Homeowners association jumps into fight over Delmar jeep event as war of words heats up

Wicomico County Executive Julie Giordano has drawn the ire of the Shadow Hills Homeowners Association following her doubling down of her support for the Safari at the Quarry offroad event.

The event, scheduled for the weekend of May 4 in Delmar, was the subject of a statement on Monday in which Giordano said "I am concerned that since the City of Salisbury has already overreached for an event to be held at the Quarry, what is to say that they will not do the same thing to Henry S. Parker Complex, which we rent to various sporting events, including the USSSA Softball World Series. Are we not going to be able to provide an adaptive space for disabled children to play ball? Will we have to get rid of the sensory trails or sensory pods?"

She noted governmental agencies are exempt from zoning regulations and given the autonomy to make decisions because "they know what is needed for their citizens and communities."

She requested the public contact Salisbury Mayor Randy Taylor or members of the City Council to ensure they have no intentions of using this same zoning argument to disrupt or potentially shut down ballfields and playgrounds at this athletic complex.

Giordano reiterated the legal argument presented in a letter last Wednesday by County Attorney Paul Wilber in which he responded to the pair of letters from the County Council and the city of Salisbury, stating "the county never sought the city's permission to develop or utilize property like the Parker Athletic Complex property (another site that was not zoned for such a use, but was owned by the county), because the county is exempt from city oversight and city zoning regulations."

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HOA says Giordano using 'disabled children as pawns'

This week, the Shadow Hills Homeowners Association responded to claims made by the Office of the County Executive, saying Giordano has continued to use "deflection and disinformation."

"The county executive's suggestion that the City of Salisbury would even remotely consider shuttering the Henry S. Parker Athletic Complex is simply preposterous," the HOA statement said. "No reasonable person could actually believe that the city would, under any circumstance, deprive children of the 'adaptive space for disabled children to play ball' or 'get rid of the sensory trails or sensory pods' for special needs children."

The organization contends Safari at the Quarry, held on county-owned property situated within the city limits, serves no public purpose.

According to the HOA, the events are not being held by the county but are rather being staged by Live Wire Media, LLC, a private “for-profit” corporation. It is limited exclusively to 4x4 owners who can afford to pay "a substantial fee" to this private corporate entity to participate, while all others are expressly prohibited from entering the event site at any time and for any reason.

"As noted above and despite Ms. Giordano's wild assertions, the county is only exempt from complying with Salisbury's zoning code when a public use is involved," the HOA stated. "Insofar as the county is only leasing the event site to Live Wire Media and the events are private and exclusionary, the public use litmus test has not been achieved in this district zoned for residential use. The distinction is unambiguous."

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Likewise, they asked the public to contact the Office of the County Executive to voice their concerns over what they consider is a low-brow tactic of using children and misinformation to bolster support for the offroad event.

Finally, the organization noted the county-owned Henry S. Parker Athletic Complex is situated within the municipal boundaries of Salisbury and is, therefore, subject to Salisbury's zoning code. Henry S. Parker is open to the generalpublic for the purpose of providing recreational opportunities and promoting healthy physical activities.

"By its very nature, a county park with ball fields and trails is a public use and, therefore, allowed under Salisbury's zoning code. The county executive has raised a false flag, and in the most contemptible of manners is using disabled children as pawns to achieve her political objectives," the statement said.

City of Salisbury 'not consulted' about Delmar Jeep event

The city of Salisbury also sent its own letter to the county executive, claiming, while the county owns the land on which the event is to take place, the city is tasked with zoning it according to how it sees fit. Currently, the Connelly Mill Road property is not zoned for such a use as a large-scale offroad event.

"This property, although owned by Wicomico County, is located within Salisbury city limits and is zoned R-8A Residential. Neither your company or Wicomico County consulted with the city prior to entering the (memorandum) nor did the county otherwise seek the city's permission or approval for the anticipated event," said the letter sent last Friday to Giordano by the legal counsel for the city of Salisbury.

The letter also argues any likely legal challenge to the city's zoning code will be impacted by the public outcry over the event being proposed and the way in which the memorandum was created.

"The use of the property by Live Wire, as detailed in the memorandum, is clearly private in nature and does not fall within any exemption of the city's zoning code. On behalf of (the city), it is respectfully requested that Live Wire take immediate action to discontinue this event and all future events at the Connelly Mill Road property," the city's letter stated as it urged the matter be dealt with without resorting to legal challenges.

The Wicomico County Council also notified the county executive of what they considered breaches of the Memorandum of Understanding, effectively being grounds to cancel the entire event.

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This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: County executive doubles down on jeep event, draws heated HOA response