A Catonsville community took their arguments against a developer?s plans tocircuit court Thursday, hoping a ruling could change the way Baltimore County calculates housing density and lot sizes.
An attorney for the Westview Park Improvement & Civic Association said the county?s zoning commissioner, William Wisemen, didn?t consider potential traffic impacts when he approved a 13-home development on the west side of Rolling Road. He also overlooked requirements for new developments to complement existing ones, lawyer J. Carroll Holzer told Judge Susan Souder, and approved the plan only because county staff said the plan, on ink, met all regulations.
That attitude, Holzer said, defeats the purpose of a public hearing.
“He didn?t exercise any outside judgment,” Holzer said. “Why have a hearing to let citizens discuss their concerns if their concerns aren?t addressed?”
Developer Charles Skirven said he agreed to reduce his proposal for 16 homes to 13, which will be built on a 5-acre site. But one third of the property is unbuildable, forcing him to “cluster” all the homes on just more than 2 acres.
Skirven said lots, which are not regulated, in nearby communities are not much larger. His attorney, Scott Barhight, argued the plan meets all county statutes, which don?t require a professional traffic study and, in this case, don?t require compatibility with surrounding homes.
They said the community could have subpoenaed a county traffic engineer to testify at the zoning hearing or commissioned their own study.
“All the residents have is anecdotal evidence, they think traffic is bad,” Skirven said. “According to the county, it?s not, and that?s what we have to go by.”
Skirven said he is still willing to negotiate with the community. Community representative Steve Whisler said he is prepared to appeal a ruling in Skirven?s favor.
Souder?s opinion is not expected for six to eight weeks.
