The county planning board last week unanimously approved an ambitious, 30-year plan to redevelop downtown Columbia, leaving the future of the planned community's center in the hands of the County Council.

However, the board recommended the council reject accompanying legislation that would change zoning laws to allow the future development.

Dave Grabowski, chairman of the planning board, said the group felt it could not make a recommendation on the zoning regulation without knowing what the final version of the plan will look like once the council has approved it.

That decision may prevent the planning board from weighing in on the zoning portion of the redevelopment in the future, as the council could vote on that portion when it takes up the redevelopment plan, without waiting for board recommendations.

The plan for downtown Columbia calls for 5,500 new residential units, 5 million square feet of office space and 1.25 million square feet of retail space.

As proposed by General Growth Properties Inc., the plan would be built out in stages over the course of 30 years.

Gregory Hamm, regional vice president and general manager of Columbia for GGP, said he was pleased that amendment moved forward and looked forward to the council's next step.

Council member Calvin Ball, whose district includes part of Columbia, said council members will give consideration to the planning board's recommendations, but said it was important for the council to examine the development plan and the accompanying zoning changes together.

"Passing on and then moving forward to the other, I'm not sure if that's the best process ... for the public or ... for the actual movement in downtown Columbia," he said.

Council member Jennifer Terrasa said separating the legislation would make it difficult to collect public comment, since the two issues are so deeply intertwined.

"We need to have it in a form where people can comment on it," she said. "They have strong feelings about the vision and they have strong feelings about it being enforceable."

Paul Yelder, a member of the planning board who initially opposed the decision to hold off the zoning plan, said the group expects the general plan amendment to change when the County Council examines it and did not want to pass a zoning amendment that may not address those alterations.

"I can understand why members felt that way, given how much had been put in this," Yelder said. "I saw them as a packaged deal. Perhaps that's where I was wrong. I was told they're done one based on the other."

---

user comments (0)