live! Not just a place for old (and mostly white) people who can not accept change!!!
Seeing these people speak out against amenities which will attract these millennials is very sad.
Mr./Mrs./Miss/Ms Millennial
Please allow me to share a few of my thoughts on your comments.
First. The residents of Harford County have heard for perhaps the past decade how this act/action/provision/bill/resolution etc, is necessary to attract BRAC, tourists, millennial, business, jobs and others. No doubt if it served the purpose of justifying the action, it would include space aliens and extinct animals. Sadly the only people who believe any of this coming from the County administration and the County Council are they, themselves. Those who do appear to listen are those who are in line to directly benefit from the action. And they cheer loudly for the action and promise great and wonderful things that just never seem to materialize.
Second. County Executive Glassman is pressing this proposal way too hard for anybody in his position. Absent from any discussion by his representatives is the benefit to the County. All the discussion centered on allowing some undefined “project”, undefined except for more houses, more retail, to move forward. More likely this proposal, bill 15-036, is a political chip for County Executive Barry Glassman. It either repays a political favor, or will be used to bargain for some other political favor, or furthers his political career. You, the reader, should investigate and come to your own conclusion. Maybe start with the AG center.
Third. The lack of definition for this project is disturbing, like many of the oher projects from County Executive Glassman. TIF? According to the County Representative’s discussion, well maybe no, maybe yes. Depends on what the developer needs to get started. Retail well depends on what the developer can attract. Jobs, could be, we won’t know until we build it. The great flaw in all of this is that the James Run project always seemed to include some very optimistic projections for all of these items, and there may have been an element of truth to the claims. Sadly, again, those claims were neither factual nor realistic. They were made by a group of investors who were/are severely undercapitalized, whose position on the property was and still is out of the money. Even with the free money, $23M the County fronted, they could not bring a program in. James run was never going to create jobs; there was office space and lodging. The business that leased the space would have created jobs, but they could have located anywhere in the County to do that.
Fourth. You, as a millennial, and others in that group are being played. You are unfortunately a stage prop in an effort to justify this proposal. A bit of personal advice, if you are going to support a proposal like this, make very sure that you get more back than you give up.
Fifth, Harford County is a great County. It does not need to be built, especially to the specifications proposed in this bill. Millenialls do have a place in the county, but should not expect Harford County to provide the same entertainment and facilities that a large city does. If that is not acceptable, then you should look elsewhere. When you do come to the point where the “amenities” you seek can be found in Harford County, then come back. All of us, older, mostly white folks, who don’t like change and those like us will still be here. Hopefully, for you, we will have saved it from the pillage proposed by County Executive Glassman.
THNX
John P. Mallamo
Wasting your breath, Millennial. I-95 interchanges are supposed to look like Montana to these folks. Enjoy your abandoned golf course across the street from the abandoned greenery.
Mr./Mrs./Miss/Ms Sword of Light
You offer an interesting choice. Montana or Dogpatch.
I believe that I’ll take Montana.
Any others?
THNX
John P. Mallamo
The rules of development shouldn’t be changed because someone’s friends have given them a lot of money and now they are calling in their ticket. Millennials will not move to HarCo because of a new big box store or shopping plaza. However if you set out a plan for developing a true community and sustain it you may see a few hipsters popping up here and there.
“A few hipsters popping up here and there”— Is that how you plan on growing our amazing county? If that is the vision of Harford County- then we should be ashamed.
And we need to grow the county why? Look at the money spent on supposed BRAC growth, and what do we have for it? Housing developments that can’t sell, and a Rt 40 corridor that is still dominated by tattoo parlors, pawn shops, junkyards and X-rated book stores. You call that growth??
Couple things made very clear at the council meeting last night. 1) The entire scheme is being driven by Glassman, and 2), the county already spent the money they expected from James Run – they’re desperate to jumpstart anything at that site so they’re willing to let this developer run a brothel if need be, and, 3) there were actually some good questions and what I felt were honest, thoughtful suspicions about the process and intent with this bill – in particular Schrodes, Beulah and Vincenti had done their homework. Very good point raised by all – why now with the master plan coming up? Won’t this opening of the concept of development in MO into retail and others simple take from other existing businesses?
Vincenti and Beulah were the only two who replied to my emails. They seemed concerned. I am pleased to hear Beulah echoing the sentiments of myself and FOH that this runs counter to the Master Plan process and sets aside the will of the people.
Frankly I’m beginning to think that the only land that should be rezoned between Master Plan development should be privately owned land by residents and small businesses. Corporations, large developers, they should have to live with the zoning of the land when they buy it. It’s sickening to me that they go around scooping up swaths of adjoining properties that are zoned one thing, then petition to change them all to something else just because it makes their investment more shiny. All they do is find 2 acres of B1 that’s near 50 acres of AG, then suddenly cry the zoning needs to be changed.
The whole system is completely screwed up.
Look at this interview with Robert Schulman, the James Run developer from June 2013:
http://i95business.com/2013/06/vision-reality/
What happened to the plan outlined in the interview, for “The current plan submitted for approvals and permits with the County includes 388 lodging house units, 350,000 square feet of retail and restaurants, and 540,000 square feet of office space.”
This was only 2 1/2 years ago and it has changed again?? I’m not understanding something here.
It goes like this…that idea got no takers so we tried this, that didn’t work so we tried something else and when that didn’t work we just say please somebody build some crap there we at this point really don’t care what it is. Plus it’s an added little bonus that you can slide condos, townhomes, apartments and other density dwelling outside the development envelope if you can fit in MO spot zoning when nobody is looking.
I heard that the only way this project will work is to build apartments in the mix. You better believe the developers will go after special financing programs from obama that will require section eight housing and other subsidized ammenities. That will just move route 40 problems to riverside. The county government thinks they have to grow housing to justify the county government infrastructure.and these people will all need parks and rec, libraries,schools,and will only make traffic problems even worse than they already are. The taxes generated by apartments and subsidized housing will never pay the costs associated with them.