During the last Council meeting, on Tuesday, September 6, the long saga of Comprehensive Rezoning for our District (District 6) finally came to a close. During that meeting, the Council considered the County Executive’s line-item vetoes of 16 amendments from Bill 44-11. Bill 44-11 was passed three weeks prior on August 15, and it contained 46 amendments – some of which were inconsistent with the County’s General Development Plan and the communities’ Small Area Plans. Bill 44-11 dealt with both District 6 (the Greater Annapolis area) and District 7 (South County, and parts of Crofton and Gambrills). 15 of the 16 vetoes were in District 7, and the one veto in District 6 was an amendment that passed despite my opposition. Throughout the entire process, I worked with our communities and the staff of the Office of Planning and Zoning (OPZ) to adhere to the principles of responsible growth, to protect the character of our neighborhoods, and to respect the land use policies outlined in the General Development Plan and the Small Area Plans.
The vast majority of rezonings that occurred in District 6 were proposed by OPZ in Bill 44-11 as introduced by the County Executive. I introduced a handful of amendments to include some proposals not originally put forward by OPZ, and I also modified some of their original proposals. None of the amendments I introduced was strongly opposed by OPZ. There was one particular proposal in the original bill, known as the “Wedding Chapel” property on Generals Highway, which I sought to remove with an amendment. I did this because it was strongly opposed by the neighboring communities and was inconsistent with the Crownsville Small Area Plan. Unfortunately, that amendment was defeated. I asked the County Executive to strike that proposal from the Bill using the line-item veto, but he was unable to do so due to a technicality resulting from the way the Bill 44-11 was structured. In my opinion, that is the one blemish on the District 6 rezoning.
District 7 rezoning was a much different story. Councilman Walker of District 7 introduced dozens of amendments, some of which I supported, but many I opposed. Many friends and colleagues in South County appealed to me to support their communities and vote against the proposals that violated the long-range planning strategies designed to “Keep South County Rural”. I voted against many of these amendments, but despite my opposition, most of them were passed by the other members of the Council. Some of the rezonings were so egregious that I considered voting against the entire bill. Ultimately, I decided to vote for the bill, but to work with the County Executive to strip out some of the rezonings using the line-item veto. I worked hard publicly and behind the scenes to try to uphold many of those vetoes. I solicited an opinion from the Secretary of the Maryland Department of Planning concerning a 2009 state law that stated that local land ordinances needed to be consistent with local planning documents. I met with members of the community and spoke to my Council Colleagues one-on-one. In the end, six of the sixteen vetoes were upheld.
I want to thank the members of our communities for working with me during this very complex process. We have some good work to show for our efforts. In several of the District 6 rezonings, we were able to secure conservation easements to ensure environmentally sensitive areas were preserved and forever protected from development. In others, we were able to negotiate community covenants which forbid certain objectionable activities or uses on the properties. All in all, I am proud of what we accomplished, and I am proud of the communities I represent for being so engaged in the process.
In other news, I hope that we are finished with natural disasters for a while. I know all of us were affected in some way by this summer’s extreme temperatures, the earthquake, Hurricane Irene, or the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee. As our communities continue to clean up, let us be thankful that the cooler temperatures of autumn are on the way. Hopefully the mosquito population will allow us to enjoy being outside once again. I will be celebrating the dedication of the new Reading and Butterfly Garden at Quiet Waters Park on Wednesday, September 14 at 4:45. See here for more information.
As always, I enjoy hearing from my constituents. Feel free to contact my office any time. Also, please let Janice or me know of important events in your community.
I continue to feel honored to represent you on the County Council.
- Chris
410-222-1401
ctrumbauer@aacounty.org
ctrumbauer@aacounty.org
