Thanks to our colleagues at the Chesapeake Legal Alliance, the Broadneck Council was able to fight the plan by Koch Homes to build a 160 unit Assisted Living Complex on Bellerive Road (off College Parkway) as part of their new 2007 Deep Creek Villas Development on Deep Creek off the Magothy River. Part of the Assisted Living development was located directly in the critical areas and would have brought delivery trucks, resident traffic, ambulances et al…into the waterfront area that had been permitted by the County for only town homes and single family homes.. Unbelievably, the County OPZ supported this request for a variance and the fight was on. Through the pro-bono assistance of Russ Stevenson, the President of the Chesapeake Legal Alliance who represented the BCC, the lawyers from the State Critical Area Commission, and Executive Director of the Growth Action Network-(GAN) who also provided support and council –we fought this out at the County Administrative Hearing Officer (AHO) level who ruled in our favor. The residents of Bellerive Road was protected from this incursion
and the critical areas of the Magothy received a reprieve until the next developer decides to sidestep the law and work towards gaining approval for homes in this sensitive environment.
After we won the AHO judgment, a message was sent directly to me by G. Koch, owner and President of Koch Homes that “..you won this one but I will continue to develop every square foot of the Broadneck Peninsula that I can!”….And we continue to watch this developer and many others encroach on our lovely critical areas properties and those nearby to expand their business and build on our shorelines.
I am forwarding this news from the CLA ….FYI….re: their alliance with Whole Foods Market….to acquaint you with the actions of this wonderful organization who works with us in support of “protecting the Chesapeake and the Broadneck
–Pat Lynch, President
Broadneck Council of Communities, Inc.
