Route 3 Zoning Changes to Remain

Anne Arundel County Executive John R. Leopold vetoed portions of a comprehensive rezoning bill affecting parts of West county, but left intact changes to zoning along the Route 3 corridor.

Leopold on Thursday rejected four amendments to Bill 12-11, which was passed by the county council last week and sought rezoning in District 1 and District 4. The vetoed amendments pertained to four proposed zoning changes in Hanover, Jessup and Linthicum.

In a letter to the county council explaining the vetoes, he expressed concern over density on three of the properties, and said one proposed change ran contrary to the concept of mixed-use zoning.

Leopold did not veto zoning changes to parcels along Route 3, despite calls from some residents who expressed concern about the potential for increased commercial development. Community groups also voiced worry about a lack of public notice and the lack of proposed transitional zoning between commercial zones and low-density residential neighborhoods.

Also Thursday, Leopold withdrew Bill 44-11, which was to address comprehensive rezoning in Districts 6 and 7.  The county executive said he would not resubmit the bill until the county council showed it would become more transparent in its process of reviewing zoning changes.

"That’s kind of unfortunate that it belatedly recognized difficulties with this process," said Tim Berkoff, the environment and zoning chair for Crofton First, which had urged Leopold to veto the changes on Route 3. "It appears they provided no redress for the folks impacted by the first bill, and that’s a shame.”