Senior Housing Proposal Irks Eldersburg Residents

Local residents will soon be given a chance to weigh in on the senior housing proposal for Oklahoma Road in a forum closer to home, county media liaison Roberta Windham said Friday.

About 40 residents made the trip Tuesday morning to the Carroll County Building in Westminster to voice their concerns, which ranged from traffic density to rural preservation, at a planning concept review hearing, according to an ExploreCarroll.com report.

"The mass and scale of those buildings just doesn't fit into the surrounding community," resident George McCubbin told Explore Carroll.

Windham said that a community meeting with Commissioner Doug Howard is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on April 30, at the in Eldersburg.

"Folks are encouraged to stay engaged," she said. "The process can be very long an arduous … and could require people to go to multiple meetings."

At issue is whether county authorities should approve or modify a plan to allow a senior housing development on land that is zoned for small, single-home lots — with conditional use. Conditional means that developers must ask for permission to design and build on the property.

The process starts with the Carroll County Planning Commission, which then sends a proposal to the Board of Zoning Appeals. The zoning appeals board can grant or deny the conditional use, along with setting any variances that would change conditions, such as the number of parking spaces required or building height, Windham said. 

There could be at least three or four more public meetings on this issue before the planning commission sends its own proposal to the board of zoning appeals, she said. 

The land where the senior housing development would be located, known as the Ely Property, belongs to Rockville developer Marc Silverman as the trustee to property owners Minnie Aleta Adams and Arla A. Ely. Silverman developed the in Westminster.

Neighbors in opposition to the senior housing have rallied to form a website, "Stop the Oklahoma Rd. High Density Development," which includes a copy of the project description and sketches.

Patch blogger Brad Smith kicked up some dust around the issue in that led to dozens of comments.

"Any development you consider, commercial or residential, should not be approved if it disturbs existing residents," Smith wrote. "Growth can still occur with this approach, but it happens in a much more controlled, as well as less irritating manner."

Proponents in step with Smith cite traffic concerns and say Oklahoma Road is already handling as much traffic as it can, and they argue that adding four buildings with 235 units would lessen the county's appeal of a rural lifestyle.

One diplomatic reader had a different response.

"One does have to remember that if it indeed is a development for seniors—it will not be an increase of as many cars as it would be if it were standard apartments," . "Most people moving into Assisted Livings and facilities for Memory impairments do not have cars.

"Yes, there are many of these communities in Baltimore and Howard Counties. But if your loved one needed one, wouldn't you want them near you?"

Read full coverage of Tuesday's hearing here, and check back with Patch for more updates.

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