Slotted for development, Holly Neck saved by agreement

The wealthy owner once envisioned luxury marinas, hotels, nightclubs, thousands of homes and condos on his 605 pristine waterfront acres in Baltimore County?s quiet Back River Neck peninsula ? a miniature Ocean City.

Now, 30 years later, owner Leonard Berger has placed all but 57 acres in permanent environmental conservation, including a 128-acre site where ecologists have literally created wetlands that will one day be thriving amphibian breeding grounds.