07/11/01
EDITORIAL

As a residential homeowner of the E. Joppa Road corridor, I am outraged by the absurd process our county government is allowing to continue to implement the E. Joppa Road Corridor Study. On June 12, the Baltimore County Office of Planning opened the initial meeting at the Parkville/Carney Library with an exclusively selected advisory board, without any prior notice, nor input, from the community. After one of many area residents in attendance requested introductions from the board, the results were disturbing, at best.

Since only 20% of the E. Joppa Road corridor is business occupied properties, why does the majority of the committee consist of selected members that would benefit from a commercial zoning change? It is obvious that true representation of our affected communities does not exist. Who is responsible for such poor assemblage of representation? Why were residents informed that meetings of this committee would be open to the public, when the recent June 26 meeting was not publicized? Why did our Planning Office representatives expediently cut short the stated "open public forum" time at the meeting's conclusion, when one interested homeowner asserted his concerns about the unbalanced representation?

As stated in Resolution No. 16-01 of the County Council of Baltimore County, regarding the E. Joppa Road Corridor Community Plan . . . "the County Council recognizes the need to explore ways to strengthen the existing residential character of the E. Joppa Road corridor . . . and . . . the County Council believes that a comprehensive evaluation and review of the E. Joppa Road corridor, combined with sufficient input, is necessary in order to prepare, consider and adopt a plan for the reasonable future development of the E. Joppa Road corridor consistent with the Master Plan and in the best interest of the public."

We, the public, who elected our county officials to represent us, must make them accountable for acting "in the best interest of the public." It is time for us to make our representatives aware of our dissatisfaction with this very undemocratic practice, and to request that this group be disbanded in favor of a fair, balanced assemblage of community representatives.

Councilman Joseph Bartenfelder, are you listening?

Joyce A. Trageser, Carney