Armed with Facts

Based on the re-emergence of the Eastport Shopping Center project and my observations on the progress of the AYC and Old Fawcett projects along with the negative impacts they will have on the “feel” and actual functioning of our community, I am reminded of a brief discussion held at a Ward 8 Town Meeting about a year ago.

The discussion was centered on the concept of “Limits on Growth”. It is interesting to note that since the concept was raised in the Ward 8 public meeting it seems to have disappeared for public discourse. However, this site has continued to keep the discussion at top of mind consideration.

As long as we view project proposals one at a time, our community will lose sight of the cumulative impact of the net effect of that project/building. Each project is a tactical decision proposed to satisfy some narrow need, usually the opportunistic need of a developer or some self -interest of a select few.

We need to bring the “Limits on Growth” discussion back into a full and open community-wide discussion. I am not suggesting that all growth should be stopped and limited forever. I am proposing a rational strategic process that requires our planners and local government to be armed with facts before they make development  decisions. Every new project has 2^nd and 3^rd order impacts on increasing limited community –wide and natural resources. These resources include but are not limited to; open-space, road networks, public safety support and response capabilities, water/sewer capacity , overall environment and quality of life. Sure, we do have Comprehensive Plans but they are not fully integrated and do not tell us what the “true” site and cumulative community impact of multiple and costs will be if we build a certain types of project in a particular locations. Even though several big project have slipped through the short-comings in our current P&Z process, it is not too late to redefine the process. If our elected representatives don’t stand up for the interests of the community beyond the next election cycle, then we have to put them on notice that our horizons extend beyond that.

Strategic thinking supported by facts will be a powerful tool to provide informed decision-making for the future use of community resources for our full community not just the narrow interest of a few.

ESC: Do Not Trust and Verify

Our political representatives are asking for our opinions on the current Eastport Shopping Center project assumptions.  Before we look forward, let’s take a look to the past.

How can we be sure that our political representatives have the best interests of the community at heart?  These are the same people who have supported the interests of a few developers and special interests.  These are the same people who have supported and allowed the over-building of the Annapolis Yacht Club and the former Fawcett Building.

No matter what the developers say and support at the outset of public hearings, consider what happens behind the scenes.  Look at the final jarring over-sized projects for which they are responsible and the results speak for themselves.

Now to the request for comments on the current Eastport Shopping Center  project proposal:  Don’t allow yourselves to be lulled into a false sense of security that the project has been successfully downsized and, therefore, all is good.  Look at the AYC projects.  Don’t just look at the numbers in the abstract.  We all need to see what the project massing will look like.

Once again, whatever is decided needs to be LOCKED.  Don’t allow what seems to be major concessions by the developer to guide your opinions.  Do a critical review of the new proposal, not just the arithmetic of the original numbers minus the concessions.  Do not accept the notion that the developer was beaten into submission.  If the new assumptions are acceptable to the developer and their team, clearly the original project was over-sized as originally proposed.

The bait and switch is the long-term problem.

Remember, developers know how to work the system.  That is part of their full time job.  Any, and I mean any changes to whatever is approved should be provided to the public for input, analysis and comment.  Any proposed changes need to cause the entire project to be re-reviewed by the public.  Also, this  review should not proceed until the Planning and Zoning Density calculation comments raised at the earlier hearings are addressed in the context of all the comments.

Those comments focused on the density calculation confusion and, equally important, the possible need to revise and update all P&Z regulations.  Allowing this proposal to proceed is  to ignore previous comments and further the concerns that the process is tainted and favors developers and is not in the best interest of the community.

You know, this is like trying to assemble a puzzle that has no interlocking pieces.

They are all random.

Individually, the pieces may look okay, but they just don’t go together.

Comment on Corinthian Columns

Corinthian Columns

While our attention was distracted by the AYC reconstruction which (IMO) is no worse than the rich whites-only blight it was before, and the AYC Annex (which turned a small unobtrusive building into a 3.5 story 20,000 sq ft monster), the true “sneaky” betrayal of the city character (besides the new building reaching to the sidewalk instead of adding to walkability) was changing the AYC boat house from a tiny functioning boat house into a colossal boat storage center (again 3.5 stories) – put the boutique hotel there!

Corinthian Columns

CNN recently published an article on America’s ‘most endangered historic places.’  Do you know what rated #1?  Shockingly, Annapolis.

Yes, our Annapolis.  Specifically, the focus was on the City Dock area.  That didn’t seem reasonable.  After all, Annapolis is always complimented and recommended as a destination in all sorts of travel articles and websites.  Subsequent to reading the article, I took a walk into town from my home in Eastport.  Reluctantly, I concluded that the CNN article was addressing the damaged and declining ‘Quality of life and heritage tourism economy’ and in my view the same applies to residences.

The two over-sized Annapolis Yacht Club projects along with the former Fawcett building project seem to be the dictionary definition representing  damage to the area.  The projects are jarring and take away from our community scale, while adding nothing.

With the CNN article in mind, the addition of a ‘Boutique Hotel’ at City Dock would take the community’s historic nature from endangered to life support.

To all involved in these projects, you have sacrificed some of the best of our community for your own gain and, ashamedly, your own amusement.  You may as well complete your tasteless additions to the community with inappropriate flourishes like Corinthian columns and plastic flamingos.

Oh by the way, not only are the buildings worth continuing criticism, so are the associated building methods.  There are at  least three obvious environmental problems.

The first is the significant impervious coverage which will result in continuing runoff further damaging our waterways.

The second is the lack of space to plant barriers that the architect promised during the public meetings since the building has metastasized to almost touch the property lines.  There is essentially no space remaining to provide anything other than token landscaping.

Three, every time we get rain the muddy construction runoff adds to the pollution of Spa Creek.

Wouldn’t you think that if corners are cut there, they have probably been cut elsewhere as well?