Mount Airy council halts contested mixed-use development plan
Mount Airy’s council stopped a proposed mixed-use development in its tracks with a 3-1 vote to deny a developer’s preliminary plan Monday night. Council members and residents said the plan presented grave safety concerns by having pedestrians cross Md. 27.
“Just one death due to poor planning is too much for Mount Airy,” Mount Airy Council President Tim Washabaugh said.
The development, Mount Airy Crossing, was proposed for a 91-acre tract of land bisected by Md. 27 near Center Street in the Carroll County portion of Mount Airy. The plan, as of March 18, included 184 single-family homes and 166 senior housing units, along with 135,200 square feet of commercial space.
Pleasants Development’s plan for the property went through at least three previous iterations before the council’s vote Monday night, according to Clark Wagner, vice president of Pleasants Development, who spoke during the meeting.
Councilmember Stephen Domotor suggested further modifying the plan to address pedestrian safety.
“The developers should plan for and contribute to a pedestrian tunnel as a viable solution to make this development plan workable,” he said before the vote. He also sought an informal consultation with the Maryland State Highway Administration’s District 7 office about tunnels or bridges as an alternative to a crosswalk.
“They told us, while certainly bridges are a little bit more challenging, that tunnels are perfectly acceptable and have been used in Maryland. And this is the appropriate time to pursue those kinds of improvements, at this development phase,” Domotor said.
Residents continued to raise concerns at the meeting about new homes and businesses straining a limited water supply, adding students to overcrowded nearby schools and unevenly distributed retail sections.
Mt. Airy Elementary School and Mt. Airy Middle School are not expected to reach their state-rated capacity by 2031. The middle school may reach 100% functional capacity in 2029, according to Carroll County Public Schools enrollment projections released in 2022 for the years leading up to 2031.
Pleasants Development may have the option to revise its pre-concept plan and bring it back to the council, based on the council’s discretion. Town code doesn’t lay out a clear path for the denied plan, said John Breeding, Mount Airy’s director of planning.
“Safety was the biggest issue with the plan, and now it’s kind of like, where do we go from here?” Nicole Moon, founder of Citizens Against Mount Airy Overdevelopment, said in an interview with The Frederick News-Post.
“We’re sort of assessing our options right now,” Wagner told the News-Post in response to a question about the future of the planned development.
Councilmember Karl Munder said in a presentation at the meeting that the plan followed the necessary requirements under town code and creates harmony and consistency with surrounding land uses.
Washabaugh, Domotor and Councilmember Jason Evans voted to deny the plan. Munder voted against denying the plan.
Council Secretary Lynne Galletti abstained.
