Pittman fulfills promise to slow county’s pace of growth

As County Executive Steuart Pittman reaches the middle of his first term, Growth ActionNetworkwould like to complimenthim on the achievement of campaign promises to slow the pace of growth in the county and direct the major changes necessary to preserve our environment.

He recognized that the General DevelopmentPlan process he inheritedwhenhe took office would result in perpetuating the historical pattern of overdevelopment that has brought the county to its current state. He radically altered that process.

He brought new personnel into the Office of Planning and Zoning and reconstituted theCitizens’Advisory Committee. He created a transparent IT mechanismby developing a sophisticated GIS map to enable citizens to read and comment on the draft of Plan2040. He also deferredAA County’s Comprehensive Rezoning to allow the preparation of regional land use plans in which citizens would have a significant voice.

The Pittman administration has denied or required substantial revision to several high-profile subdivision proposals, including The Enclave at Crofton, Marsh Landing in Severna Park, and Glebe Heights in Mayo. Two of these proposalswere denied because the developers could not resolve issues and concerns raised by the Office of Planning and Zoning.

One proposal, which was approved by the previous administration, was overturned by the Board of Appeals because the stormwater management controls proposed by the developer, were not adequate to prevent the undermining of recent restoration work on a creek associated with the project. The county and the Chesapeake Bay Trust had invested close to $1 million in the restoration effort.

Pittman also made good on his campaign promise to preserve the environment by revising the Forest Conservation regulations, to significantly strengthen forest protection and bring the county regulations in line with State law. The new regulations should reduce forest loss by 50% in Anne Arundel County, while significantly increasing the amount of forest that developers must replant after clearing for development.

Concerned about the prior administration’s lax enforcement of regulations designed to protect the environment, Pittman instructed PlanningandZoning to strengthen compliance with existing Anne Arundel County Code on development that includes updates to the sketch and preliminary plan checklists and submittal requirements.

These actions require developers to verify the existence or absence of nontidal wetlands and their buffers and set minimum mitigation conditions for disturbing nontidalwetlands. He has also directed the Office of Inspections and Permits to more strictly enforce existing environmental regulations designed to manage and control development.

All in all, it has been a good two years for preserving and protecting the environment that we all love in Anne Arundel County. In that process, sensitive areas have benefited by slowed or denied development. All these accomplishments are the result of the actions taken by a County Executive who has executed well on many of his campaign promises.

Thank you County Executive Steuart Pittman!