BERLIN– A 57-home development proposed just outside town limits drew criticism and concerns about sprawl from municipal officials this week.
When presented with the concept of a 57-home development on Evans Road this week, members of the Berlin Planning Commission objected to its size, its impact on local roads and the stress annexations put on town infrastructure.
“The people of Berlin need to decide how big physically this town should be and draw a line,” commission member Ron Cascio said.
John Wilson and Doug Jones approached the commission Wednesday to get feedback on a plan to turn 45 acres just past the railroad tracks on Evans Road into approximately 57 single family homes. Jones said they wanted to get input from the commission on the idea before pursuing annexation of the property into town. Commission members were quick to offer criticism.
Commission member Newt Chandler said the project as proposed didn’t have enough open space.
“These people have to have something to do, somewhere to go,” he said. “It would be better for them to have more open space.”
Commission member Pete Cosby said he was worried about the increased traffic the proposed development would bring to West Street.
“We have an increasing traffic problem coming into downtown Berlin,” he said. “This project is going to dump a lot more in there. We’ve talked in the past frequently about trying to preserve the town as a town, not as a sprawling suburban district.”
He brought up the green belt the commission has talked about wanting to have around the town.
“This is an intrusion into that green belt that naturally exists,” he said. “We need housing, that’s for sure, but we don’t have the road system to support a project of this intensity in my opinion. I live on West Street I see what happens there.”
Though Jones brought up the idea of a traffic study, commission members continued to express reservations about the project.
“This is classic large lot sprawl,” Cascio said. “It’s out of town. I don’t know what it does for the town except create new obligations for services. We’re presently discussing fees raising, taxes raising, before we talk about any more people at this party we better get our act together.”
Conceptual plans for a 57-home project on Evans Road were discussed Wednesday.
When asked how county officials felt about the project, town staff said it hadn’t been discussed with them at this point.
“That’s the problem,” Cascio said. “We don’t have any discussion. The county puts growth areas on us and sends out invitations to our party.”
Chris Denny, chairman of the commission, said that if he was spending the $350,000-$400,000 for a lot-house package, as the duo proposed, he wouldn’t want to drive past warehouses (at the end of West Street) to get there. When commission members said they’d like to see something like five large lots on the property, Jones said that could be done without annexing the property.
Cascio maintained that the project as proposed wasn’t good planning and that citizens didn’t want more annexations.
“Would you have any ideas?” Jones said.
Cascio said citizens needed to decide how big they wanted the town to be before it spread to Whaleyville or Newark. Cosby agreed.
“The western agricultural boundaries of Berlin, I’d like to hold the line,” Cosby said. “I think we’ve got a well-defined town and that’s what makes this place valuable. To the north and east, we’ve trashed it already. That’s where we should be putting density…The west side of Berlin, we’ve got opportunities to hold the line there and define this town.”
Resident Gina Velong said she didn’t want to see the project proceed because similar developments ended up costing the town.
“I’m done with picking up the bill for people,” she said.
She added that there was no sidewalk in the area and the road wasn’t capable of handling that much traffic.
Evans Road resident Edward Warren said he owned the chicken farm across the street from the proposed development. He said if homes were built there the people that moved in would complain about the smell of his farm.
“I’ve been to lawsuits because of people who don’t agree with what I do for a living,” he said. “But this is what I do. I raise chickens. I’m sorry. That property has potential value I understand that but there’s other ways it could be utilized other than building 57 homes out there.”
He added that development on the site would increase existing drainage problems in the area and pointed out there was an old cemetery on the property proposed for the development.
Site Plan Approved
While commission members expressed little interest in the annexation concept, they provided favorable feedback to two other projects this week.
Developer Chris Carbaugh shared plans for a 551-unit mini storage facility on five acres on Evans Road. He assured the commission self storage was not a use that generated much traffic. Though he couldn’t say how the Evans Road facility would compare in size to other local storage facilities, he said it would include units of varying size.
The facility will include a perimeter fence. Cosby suggested dense trees around the lot as well.
“We’re looking for serious blockage here,” he said. “We really want to keep that looking halfway decent out there.”
The commission approved the site plan on the condition that landscaping was dense and that plans for the facility’s sign were submitted to staff before it was put up.
The other proposal reviewed this week was for an expansion and addition at Berlin Activities Depot. Owner Carmela Solito wants to add on to two sides of the existing building and erect a new two-story structure at the corner of Nelson Street and Graham Avenue.
“This’ll build out that whole site,” said Dave Rovansek of George, Miles & Buhr LLC. “We’re here for just a discussion on what your thoughts are.”
Solito said the 13,000 square foot addition on the Old Ocean City Boulevard side of the building would include a family support center and a restaurant. The support center would focus on helping young mothers.
“I’m excited for the family support center,” she said. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.”
She said the new building she’s proposed would be a 60-student private school. That would allow her to expand the educational services Berlin Activities Depot already provides. The grades served by the school, she said, would depend on the grants the facility received.
When asked about parking and traffic at the site, Betty Tustin of The Traffic Group said she was confident that the proposed parking was sufficient. She added that parents didn’t all pick up and drop off kids at the same time.
Solito acknowledged that there were some times where traffic around the facility was heavy and said she was exploring creative ideas as well. She said one possibility was having teachers deliver students to their parents’ waiting vehicles.
Cascio questioned the 22-foot sign Solito included with the expansion. She agreed to make it a ground-level electronic sign similar to the one at the Berlin Fire Company.
Commissioner members praised the concept, which is expected to be brought back next month for formal site plan approval.
“Conceptually I think it’s a great idea,” commission member Austin Purnell said. “More and more families are coming to Berlin.”
