Fate of Forge Road Could be Announced This Week

UPDATE (May 9, 12 a.m.)—A decision to reopen Forge Road or keep it closed to through traffic is expected to be announced this week, officials said. 

An "informational meeting" with members of the Forge Road task force has been scheduled for Monday.

The meeting, which is not intended for the general public, will be hosted by the State Highway Administration and the Baltimore County Department of Public Works, County Councilman David Marks said. 

County officials closed the Belair Road entrance to a portion of Forge Road in March 2010. Since then, Forge Road residents on that stretch have been able to access their street only from Honeygo Boulevard.

The closure's main purpose was to encourage drivers to use the newly constructed Honeygo Boulevard extension to Belair Road, according to records from a State Highway Administration meeting held June 28. The closure was also intended to reduce traffic near a new Richmond American Homes development called Forge Reserve.

The fate of Forge Road has divided residents and businesses. Some residents have favored the closure while business owners have largely favored a reopening.  

Karen McGregor, who works in the Forge Road Professional Center, estimates that about 20 drivers per day turn onto Forge Road from Belair Road—only to turn around after realizing that large concrete barriers prevent them from reaching Honeygo Boulevard.

McGregor, a 47-year-old dental assistant, said the closure has made the area more dangerous and more difficult for area business owners and customers alike. The corner of Belair Road and Forge Road also offers access to the and a .

"It's now a dead-end road. Two weeks after they closed it—it was Easter Sunday—kids with baseball bats broke our window," she said.

But 86-year-old Angela Kahl, a longtime resident of Forge Road, said she would prefer keeping the road closed. 

"They should leave it exactly as it is," Kahl said. "There's a lot less traffic."

She added that the neighborhood has felt safer over the past year.

Check Patch for updates.