HomeMy WebLinkAbout931115 and 931116Nov ember 15 , 1993
Hagerstown , Maryl and 21740
JOINT PUBLI C BEARING -REZONING CASES RZ-93-6-1, RZ-93-6-2 AND RZ-93-6-3
A Joint Public Heari ng of the Board of Cou nty Commissioners of Washington County
and the Was hington Coun ty Plann ing Comm ission was convened in Court Room No , 1
a t 7:00 p .m. to hear testimony regarding proposed I nterchange Study -Group 1,
rezoning cases RZ-93-6-1 , RZ -93-6-2, and RZ-93-6-3 . Presiding at the hearing
were County Commi ssioners ' President Richar d E. Roulett e and Planning Commi ssion
Chai r man, Bert rand Iseminger . Also present at the h earing were County
Comm issioners Ronald L. Bowers , Vice President , Linda C. Irv i n-Craig , J ohn S.
Sha nk a nd Gregory 1. Snook , alo ng with Planning Comm ission members Robert Erns t,
Carol Johnson, Bernard Moser , Donald Spickl er , and Andrew Bowen . Staff Reports
were presented by Edward Schreiber , Associate Planner , a nd after all
presentations and t estimony for t he cases were he ard , it was anno unced that the
record will remain open f or ten (10) days to allow additional t estimony to be
submit ted i n writing. The hearing was adjourned at 7:50 p.m .
Countttorney
_::-_\ .... cw.....___\__,~-~ ...... -........,..~---' Clerk
November 16, 1993
Hagerstown, Maryland 21740
The Regular Meeting of the Board of Co unty Commi ssioners of Wash i ngton Co unty wa s
called to order at 9:00 a .m. by the Presiden t , Richard E. Roulette , with the
following members present : Vice President Ronald L. Bowers , a nd Commissioners
Linda c. Irvin-Craig, Gregory I . Snook , and J ohn S. Shank.
PRESENTATI ON OF IACPp•• .a. CORPORATION AWARD
Bishop Rob inson, Secretar y of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and
Correctional Services , and Commi ssioner Richar d Lanham , presented an award from
the Internatio nal Association of Chiefs of Police and Dupo nt Corpot"ation Survival
to Stephen Nuckel s , a correct ional officer at Roxbury Correctional Institution ,
a nd his wife . Secretary Robinson explained t hat Mr . Nuckels wa s attacked while
on duty but wa s saved from serious inj ur y by protective armor.
INVOCATIOR AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Th e Invocation wa s de l ivered by Comm issioner Roulette, followed by the Pledge of
Allegiance to the Flag by the full assemblage.
STATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES UPDATE & PLANS -SECRETARY ROBINSON
Secretary Robinson a nd Comm issioner Lanham along with Senator John Derr and
Delegates Peter Callas a nd Anita Stup, met wi t h the Commissioners . Secretary
Robinson provided an overview of the State correctional facilit i es and new
fac ilities under construction. He also distributed copies of a Briefing of the
Legislative Subcommittees o n Public Safety . Commissioner Roulette expressed
Was hington Cou nty 's o n-goi ng interest in expansion of t he prison work group
program and Comm issioner Bowers i ndicated that the County Road s Department wo uld
provide t he State with a dump truck, spreader , a nd s now plow at no charge in
excha nge for a second wo r k crew. Secretary Robi nson stated that t hey would be
expl oring the possib ility of hiring retired o fficers to s upe rvise t he work crews
to help lower the costs . The Commi ssioners also discussed construction of a
joint recycling facility o n t h e prison property . Secretary Robinson expressed
a n interest in pursuing this project and provided nam es of local contact people
for County personne l to communicate with t o proceed with negotiations.
FISCAL YEAR 1992-93 AUDIT REPORT
Mi chael Mans peaker , represen ting Smith , Elliott , Kearns & Company, and James
Young , Di rector of Finance , appeared before the Commi ssioners t o revi ew the
Fiscal Year 1992-93 Audit Report. Mr . Manspeaker stated the County appears to
be i n a good f inancial s ituation, and it is significant that the County wa s able
to get through th e p a st fiscal year without reducing the Fund Balance. He
indicated t hat t he Cou nty fi nis hed the fisca l year with a $11 ,340 excess of
revenu es over expend itures for the General Fund.
Commissioner Bowers was excused from the Meeting at 11:00 a .rn .
BID OPENING -COORTY AUTO FLEET I NSURANCE
Bids for the Cou nty 's Auto Fleet Insurance were publicly opened a nd read al oud .
Firms partic ipating i n the bidding a nd t heir proposals were as follows: Stine ,
Davis & Peck -$95 ,376 premi um ; Gosnell Hviding Insurance Co . -$97 ,272 premi um;
NOVEMBER 16, 1993
MINUT ES , CONT 'D.
a nd Willis-Corroon -$93 ,867 premium. The bids will be reviewed by appropriate
oEe icials prior to a decision being rendered .
NEWCOMER ROAD BRIDGE -CBANGE ORDER 12
Motion mad e by Commi ssioner Snook, seconded by Shank, to approve Charige Order #2
in the amoun t of $19,221 for desig n and construction of new abutments for the
Newcomer Road Bridge to replace existing abutments , Una nimously approved .
CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
Th ere was no one present who wished to participate .
TABLE REZONING APPLICATIOl!I RZ-93-11 -TEXT AMENl»tENT
Motlon made by Conunis sioner Snook , second ed by Shank, to TABLE Rezoning Case RZ-
93-11 until it is further reviewed by the County Attorney . Unani mously approved .
REZONING APPLICATIO'l!I RZ-93-10 -TEU AKENQIENT
Mot ion 1nade by Comm issioner Irvin-Craig , second ed by Snook, to approve Rezoning
Text Amendment RZ-93-10 which mod ifies Sections 4.11, 19A .5 , and 19B .5, of the
Zoning Ordinance by clarifying language a nd developi ng consistency within the HI-
1 and HI-2 Highway Interchange District r equ irenrnnts . Unani1rt ously approved.
REZONING APPLICATIOll RZ-93-8 -NAP AMENQIENT
Motion rnade by Com,nissloner Shank , seconded by Irvin-Craig, to accept the
dei:initi.on of ne ighbol'."hood , the followi ng Findings of Fact presented by the
County Attorney together wi th the Report~ a nd Recomm endation of the Planning
Commi ssion for RZ-93-8, requested to be rezoned from "RS" Res idential Suburban
to "BT " Business Transitional, pursuant to Section 27.3 of the Zoning Ordinance
of Was hington County. Unanimously approved .
(a ) Defini.tion of the Ne ighborhood.
Th e neighborhood is defined as that area 1/4 mile west of t h e subject property,
1/2 mile east of the subject property , a nd extending .4 miles north of the
Maugans Avenue/Longmeadow Road/U .S . 11 i ntersection a nd e nding .7 miles south of
the Maugans Avenue/Longmeadow Road/U .S . 11 intersection.
(b ) Th e report and recomm e nd ations of the Plann ing a nd Zoni ng Commi ssion.
The Wa s hington County Plann ing Commi ssion took action at its regular meeting held
on Nov ember l, 1993 to recomm end approval of the rezoni ng of t wo parcels of
property, owned respectively by Larry a nd Candy Mun son, and Willi am and Ir i s
Reeder , from RS -Residen tial Suburban to BT -Business Transit ion a . Th e
reconune ndation wa s based on the Commi ssion's opinio n that the applicant
substantiated that a change in the char.acter of t he neighborhood had occur~ed.
(c ) Population change i n the area of the proposed change .
The subject property is l ocated in Electio n Di strict 27 . From 196 0 to 1970 , the
population of Election District 27 increased from 3258 to 5310 . It decreased
from 1970 to 198 0 to 5 ,069, and again from 1980 to 199 0 to 500 3 .
(d) Availability of public facilities i n the area .
According to t he adopted Water and Sewerage Plan for Washington County , the
subj ect sites are classified W-1 and S-l. Both public water and sewer are
currently available to both parcels and are l ocated i 1nm ed iately adjacent to the
properties in the right-of-way of u.s. 11. Fire protection is provided by the
Long1neadow Volunteer Fire Com~any and emergency med ical service is provided by
the Maug a nsvill e substation of the Community Rescue Se rvice. The closest County
Commuter. bus route i s a l ong Pennsylvania Av enue with regularly sch eduled service
Monday through Saturday . Paramoun t Elame ntary , No rthern Middle a nd No rth
Hag erstown High School receive students from the vicinity of the subject::
rezoning. Th e proposed rezo ning should have no effect on school e nro llment.
(e ) Present a nd future transportat i o n patter.ns in the area .
The subj ect properties have approxima t e ly 225 feet of fro nt footage on U.S . Route
11, and the Muns on property which is one of the parcels subject to this rezoning,
has 200 feet of footage along April Street which is a one-way street run ning from
U.S. Route 11 to Spriggs Road. U.S. Route 11 is designated as a minor arterial
by the Wa s hington County Highway Plan and is expected to carry 5,000 to 25 ,000
vehicles per day. TraEfic counts indicate , as of 1986 , approximately 26 ,000
vehicles at the int ersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and Lo ngmeadow Road before
the realignment of said i n tecsection . There ace no projects anticipated by the
State Consolidated Transportation Program for this area . The intersection of
U.S. 11/Maugans Avenue/Longmeadow Road has just been upg raded by Washing t on
Cou nty wi th geometric and signal i mprovements that s hould enhance the level of
service for both east/west and north/south bound traffic.
NOVEMBER 16 , 1993
MINUTES, CONT 'D.
(£) Compatibility with existing and proposed developme nt in the area
i ncludjng indication of neighboring sites identified by the Washington County
Historic Sites Survey and subsequent revisions or updates.
The proposed rezoning classification is con1patible with existing and proposed
development in the area. Since rezoning went into effec t, there have bee n
numerous rezonings in the neighborhood of the subject properties, namely of a
commercial nature. Most new development in the vicinity of this site and the
immediate neighborhood has been of a commercial nature . New deve lopment has
occurred on parcel s rezoned from Residential to Commercial, and businesses
established on locations vacated by businesses that have closed or relocated, or
at existing businesses zoned commercial that have remodeled or expanded . New
residential development has not occurred on Route 11 but has occurred in the
general vicinity of the s ubject proper.ties approximately .25 to .5 miles to the
east along both the north and south side of Longm eadow Road. The following
historic site listed o n the Washington Co unty Historic Sites Survey i s located
within a .5 mile radius of the proposed rezoning. The site is not located on the
s ubject property .
WA-1-372 19th Century, Marbeth Farm
(g) Th e relationsh ip of the property chang e to the Adopted Plan for the
Countv , Development Analvsis Plan Map and Policies .
Subj ec t properties are located within the adopted Urban Growth Area boundary , and
the Comprehensive Plan encourages development within the said Growth Area. The
Plan encourages higher densities of d evelopment in the comm ercial sector to mak e
the most of i nves tments in infrastructure. The reques t presents no conflict with
the Comprehensive Plan. The parce ls are of such a small size that t hey would
represent little if any growth .
(h) That there has been a substantial change in the character of the
neighborhood where the orooertv is located .
The Board of County Commissioners finds that there has been a substantial change
in the character of the neighborhood where the property is located since the
Zoning Ordinance went into ef feet . Numerous rezonings hav e occurred in the
immediate vicinity of. this property, in the neighborhood, and most development
nas been of a commercial nature . The proposed rezoning t o BT is fully compatible
~ith the neighborhood and provides a transition from residential development to
~ommercial development.
(i ) That there was a mistake in t he existing zoning classification .
rhis has not been alleged by applicant.
Motion mad e by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Snook, that based
and Recommendation of the Planning Commi ssion, the definition of
~nd the approved Findings oE Fact, there has been a substantial
K:haracter of the neighborhood where the p C"operty is located.
~ppr.oved.
on the Report
neighbo-i:-hood ,
change in the
Unanimously
~otion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Snook, that based on the Report
and Recommendation of the Planning Commission, the definition of neighborhood ,
the adopted Findings of Fact that there has been a s ubstantial change in the
character of the ne ighborhood, that there has been a convincing dernonstration
that the requested rezoning would be appropriate a nd logical for the subject
Jroperty . Unanimously approved .
Motion made by Commissioner Shank , seconded by Irvin-Cralg, that, based on the
?rev ious Motions for RZ-93-8, the s ubjec t property be rezoned Erom "RS "
Residential Suburban to "BT" Business Transitional. Unanimously approved.
~ILLIAMSPORT RECYCLABLE COLLECTl ON AGREEMENT
James Black, Assistant Mayor for the Town of Williamsport , me t wi.th the
:ommi ss ioners regard i. ng the Pilot Curbside Recyclable Collect ion Agreement.
;:ouncilman Black presented the Ordinance which the Williamsport Mayor and Council
r;1dopted to establish mandatory residential recyc ling for the Commiss toners '
approval,
~otion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Shank, to approve exec ution of the
~ilot Curbside Collection Agreement b etween the Town of Williamsport and the
~ashington County Board of County Commissioners . Unanimously approved. (Copy
pf approved Agreement is attached .)
BID RENEWAL -ROOF I NG I NSPECTION MA INTENANCE SERVICE
fotion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Snook, to renew the contract for
~oofing inspection mainte nance services for a 1 year period with Bonded
NOVEMBER 16, 1993
MINUTES , CONT 'D.
Applicators of Maryland, Inc. for the current contract price of $1 ,175.
Unanimously approved .
REQUEST FOR PAYMENT-IN-LIEU OF TAXES -NORTH HOLLY PLACE
Mot ion mad e by Co mrni ss ionet" Snook, seconded by Irv in-Craig, to approve the
payme nt-in-lieu of taxes as requested by Sen ior Living Alternatives , I nc ., for
North Holly Place , to be consisten t wi th the adopte d policy and application with
payment not to exceed the current cap established. Unanimously approved.
RECESS
Th e Commissioners recessed at 12: 00 noon in order to attend a meeting and
luncheo n with the Board of Education.
Commissioner Bowers returned to t h e Meeting at this time .
LUNCHEON AND MEETIN:G WITH BOARD OF EDUCATION
Th e Comm1 ss ioners met wi th the Board of Education at North Hagerstown High School
at 12: 15 p .m. Also present were Board of Education members B. Marie Byers ,
Kenneth Grove, Janice Cirincione , and Thomas Berry , along with Dr. Wayn e Gersen,
Superintendent of School s .
Dr . Gersen reviewed the Capital I mpr ovements Program for 1994-95 . He stated that
the priorities are as follows : 1 ) Paramount Elementary Demolition and
Rebuildi ng; 2) Boonsboro Elementary School -Addition and Renovation; 3)
Smithsburg High School Renovation and Additio n; 4) Salem Ave nu e Elementary Pre-K
addition; 5 ) Emma K. Doub Elementary School Pre-K addition; 6) South High
Reroofing; and 7) Co nococheague Elementary School Reroofing . He ind i cated
that these project total $5 ,618 ,311 i n local funds of which some portions have
been funded previously by the Cou nty i n the 1993-94 budge t . Dr. Gersen stated
t hat in reviewing t he CIP with the I nteragency Commi ttee (IAC), they fou nd t hat
Eastern Elementary will not b e elig ible Eor any State fu nding . Th e Comm issioners
agreed that t hey would commit $2.5 mill 'on but did not fee l comfortable in
commi tting the future Board of County Conuniss ioners to more t han that amount.
The Board presented the 1993 Maryland School Performance Report Card , and Dr .
Gersen stated t hat Washington Cou nty is now in t h e top 7 count i es in the Stat0.
The Commissioners congratulated a nd commend ed the teachers i nvolved a nd suggested
that a recepti o n be held to honor them . Also reviewed were the Legisl ative
posit i.ons for 1993-9 4 and proposed Goals for Ac hievement and Attainment of
Quality Education. The Commissioners also discussed the need for school health
services whi.ch are provided by the Heal th Department , a nd asked that the Board
of Education discuss proposals with the Health Departme nt to discuss at the next
joint meeting. The meeting wa~ set for January 18 at Smithsburg High School,
AFTERNOON SESSION
The Afternoon Session wa s convened at 2:45 p .m. by the President, Richard E.
Roulette , with t he followi ng members present: Vice President Ronald L. Bowers ,
and Commissioners Linda c. Irvi n-Craig , John S . Shank, and Gregory I . Snook .
CONVENE IN EXECUTIVE SESSION
Motion made by Commissioner Snook , seconded by Shank , to convene i n Executive
Session at 2:46 p .m. with regard to personnel and property matters and to confer
with the County Attorney to obtain legal adv ice , i n accordance with Sect ion
10. 508 of t he State Governmen t Article of the An notated Code of Maryland.
Unanimously approved.
RECONVENE IN REGULAR SESSION
Motion made by Commissioner Snook , seconded by Shank , to reconvene in Regular
Session at 4:10 p .m. Un ani.mously approved .
ADJOURNMENT
Motion mad e by Commissioner Irvin-Craig , seconded by Snook, to adjourn at 4:11
p.m. Una nimously approved.
County.Attorney
Clerk