Elementary School Site Holdup in Elkridge Puts Brakes on Development

Howard County's Department of Planning and Zoning had letters waiting to be sent out to stakeholders in stalled development projects in case legislators opened the county for development on Dec. 5.

Those letters will have to wait.

On Monday evening, the County Council passed legislation that would allow developers the right to build a certain number of units (called the "allocations chart").

However, the council postponed voting on whether there was enough infrastructure, like schools, to support new residential development (known as the "open-closed chart").

The two resolutions/charts must both be passed for development to move forward. Councilman Calvin Ball said on Monday evening that officials would have to review whether county code permitted passage of the two bills at separate meetings.

"We voted on the allocations chart unanimously and we tabled the open-closed chart unanimously at the request of the school system as they work through challenges regarding the Ducketts Lane elementary school site," said Ball in a phone interview after the Dec. 5 meeting.

School staff told legislators during the County Council's Nov. 21 meeting that the school system hit a snag in acquiring land for an  in Elkridge. The school has been working on acquiring the property since the summer.

"There were some issues that the seller could not satisfy so we had to postpone the closing," testified Ken Roey, director of facilities for the Howard County Public School System.

The issue is a lien that the lienholder will not release and has delayed the closing three times, according to the Baltimore Sun.

When Ball asked at the Nov. 21 meeting whether there were alternate sites for the elementary school, Roey said: "Not by the time that you're scheduled to vote on this chart."

As a result, the "open-closed" chart—dictating whether an area is open or closed for development based on school capacity—was tabled at the Dec. 5 County Council meeting.

According to the Department of Planning and Zoning, the chart is usually passed each July and has been held up by the  in Elkridge since the summer.

Ball said that voting on the open-closed chart could come in January.

"We would like to continue working with the school system and the community to ensure that we carefully evaluate available school sites," he said.

Ball said planning needs to be more deliberate.

"I would like us to work through any issues and ensure there is predicability as far as what's going to be developed, where and when, in the near future," said Ball. "After we pass these two pieces of legislation, we're going to be immediately looking at these issues as we turn to the ."

The General Plan is a document that guides development in the county for the ensuing decade.

In the meantime, politicians and developers alike will be waiting for the school system to determine the fate of the Ducketts Lane site in Elkridge.

"We went through a legislative process, and we’ll continue evaluating school sites," said Ball. "We’re working very closely with the school system, and I'm very confident in their ability to move forward sites that will accommodate the needs of the county."