Storage approved for Bryans Road Shopping Center
Mining firm withdraws lawsuit over WCD following law change
The Charles County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday evening to approve changes to the zoning code that could allow self-storage units to be constructed in the Bryans Road Shopping Center, a move the owners had argued was nec-
essary to keep the retail hub in business.
The Charles County Planning Commission had recommended against allowing consolidated self-storage units to be an allowed special exception in core retail residential and village commercial zones.
S2 Bryans Road Associates LLC, which has operated the shopping center since April 2015, has argued that the zoning change would help them stem the decline in business at the 122,000-square-foot shopping center located at the corner of Marshall Hall and Matthews Roads.
Since the closure of the Safeway in late May, almost 75,000 square feet of Bryans Road Shopping Center has been vacant.
The proposed self-storage units would be constructed in a climate-controlled building divided into multiple fully enclosed compartments of no more than 500 square feet, each of which would be leased to an individual for so-called “dead storage” of furniture, files and other household items for safekeeping.
The zoning code already allows for so-called “mini warehouses” in the CRR and CV zones, which the planning commission had argued made the proposed change moot.
However, attorney Edward C. Gibbs Jr., whose law firm represents S2, explained that mini warehouses are larger and not air conditioned, and are typically used by businesses to store machinery and other large industrial items.
In response to a concern expressed by Commissioner Ken Robinson (D), S2 managing member George Stewart explained that the company had no intention of converting the former Safeway into a storage facility.
The company hoped to lure another anchor store to the shopping center, and that combined with the self-storage would help turn the retail hub around.
Stewart explained that since acquiring the property, S2 had worked with two retail brokers to bring in new businesses, but companies like Starbucks and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen balked because of the low population density.
A study conducted by an analytics firm for S2 found that just 5,000 people live within a 1-mile radius of the shopping center, while 14,500 live within 3 miles.
“Forget about the demographics, we have a numbers issue in that part of the county that we’re trying to serve,” Stewart said.
A traffic study conducted by S2 found that people visiting the self-storage units would not add significantly to the number of cars traveling along either Marshall Hall Road or Matthews Road.
Gibbs pointed out that the zoning change would not apply solely to the Bryans Road Shopping Center; other businesses located in CRR and CV zones throughout the county would also be able to apply for special exceptions to install self-storage units as well.
While the Bryans Road Shopping Center property is the only CRR zone identified on the county’s generalized zoning map, there are several CV zones dotted throughout the county.
Commissioner Debra Davis (D) was the sole vote against the zoning change. Earlier this month, Davis had argued that the county was “moving too fast” before alternatives to the self-storage units had been fully explored.
Unanimous on minerals
The commissioners were unanimous in voting to approve an amendment to the 2016 Comprehensive Plan that addresses mineral resource extraction and processing, a move that was necessary to end a lawsuit against the county that had sought to have the Watershed Conservation District nullified because it conflicts with state law.
The lawsuit had alleged that the Charles County Planning Commission broke the law when it failed to notify the public or hold hearings before deleting provisions from draft versions of the county’s comprehensive plan and WCD zoning regulations that would have allowed companies to mine clay, gravel, stone and sand on land located in the WCD.
Steve Kaii-Ziegler, director of the county’s planning and growth management department, took responsibility for the mistake.
La Plata-based concrete manufacturer Bardon Inc., which does business as Aggregate Industries, and the Maryland Transportation and Builders Materials Association filed the suit last December in the Circuit Court for Charles County.
According to the Maryland Land Use Code, a county’s comprehensive plan must include a “mineral resources element” that identifies undeveloped land that “can be used to assist in providing a continuous supply of minerals” other than coal.
The comprehensive plan must also specify uses for the land once mining activities have been completed, and spell out policies and regulations that balance mining with other land uses.
Both the county attorney’s office and the plaintiffs’ law firm had jointly requested and had been granted several extensions to delay a trial until the commissioners reached a final decision on whether to amend the comprehensive plan.
On Wednesday morning, the attorney representing Bardon and MTBMA in the lawsuit notified County Administrative Judge Amy Bragunier that they were withdrawing their motion for a summary judgment in the case.