Stop Barnesville Oaks

Summary of Planning Commission Staff Report

March 27th 2009

Property Details:

21121 Beallsville Road, Dickerson MD
840.13 Acres in Western Montgomery County, located in the Agricultural Reserve or Rural Density Zone (RDT) as designated in the Master Plan for Preservation of Agriculture & Rural Open Space (AROS Master Plan)
570 acres currently being used for agricultural purposes
193.6 acres of forest
76.5 acres of open rural space
Direct frontage on Beallsville Rd, Peach Tree Rd, and Whites Store Rd (all three designated Rural & Rustic roads under Functional Master Plan for Rural & Rustic Roads
9 dwellings on the property: One main house, one guest house, seven farm tenant dwellings. Each dwelling has a septic field. (According to an Affidavit by Charles Player- property manager since 1960)

• 17300 Whites Store Rd identified as the “main house” on lot 33 of preliminary sub-division plan(PSDP). Currently unoccupied
• 17300 Whites Store Rd identified as the “guest house” on lot 33 of PSPD. Currently unoccupied
• 17300 Whites Store Rd identified as T3 or “tenant house” on lot 33 of PSPD. Occupied by a farm family – property not in existence prior to June 1, 1958.
• 17200 Whites Store Rd identified as T6 on lot 33 of the PSDP. The house is also known as John Lynch Farm or Griffith Farm. Occupied by farm family. The home existed prior to June 1, 1958. This property was identified by Historic Preservation Coordinator, Gwen Wright, and Historic Preservation Planner, Robin D. Ziek as “involving historic resources” in a memo to Joe Davis, Malcolm Shaneman of Montgomery County Dept of Park & Planning Development Review Division in a memo dated February 24, 1999.
• 17510 Whites Store Rd/Farm Tenant identified as T5 on lot 33 of PSDP. Is occupied by a non-farm family. Existed prior to June 1, 1958.
• 17520 Whites Store Rd- identified as T4 on lot 33 of the PSDP. Occupied by no-farm family. Existed prior to June 1, 1958.
• 21121 Beallsville Rd/ 3 farm dwellings – T1 & main house on lot 32 in PSDP. Occupied by farm family , T2 on lot 32 in PSDP. Occupied by non farm family. Existed prior to June 1, 1958.

Preliminary Subdivision Plan submitted to Park & Planning

The plan as submitted subdivides property into 33 lots (840.13/25=33.61).? There are no special exceptions, child lots, or sand mounds on the property.

• Lots 32 & 33 are two largest
• Lot 32 = 344 acres
• Lot 33 = 368 acres

Total = 712 acres
Lots 1-31 are grouped on Peach Tree Rd. with an avg. of 3.78 acre, ranging from 1.8acre ? 3.78acres

Issue #1: Loss of working farmland:

Plan claims to retain 84.75% of the property specifically designed to prevent fragmentation of agricultural land. Further they contend to promote agriculture by allowing 94% of existing agriculture and related uses to continue. That is a loss of 32.4 acres of working farmland.

Issue #2: Allowable amount of sub-division:

Property should only be permitted to subdivide of 33 including existing 9 houses which would indicate the addition of 24 units. The plan proposes that it is within permitted density by including only two of the existing tenant houses and adding an additional 31 one family units as permitted by RDT Zone allowing one single family dwelling per 25 acres. There are 9 existing structures on the property all of which are livable and even currently occupied. They claim exemption for “farm tenant dwellings and guest house” from this by citing RDT law that they claim allows exclusion for these houses based on Mo Co zoning code chapter 59-C-9.41 which allows for property built prior to June 1, 1958 to be eligible for renting to a no-farm family without obtaining a special exception as an accessory dwelling.

Issue # 3 Soils

The most productive of the soil is going to be on the largest lots of 32 & 33.? They claim by keeping this contiguous and in tow of the farm-ette or smaller lots that. By making the most productive soils part of the largest lots applicant claims that it will be “available” for agricultural use. Agriculture use is very loosely defined and includes “equestrian use, and bookkeeping”. There is approximately 18 acres of prime soil that will be in portions of lot 32 & 33.

Issue #4 Rural & Rustic Road

All the roads abutting the property are identified as Rural & Rustic road by the master plan. Whites Store is noted to be an exceptional Rural & Rustic Rd by many groups. The applicant assert that the Rural & Rustic Roads Master plan does not intend for development to end but that the intent is that roads are compatible and in character with an agricultural community. There is great concern that the building of the roads within the more heavily clustered areas will be large, modern and not in line with intent or vision of the Rural & Rustic Rd’s master plan. The applicant has been before the R& R advisory board without a positive recommendation. In 1999 the idea to change zoning legislation to allow for private road building. Private road building would allow for the newly built access roads to be more narrowed, vastly more acceptable in a rural setting the state regulations requiring much large heavily paved roads with sidewalks. Pushing for movement on a Zoning Text Amendment to address the private road prior to final approval of this plan would be reasonable in request, and potentially one tactic to stall the approval of the PSDP.

Issue #5: Conservation

In 1999 the PSDP included houses built that would be directly in the view of one of the best vistas in the Agricultural Reserve of Sugar Loaf Mountain. This plan has changed that at the request of the community to preserve that view/vista. However the cluster homes are to be placed within a wooded area of the property. While the new plan is within Forest Conservation guidelines however it will still remove 29.39 acres of Forest. Within the property there is a reasonable opportunity for them to further limit or eliminate any de-forestation. They also state that they will place 27.3 acres of forest land on lot 33 in a Type I conservation easement, and places a total of 83.9 acres in forest conservation easement.

Issue #6: Request to waiver over length Cul-de-Sac

Montgomery County code limits the length of cul-de-sac to 500ft. Applicant claims that because they wish to preserve the rural character they would like to serve14 lots via 1,625 foot Cul-de-Sac. The applicant further claims that the only other option would be to extend the new street to Peach Tree Rd or Whites Store Rd, which not require a waiver but would unnecessarily consumer forest and rural open space

Issue # 7: Historic Preservation

The John Lynch Farm (lot 33 T5) is listed as a category III resource. Applicant claims to preserve that by designing the development so tha tthe smaller 31 clustered lots are not adjacent to or visible from the Lynch Farm.

Malsalma subdivision is located in the Agricultural Reserve of the county, and involved Locational Atlas Resource #18/6, the John Lynch Farm. The farm, located at 17200 White Store Road is given a lot # in the proposed subdivision. Consideration should be given to the adjacency of suburban lots to a farm, especially with consideration to the outbuildings, including the stone spring house, and vistas. In addition, there are concerns regarding any possible widening of Whites Store Road. Whites store Road is an ‘Exceptional’ Rustic Road while Bucklodge and Peach Tree are both Rustic Roads. Memo from Gwen Wright & Robin D Ziek of Historic Preservation, to Joe Davis & Malcolm Shaneman of MC Park & Planning Development Review Division dated February 24, 1999.

Staff recommends continued work to stop the development completely. However, if the development plan for Barnesville Oaks seems likely to be approved MCA should seek the following amendments to the plan:

• Minimize the clustering and request a more scattered clustering that will maintain the ‘rural feel’ of the area, and avoid any appearance of a suburban subdivision.
• Require the plan be such that zero working farmland be reduced by development.
• Require the plan to eliminate any de-forestation on the property.
• Delay approval of subdivision pending ZTA amendment legislation allowing access roads within heavily clustered areas be private road construction to maintain Rural & Rustic Rd, and minimize the any view obstruction or distraction.
• Allow plan to include a maximum of 24 additional subdivisions because of the existing 9 structures on the property.

* Currently the development is still in review by both Park & Planning and the Rural & Rustic Roads Advisory Committee.