Tag: Harford County MD

UPDATE- Harford County Council Passes Zoning Amendments That Go Beyond Planning Recommendations

Council Members Reilly (8 amendments) and Boyle-Tsottles (1 amendment) introduced changes that allow high-intensity zoning- see how each member voted.

The chart below summarizes how each Harford County Council member voted on Amendments 1 through 9 to Bill 25-002, the Comprehensive Zoning legislation currently under consideration. The council members introduced, seconded, and acted on all amendments. 

As shown, all of the amendments were approved, which increased zoning intensity beyond what was recommended by Planning & Zoning and the Planning Advisory Board (PAB).

Notably, Councilman Bennett consistently voted “No” on amendments that sought higher-intensity zoning without public justification. He shared the following during the meeting:

Councilman Bennett stated:
“As we go through each of these amendments, I wanted to make sure I shared that… all involve going higher than the recommended placement from Planning and Zoning and the PAB. I think it’s really important for public clarity and consumption that thorough rationale is provided for each one. Without that, I wouldn’t feel comfortable supporting these.”

We appreciate the importance of transparency and accountability in the zoning process, and we will continue to keep you informed on the County Council’s final vote on Bill 25-002, expected during the special legislative session on April 22nd.

Thank you for continuing to be part of the voice for responsible land use in Harford County.

Sincerely,
Friends of Harford

 

Bill 25-002 Amendments Vote Tracker (4_15_25) CorrectedDownload

UPDATE: 2025 Comprehensive Zoning Review

As part of the 2025 Comprehensive Zoning Review, Friends of Harford has compiled the following charts, organized by District, as a resource for the community.

Each chart includes: the application number, map link, property address, total acres, acres proposed for rezoning, current zoning, requested zoning, Planning Advisory Board (PAB) recommendation, County Executive recommendations (Bill 25-002), and Friends of Harford’s (FoH) assessment.

At the conclusion of the review process, Friends of Harford will update the charts to reflect each County Council member’s vote on each application. Any changes to Bill 25-002 will be voted on by the County Council as individual issues.

Now is the time for public input—please take a moment to review the information. Once a property is up-zoned, it is rarely reversed. 

Comprehensive Zoning Review Page and Charts 

 

 

Friends of Harford Statement on Bill 24-001 Accessory Dwelling Units

Stephanie Flasch wrote to Harford County Council sponsors of Bill 24-001: Councilman Penman, Councilwoman Tsottles and Councilman Guthrie on behalf of Friends of Harford. The letter outlines concerns regarding Bill 24-001, particularly its implications for impacts to our communities. 

Friends of Harford Letter to Harford County Council Re: Bill 24-001
Position-Statement-Bill-24-001-1Download

Harford County Proposed Bill 24-001

Bill-No.-24-001-As-Introduced-1Download

Friends of Harford 2023 Annual Meeting

All are welcome to attend the Friends of Harford Annual Meeting. Join us Saturday, April 22, 2023 at the Anita Leight Estuary Center located at 700 Otter Point Road, Abingdon, Maryland from 1pm-3pm.

Friends of Harford continues to support community-based advocacy, provide up-to-date resources for land use development procedures and advocate for policies for responsible land use.

Spring kick-starts the Friends of Harford (FOH) 2023 fiscal year! Harford’s quality of life remains our priority!

Your support helps Friends of Harford to:

  • Publish a Scorecard – tracks land use legislation and voting records of County Council representatives. Recent Action: Bill No. 23-005 – As Introduced Moratorium-Warehouse
  • Issue Alerts to Citizens: Development Advisory Committee (DAC), Community Input Meetings (CIM), Special Exceptions for development and Legislation. Recent Action: Eva Mar, Price Property.
  • Educate Community Groups about the Zoning Code and Development.
  • Provide Testimony at Public Hearings. Public Input Action: Bill 22-003 – Perryman Peninsula Moratorium, Bill 21-003 – Gas Station. 
  • Maintain an Informative Website with Topics on Navigating the Land Use Process in Harford County. 

Click to Donate!

Abingdon Woods UPDATE- January 20, 2023

Harford County filed a brief to Harford County Circuit Court on January 18, 2023 changing the County’s position on the current Forest Conservation Plan (FCP) for Abingdon Business Park.

The County is now in agreement with the Maryland Supreme Court, which raised concerns about the current FCP. Any permits issued under the current plan are no longer valid and there is a stop work order. 

The Save Abingdon Woods Coalition took this position back in September of 2019 when meeting with the Harford County Director of Planning and Zoning to point out a number of serious deficiencies in the current Forest Conservation Plan and to ask the county to seek a new one by starting from scratch with a new Forest Stand Delineation and a new Forest Conservation Plan.

Save Abingdon Woods and Friends of Harford and others are delighted to learn that the current administration agrees with this position. 

AEGIS January 20, 2023

Harford County Halts Work At Abingdon Woods Development

Scorecard Update May 2022

View the lastest Harford County Council legislative “scorecard” provided by Friends of Harford. 

Stay tuned for updates on land use legislation and track how your County Council representative voted! 

Highlights include: 

Bill 22-003- Perryman Peninsula Moratorium– Passed unanimously by Council, then vetoed by County Executive.

FOH OPINION– Failure to submit the opportunity for individual Council members to support the moratorium again shows a lack of transparency in the local legislative process. Seven Council members voted to approve the moratorium and now not one of them were given the opportunity to speak to the public about the bill.

County Executive Glassman vetoed the bill May 2, 2022 and County Council President Vincenti chose not to discuss overriding the veto the following legislative session. By Harford County charter, the council has until the following legislative session, which would have been the May 3, 2022 meeting, the day after the veto to override the veto of a bill. 

The legislative branch, led by Vincenti should have been aware of the process of veto and should have been prepared to discuss this in the presence of citizens. Instead, there was no discussion, disappointing many citizens. 

Friends of Harford SCORECARD UPDATE MAY 2022Download
Scorecard Update May 2022

Proposed Mega Warehouse Concerns

Abingdon Business Park and Perryman Peninsula share burdens from proposed mega-warehouse complexes.  One writer to the Aegis shared those concerns.

The following Op-Ed was published in the AEGIS January 26, 2022

Greg LaCour shows his teal Protect Perryman Peninsula cap. Matt Button/The Aegis

County should halt warehouse developments to protect environment

I watched the last couple meetings of the Harford County Council and was interested in the comments about Perryman. 

The citizens living in Perryman have every right to be concerned about adding more warehouses, especially ones built on Harford County wells. Also more heavy truck traffic on county roads increases the already dangerous conditions. All this is above and beyond what they should have to deal with. Developing this property would increase environmental damage to Bush River and the Chesapeake Bay.

Billy Boniface, chief adviser to County Executive Barry Glassman, wrote to the owners of the Perryman property and suggested they put the property in preservation. He indicated this would create a lifetime legacy for the county and the property owners. Members of the Abingdon Business Park coalition have asked Boniface to write a similar letter to the owners of this 325 acre property. He did not acknowledge this request. Citizens involved with Abingdon coalition have also voiced concerns at the council meetings. They have written letters and met individually with their representatives. They mentioned the vacant warehouse and retail spaces, concerns about the effect of pollution, heavy traffic and loss of property values. The folks in Abingdon, as in Perryman, want to see a halt to warehouses that are adjacent to or in residential areas regardless of the zoning. They want to make sure the Ha Ha Branch, Otter Point Creek, Bush River and the Bay are not contaminated by heavy truck traffic and related chemical runoff.

This council voted to include Abingdon Business Park in the enterprise zone in April 2019. This was a bad decision.

Enterprise zone tax relief is for under developed property or property that needs revitalization. This incentive is to create good paying jobs. The enterprise zone investment is to create an economic engine for the county. Warehouse jobs are not high paying jobs. Robotic machinery is often used in place of workers. And as we know, warehouses often stay vacant at county taxpayer expense.

Destroying woods, wildlife, streams and rivers can never be undone.
Harford County residents deserve better.

Janet Hardy, Abingdon

For more information on the opposition to proposed projects click on links below. 

Save Abingdon Woods

Protect Perryman Peninsula  

Friends of Harford Scorecard, Update March 2021

View the lastest Harford County Council legislative “scorecard” provided by Friends of Harford. Stay tuned for updates on land use legislation and track how your County Council representative voted! 

Highlights:

Bill 21-001 Community Solar Energy Generating System (CSEGS)

Sponsor: Council President Vincenti for County Executive Glassman
Adds CSEGS to Zoning Code definition as a principal use of sun for electric power generation

  • Added as a Special Development where Director of Planning & Zoning has sole authority to allow
  • Limits to 2 megawatts of capacity (AC)
  • Not allowed in AG
  • Not allowed in Natural Resource District or Chesapeake Bay Critical area
  • All residential has acreage limitations and added buffering
  • Allowed in all business, commercial and industrial districts with current buffers
  • Required decommissioning to original land with a payment to the County of 115% of anticipated cost for the
    entirety of the use For more Information

FOH: Opinion: A Special Exception rather than a Special Development should be required for approval to allow neighbors the opportunity to weigh in on the use. This use should be allowed in the AG District.

Amendments introduced by Councilman Wagner and sponsored by all County Council members.

New Definition- Viewshed as an area of land, water or other environmental element that is visible from a fixed
vantage point, in context with historic preservation. Viewsheds may be described as areas of particular scenic or historic value that are deemed worthy of preservation from impacts resulting from development or other
forms of change.

Replaces uses and districts with the following:
• Requires the use to be a Special Exception (not a Special Development)
• GI District will be a permitted use and not require a Special Exception
• Removes parcel size limitations
• Increases structure location to 250′ from offsite dwelling unit from 200′
• Adds that no location will be within the Viewshed of a property listed on Harford County Historical list.
• Site shall avoid visual corridors that are scenic Viewsheds or areas. Shall not be located within 1 mile
on either side of any designated scenic by-way on any County or State maintained road.
• Increases time for restoration of site for decommissioning from 6 to 12 months.
• Increases bond, surety, letter of credit or other financial assurance from 115% to 125% of anticipated
cost of removal.
Vote was unanimous in approval of all amendments.

View Scorecard