Planning Board Recommends More Housing at Oxford Square, Rejects Drive-Throughs

County Council will hear case before making decision on Coca Cola Drive project.

Oxford Square on Coca Cola Drive is ripe for more housing, but not necessarily prime for drive-through commercial spaces, according to the Howard County Planning Board,  On Thursday evening, the five-member board of citizens appointed by the County Executive voted unanimously in support of the developer’s proposal to increase the number of residential units from 954 to 1,776.  “For this area, we need more apartments, high-quality-type apartments,” said Josh Tzuker, planning board member. Specifically, Tzuker mentioned the need for housing among people working around Route 100, younger individuals and empty nesters who weren’t looking to buy, and Howard’s pressure to stay competitive with Anne Arundel County and Baltimore City. Oxford …

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Oxford Square Developer Seeks to Double Residential Density

Developer David Scheffenacker has requested density revision and other amendments, which the Planning Board will hear at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 20.

The developer of Oxford Square on Coca Cola Drive is asking that he be allowed to build nearly double the number of housing units he initially asked for in the planned residential community, and he wants permission to erect drive-through commercial spaces on the premises.  On Thursday, Sept. 20, the Howard County Planning Board—a group of five citizens appointed by the county executive—will hear the request at 7 p.m. in the George Howard Building. In 2010, the County Council approved plans for Oxford Square in what had previously been an industrial area in Hanover on the condition that the community would include no more than 954 residential units, reduce dependence on automobiles and include a mix of office and residential spaces designed…

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Coca Cola Drive Middle School Site Sparks Safety Discussion

Oxford Square, a development off Coca Cola Drive that contains future middle school site, is adjacent to the CSX main line.

After two Mount Hebron graduates died in a CSX freight train derailment this week, some Howard County citizens say they are concerned about the middle school planned on Coca Cola Drive near the rail line. “Having seen this happen twice in a month in Howard County, how can you ignore that?” said Leslie Kornreich of Hanover, referencing the Aug. 8 derailment in Woodstock and Aug. 21 derailment in Ellicott City. The middle school on Coca Cola Drive will be 1,530 feet from the CSX main line, according to the most recent plans on record with Howard County. It will be located within a residential and business community called Oxford Square, which is still in the planning stages. During an interview on WYPR's “Midday with Dan Rodricks” show …

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Elle

11:37 pm on Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Speaking of the calming strips on Mayfield Ave, it looks like they aren't going to put them back. They're resurfacing the road and I asked about the speed bumps and was told they weren't going in. I hope this information was wrong because if it wasn't, I'm going to cause a big stink about it. lol   more ›

Oxford Square Will Propose Building More Units

School system is "unconcerned" about more residential development, according to Howard County Times.

New Elkridge Middle School Diverges from Traditional Design

The developer of Oxford Square worked with planners to blend community and school.

The design for a new middle school in Hanover has “dramatically changed,” said Bruce Gist, director of school construction for the Howard County Public School System. "The exterior presentation has dramatically changed compared to...current middle schools," said Gist at the Board of Education meeting on Thursday, where he presented the new design plans for the school, scheduled to open in fall 2014. Some of the changes were influenced by the developer of Oxford Square, said Gist. "We have a partner in this development," said Gist. David Scheffenacker, the developer of Oxford Square, donated the school site to the Howard County Public School System in 2010, along with $4 million toward construction if it is built by 2014. "We worked …

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Elle

11:09 am on Monday, April 8, 2013

So just seeing the words will make them drink soda? lol   more ›

Plan for Coca Cola Drive Middle School Approved

The plan for the two-story middle school was approved 6-1.

The Howard County school board has approved the schematic design plans for a new middle school near Elkridge. The vote was 6-1, though school board chair Sandra French initially overlooked the opposition of board member Allen Dyer during the board's Feb. 23 meeting. Citing swelling enrollment, the Howard County Board of Education decided in October to pursue plans to build a school on Coca Cola Drive that would open by 2014. By 2013, Elkridge Landing Middle School will be at 119.5 percent capacity, and Mayfield Woods Middle School will be at 115.8 percent capacity, according to the school system's enrollment forecasts. Under the county code, schools must be no more than 115 percent at capacity for new residential development to occur. …

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School System Takes Over Land on Coca Cola Drive, Project is TBD

Staff said they are undecided whether to build an elementary or middle school at Oxford Square parcel, which the school system now owns.

The Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) officially took possession of 20.2 acres on Coca Cola Drive this week but the land designated for a middle school could be repurposed for an elementary school site, officials said. On Tuesday, HCPSS issued a written statement that it had “officially accepted the grant" of 20.2 acres on Coca Cola Drive. The land is within the proposed development of Oxford Square, whose developer donated the parcel to the school system in 2010. What the land will become is another question. The school board approved the site for a middle school in October 2011. According to the Jan. 10 statement from HCPSS: “…staff is considering whether to request the board’s approval to use the site as an elementary school." …

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Developer Joins Community in Fighting Freight Project in Elkridge

Oxford Square developer puts opposition to Hanover/Race Road intermodal site on record.

A major developer told the Elkridge community Tuesday he is against an industrial train-truck transfer station being considered for the area and he and his lawyers are “looking forward to the fight” against the state and CSX. David Scheffenacker, the developer of Oxford Square, a residential and commercial project on Coca Cola Drive, was applauded by residents at the Dec. 6 Greater Elkridge Community Association (GECA) meeting billed as a forum for the “real story” behind the intermodal project. “We are against the freight yard,” Scheffenacker told the audience, “because of our investment in the property down there.” Transportation officials are exploring the possibility of building an intermodal facility—a depot where trains and trucks …

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School Board Asks Officials to 'Strongly Weigh the Impacts' of Proposed Industrial Facility

The Board of Education sent a letter expressing concern about a state project proposed near the county's future middle school site.

On Nov. 3, Elkridge Patch reported that the Howard County Board of Education was writing a letter about its middle school plans and sending it to transportation officials. On Nov. 14, Patch obtained a copy of the letter, which the board sent to the Maryland Department of Transportation last week. The school board recently designated Oxford Square on Coca Cola Drive as the new middle school site to serve the northeast. Less than two miles away is land on Hanover and Race Roads that transportation officials are eyeing for an intermodal facility, a place for trains and trucks to exchange cargo. "On behalf of my colleagues on the Board of Education, I request that you strongly weigh the impacts of developing the Hanover candidate site..." …

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Robert Judge

10:23 pm on Tuesday, November 15, 2011

The Oxford Square school site WAS controversial before the Intermodal was proposed. This site is currently in the middle of several industrial parks. The proposed school site is too close to a major freight rail line. Due to safety concerns, this site never should have been considered for a school in the first place. The only reason this site was considered as a school site was because a …   more ›

Howard County School Board Writes to Transportation Officials

Chairwoman of the Board of Education said the correspondence is to keep Maryland Department of Transportation apprised of its plans.

The Howard County Board of Education planned to send a letter to the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) this week to inform the department about plans for a middle school on Coca Cola Drive—a site that could be less than 2 miles from a proposed freight hub. The Maryland Department of Transportation and CSX are currently evaluating four sites for a train-truck operation called an "intermodal facility," and one location is within 1.5 miles of the middle school site. “We've drafted a letter and are expressing that we’d like them to consider our plans as part of the [intermodal site selection] process,” said Janet Siddiqui, chair of the Howard County Board of Education, speaking during an outreach event in Elkridge on Oct. 29. …

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