Rosewood Center To Be Transferred To Stevenson University

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Stevenson University will more than double the size of its campus with the transfer of a large parcel of land that will supplement its 60-acre campus in Owings Mills.

The Board of Public Works on Wednesday approved the sale of 117 acres from the state of Maryland to the university for $1, during its meeting in Annapolis.

The property that will be transferred has been known as the Rosewood Center and is located off Rosewood Lane.

Operated through the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the Rosewood Center closed in 2009, according to state records.

The three members of the Board of Public Works — the state comptroller, treasurer and governor — were unanimous in their support of the sale.

To allow for the transfer, the state previously declared the Rosewood Center as surplus property.

Comptroller Peter Franchot noted that letting go of the property would save taxpayers, as it has cost $17 million since 2010 for the state to maintain and keep secure.

According to state documentation, there has been significant environmental contamination at the site that will require $12 million in remediation.*

The agreement that was approved June 7 requires the deed to convey to Stevenson no later than Oct. 18, 2019, which will allow for remediation to take place. The university plans to demolish the structures at the site, according to the proposal.

"I am convinced that this is one of the best investments we could make," Treasurer Nancy Copp said at Wednesday's meeting.

Stevenson University President Kevin Manning said that some work may begin in the next couple of months on the project but "you're really going to be seeing progress within a year." He said the community would be involved.

After years of negotiating to bring the land transfer to fruition, he said it was a "perfect moment" on which to retire from his post after 17 years as the university's leader.

Manning saw the institution through a name change from Villa Julie to Stevenson University in 2008. Under his leadership, Stevenson doubled its enrollment — currently 4,185 — evolving from a commuter college in the Greenspring Valley to include a residential university campus in Owings Mills.

Those who spoke at the public works meeting on Wednesday noted the contributions that Stevenson has made to Maryland, including drawing out-of-state students who have since turned into residents.

• Stevenson University President Retires

Support for the Rosewood deal came from community associations and lawmakers around the region, according to documentation filed with the state: The Valley Planning Council, Greater Greenspring Association, Reisterstown Owings Mills - Glyndon Coordinating Council, Cedarmere Association, St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Country Club Estates Community Association of Reisterstown, Owings Mills New Town Community Association, Maryland General Assembly, 11th District and elected officials in the jurisdiction.

Senator Bobby Zirkin, whose district includes Owings Mills, said that the first conversation he had with Gov. Larry Hogan when he got elected was about the Rosewood Center.

"We're trying to have a beer and he still is bringing it up," Hogan joked at Wednesday's meeting, adding that he admired Zirkin for such "tenacity."

Delegate Dan Morhaim called the unanimous approval of the proposal a "legacy vote" that would pay off for the state in years to come, positing it as an "opportunity to turn Rosewood from falling-down buildings in a toxic waste dump to ball fields" and other amenities for the community.

* According to the proposal approved by the board of public works, the following is the environmental remediation plan:

"Stevenson University will accomplish the environmental remediation by using State grants of general obligation bond proceeds. The 2017 MCCBL authorizes an award of $5 million – and
pre-authorizes awards of $5 million in the 2018 MCCBL and $6 million in the 2019 MCCBL –
to Stevenson University for this property. The bond bill funds will be used to complete the
environmental abatement and remediation (including demolishing structures and re-grading the
site) and to disconnect and relocate utilities and road-ways through the Rosewood complex."

Photo of the Rosewood Center by SheepNotGoats via Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0. Still shots from the Board of Public Works meeting broadcast live from Annapolis on Wednesday, June 7, 2017.