Schools

Ducketts Lane School Site Dispute Could Be Headed for Court

A roadblock in a real estate transaction could lead to litigation, according to Howard County Public School System officials.

Howard County may turn to the courts to resolve a land dispute on Ducketts Lane, where that have been in the works for months are now in limbo.

During a meeting of the Elkridge Elementary School PTA on Dec. 12, Ken Roey, director of facilities for the Howard County Public School System (HCPSS), said that a lien on the property was holding up the acquisition process. 

“I can’t go into detail about what we’re doing,” Roey told approximately 40 parents and staff at the PTA meeting. “We’re getting into potential litigation.”

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The school board voted unanimously to authorize the $2.64 million acquisition of the 10.3-acre property at 6501 Ducketts Lane in October.

“The sellers told us they could get a clear title on the property,” said Joel Gallihue, manager of school planning, at the PTA meeting. “That’s currently not the case.”

Find out what's happening in Elkridgewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The seller, Ducketts Ridge LLC, is not paying an outstanding debt to one of its lenders, said Gallihue.

Ducketts Ridge was planned as an age-restricted development, to be built in 2005 and 2006. When the community didn’t come to fruition and the recession hit, Gallihue said that it got “under water” on its mortgage—that is, it owed more than the property was worth. 

The dispute with the lender is over about $200,000, Gallihue told the Baltimore Sun, in which he was quoted as saying, "They are squabbling over pennies when dollars are on the table."

Despite the pending real estate transaction, Gallihue and Roey said at the PTA meeting that the Ducketts Lane school was "on track" in terms of its planning and construction timetable.

In the past few months, HCPSS has submitted paperwork for a permit to build on the site's wetlands. Officials have also submitted a plan for a "green school" on Ducketts Lane with features like a geothermal field.

"We’re right on track in terms of planned development," Roey told parents in Elkridge. He added that of the $10 million toward planning and construction for the Ducketts Lane school, the state board has, in its initial round of review, recommended $3 million in planning funds.

Roey said HCPSS intends to submit a complete site plan to the Department of Planning and Zoning by the spring, which, once approved, will enable construction of the school to move forward.

“I'm confident that we're going to own the land and put a shovel in the ground as late as mid-June and open the school as late as 2013 at Ducketts Lane," said Roey at the PTA meeting.

Ducketts Ridge did not respond to a request for comment.

HCPSS officials did not comment on whether the school system has litigated over property acquisition before. In the Howard County Times, Gallihue stated that it was a "highly unusual" situation.

The  since school officials  that they were interested in it last summer for a school to ease overcrowding in the northeast.

 on grounds that Ducketts Lane does not have the capacity to handle school traffic, particularly with the intersection at US 1 lacking a stoplight; that building should not occur since there are wetlands on the site; and that the 10.3-acre parcel is smaller than the county's 16-acre standard for an elementary school.

At the Elkridge PTA meeting, Roey responded to several questions that reflected those concerns.

He said the school system does not have control over the intersection of Ducketts Lane and Washington Boulevard and stated it is the county's responsibility.

As far as the wetlands, the Army Corps of Engineers must review the issue and mitigation plans to grant a permit, a process that Roey said was underway. He added that the Ducketts Lane elementary school would be LEED Gold certified, meaning it will incorporate energy-efficient building standards.

Regarding the size of the site, Gallihue told Patch that planning and design can make schools on smaller sites work.

According to Gallihue, these elementary school sites are on 10 acres or fewer:  (8.7 acres); Running Brook (9 acres); Bryant Woods (9.25 acres); Longfellow (9.5 acres); Jefferson, Northfield, Phelps Luck, St. John's Lane, Stevens Forest, Swansfield, Talbott Springs, Waterloo and Clarksville (10 acres).

"The policy is a guide," said Gallihue of the 16-acre standard. "Land is very precious."


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