A schematic design missing because the landscape architect was out sick has delayed a ruling on a $4.5 to $5 million development project that would bring retail, office and restaurant space to the entryway of Arbutus.
Although county agencies gave the plan their approval at the hearing, the schematic design had not yet been reviewed, said Dennis Kennedy, chief of development plans review for the county's Department of Permits, Approvals and Inspections.
Administrative law judge John Beverungen said during a public hearing in Towson Thursday that he will review the schematic design before issuing his decision. The decision is expected in a few days.
If approved, the project will be built near the intersection of Sulphur Spring Road and Waelchli Avenue, on a roughly 2.5 acre parcel owned by Catonsville developer Steve Whalen, owner of Whalen Properties. According to the plan, a 7,576 square foot restaurant space and a 20,000 square foot building with office and retail space will be built.
The development planning hearing was the last step in the county's approval process. Residents have 30 days to appeal a ruling after it is issued.
Despite opposition from neighbors who live near the project on Arbutus Avenue, no one attended the hearing to oppose the project.
Four business owners and community members spoke in support of the project, saying it will provide a boost to property owners and businesses in the community.
Terry Nolan, an Arbutus lawyer and property owner, who is immediate past president of the Arbutus Business and Professional Association, told the judge the project will provide a more attractive entrance to the community's business district on East Drive.
Nolan said the current entrance to Arbutus from Interstate 695 on Sulphur Spring Road isn't welcoming.
"You come into Arbutus and there is a building that [Ed Audy] owns and the post office on one side and an overgrown undeveloped piece of land," he said, referring to the vacant property at the site of Whalen's proposed development.
"It will provide a doorway to Arbutus that we don't have at the present time," Nolan said.
Carol Mox, president of the Halethorpe Improvement Association, also spoke in support of the project. She told the judge that the design "fits the neighborhood."
But she cautioned that she would like to see a local property management company oversee tenants in the building, to ensure they care for the property.
"An issue down the road would be tenant quality," Mox said.
Whalen's company, headquartered in Catonsville, will manage the property.
Deborah SeBour, an Arbutus real estate broker, spoke on behalf of the Arbutus Commercial Revitalization group, which aims to promote revitalization in the business district of Arbutus.
"We believe this will encourage other businesses to take a good hard look at our community as a viable option for meeting their own long-term investment goals," SeBour said. "It's also our opinion that bringing newly developed retail and office space to Arbutus is going to encourage existing business owners to renovate and upgrade their own properties."
Whalen said he was confident after the hearing that the project will be approved, and said he will begin looking for tenants this summer.
He said he expects the construction will take 10 to 12 months and will begin this summer.
He wants to have the space available for tenants by April or May next year, he said.
"We're going to fund the shell of the building ourselves, so we don't need financing at this point," Whalen said.
Whalen said earlier that he began acquiring different parcels for the project 27 years ago and now owns five parcels where the project will be built. The last parcel was purchased in 2013 from the owner of auto body business John's Auto Service, he said.
Before construction can begin, the auto body shop, which is currently unoccupied, will be razed, Whalen said.
Residents near the project off Old Sulphur Spring Road have expressed concerns about increased noise and traffic expected to come from a restaurant planned for the site.
Whalen said he understands those concerns and has a plan to address those concerns.
"We specifically designed this so that there's no vehicular access between us and Old Sulphur Spring Road," Whalen said.
A sidewalk will be paved behind the restaurant at Old Sulphur Spring Road at the county's request, he said.
"We hope that we built something that they would like to patronize — that's the key," Whalen said.