A third interchange on Route 29 will be necessary to accommodate a 30-year plan for redevelopment in downtown Columbia, traffic experts said this week.

County Council members mulled traffic issues related to the massive development project proposed by General Growth Properties, Inc. during a work session Wednesday evening, the latest in  series of meetings on the project.

Mark DeLuca, deputy director for the county’s Department of Public Works, told council members they should plan for an interchange, although traffic studies are needed first.

“I think a third interchange is an important feature of the plan,” he said. “Is it necessary (for) maximum build-out? Yes, I would say it is.”

DeLuca did not specify where an interchange  would be located. Route 29 ramps in Columbia now are located at Route 175 and Broken Land Parkway.

Traffic experts also told council members to expect increases in congestion whether or not the GGP plan for 5,500 residential units, 5 million square feet of office space and 1.25 million square feet of retail space, moves forward.

Martin Wells,  president of Wells and Associates, which completed a traffic study for General Growth, also said a third interchange would be necessary.

A lot of heavy lifting would be needed to bring an interchange and mass transit will also be critical for the area, he said.

A walkable community like the one GGP has proposed would not have high-speed traffic, Wells said.

Council members also used the work session, their third such meeting on the plan, to press General Growth officials about financing community enhancements and public amenities.

The GGP-written legislation contains a list of 29 benchmarks, which must be met to move through phases of the development project. They range from financing a feasibility study on the interchange to identifying a suitable location for a new county fire station.

Council members said the language is vague and in some cases does not force GGP to make a specific financial commitment to improvements.

“They’ve indicated they’re committed to certain things getting done and I think the council needs to continue getting clarification on how, when and who pays for those things getting done,” council member Calvin Ball, a Democrat from Columbia, said.

The plan also requires redevelopment of Merriweather Post Pavilion and calls for an agreement with the Columbia Association, which owns land surrounding the venue.

However, no such agreement has been reached between the developer and CA, which  presented its own plan for the surrounding Symphony Woods Park earlier this fall.

Gregory Hamm, vice president of master planned communities for GGP, said plans for Merriweather are a critical part of redevelopment and community acceptance is necessary.

“It’s not what I want, it’s not what CA wants. It’s what the community wants,” Hamm said. “I think the community wants Merriweather to be integrated into Columbia’s life on a daily basis and it also wants Merriweather to be upgraded and upgrades are not possible without modifying  the plans CA has put forward.”

The next council work session on GGP’s plan will be Monday, following a 7:30 p.m. legislative session at the school board headquarters, 10910 Route 108 in Ellicott City.

A vote is not expected until early next year.

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