Building Proposal Aims to Bring 160 Apartment Units to North Laurel

A proposal from Patriot Realty to construct a retail and residential complex directly next to the firm’s existing Ashbury Courts building on Route 1 is a plan to save a struggling business, its attorney told North Laurel Civic Association members Wednesday.

The second building would have 160 apartment units and an attached parking garage.

Sang Oh, the attorney for Patriot Realty, told members that increasing the residential housing with a second building would also earn the company financing to enhance commercial space at the original location, which Oh acknowledged is struggling.

Oh said the developer “ran out of money” for the original plans, which went up in 2007, leaving the first floor retail spaces undesirable to business owners. "This plan is the attempt to make it successful,” he said.

Steve Hunt, an association member, said traffic is the biggest concern for all parties involved.

“If anything is going to stop this building, it’s going to be the traffic between Whiskey Bottom Road and the Howard County line on Route 1,” said Hunt.

More than 20 people, including Howard County councilwoman Jen Terrasa, attended the meeting Wednesday night at the Savage Library, the second meeting the group has held in recent history after several years of inactivity.

Tom Flynn, former president, gave an example of what power the association can yield, noting its role in preventing the construction of a Redskins stadium in Laurel. Newly elected leaders said they would search for more members and officers to help the group wield more influence.

Terrasa asked association members for input on the proposal from Patriot Realty to construct its second building. The Howard County zoning board is in favor of a change to the zoning restrictions, which would allow for the solely residential construction, and the decision is now up to the County Council.

“The Ashbury Courts thing is definitely not set in stone,” Terrasa said.