’Widespread community support’ for Lutherville Light Rail Station

I am writing in support of your Dec. 12 editorial about Baltimore County’s effort to address mixed-use developments, particularly Transit Oriented Development (TOD) and the redevelopment of the Lutherville Station property (“Will Baltimore County embrace a new generation of mixed-use town centers?”). I also read with both intrigue and irony the letter from Eric Rockel on Dec. 17, which was written in opposition to the proposed Lutherville Station development adjacent to the Lutherville Light Rail Station (“Lutherville Station not appropriate for a town center”).

While The Sun is asking “will Baltimore County embrace a new generation of mixed-use town centers,” Mr. Rockel relies on a 1950s statement from the Zoning Commissioner to provide context to his opposition. The character of the Lutherville commercial corridor has changed considerably since then, especially when you consider the construction of the Baltimore Beltway, the substantial commercial activity along York Road north of the Beltway, and the construction of the Lutherville Light Rail Station in the 1990s. Each of these ideas may have been considered radical in its day, but is an example of smart and necessary progress.

As the president of The Friends of Roland Run (FORR), an environmental and community group focused on the Roland Run (a watershed located behind the Lutherville Station property), we wholeheartedly support the merits of the redevelopment. Lutherville Station will have significant benefits for stormwater runoff and flood mitigation, while enhancing the housing options available to Baltimore County residents.

It is also important to note that the proposed TOD is not in any way connected to the MDOT proposal to extend the Light Rail from Timonium to Towson. The latter is a state-sponsored study on transit. On the other hand, the proposed TOD is a major economic development adjacent to an existing light rail station and serviced by existing bus lines. The TOD fits in as part of a regional development framework and can anchor community revitalization efforts (like Lutherville Station), and in the process, boost local and state tax revenues.

Further, what is not being reported is widespread community support inside the Lutherville community for the Lutherville Station project. The developer proposed a Restrictive Covenant Agreement to the Lutherville Community Association board in May 2021 (when I was president of the LCA) to address all development issues, such as stormwater management, traffic, density, restrictive uses on the property and more.

The developer also agreed to work with the community on a Planned Unit Development (“PUD”) so that the community would have an “equal seat” at the table to ensure that the community’s interests were taken into consideration. FORR’s purpose is to protect the environment, protect the community and protect our infrastructure. For this reason, FORR hopes to influence the development so that the development proposal is environmentally friendly and does not exacerbate the flooding of our streets, roads, houses — all coming from the Roland Run.

In short, we believe that the Lutherville Station development plan is forward-thinking, and considers the issues affecting the community. The light rail was built here many years ago — and is not going away. So, we support more investment around the existing station, not a return to policies and planning principles of the 1950s.

— Allen Hicks, Lutherville

The writer is president of The Friends of Roland Run.