The Harford County Council was expected to pass a final version of the HarfordNEXT master plan Tuesday night, so a couple of words of caution are in order.
Just as you have heard before from elected officials, who say "trust us" when it comes to planning and zoning issues, you've seen us say in this space: Don't believe them.
It's our view that HarfordNEXT is far from a game changer. Professional planners may have "crafted" the plan and the media people in Harford County Executive Barry Glassman's administration certainly have slicked up the presentation, but the end result is the same: Certain influential people, with either direct or indirect ties to the development industry, are getting what they want.
This is the way the master planning process has always worked in Harford County, as well as throughout Maryland and many other states. It legitimizes more development in the guise of so-called community inputs. All these platitudes about "planning for the next generation" aside, let the community beware.
Rare is the successful politician in Harford County who hasn't gotten in bed with the development industry. This county executive is no different.
The folks in Fallston, who got riled up about a so-called minuscule expansion of the development envelope in their community, have heard it all before, going back some five decades. The results are obvious, and they aren't alone.
Once this master plan is completed, there will be a comprehensive zoning review where conceivably hundreds of landowners can and will seek zoning changes to boost the value of their properties.
Glassman has pulled out all stops to get this plan approved. He agreed to "modify" the plan's so-called Creswell Study Area when it provoked public outcry, but the amendment the county council approved last week is essentially a "trust us" disclaimer. Meanwhile, Glassman's folks have been emailing periodic "HarfordNEXT Just the Facts" infomercials to people explaining why their plan is different and improved from its predecessors.
In the end, the message is not. Trust them? Only to give the developers what they want. That's how the game has always worked, and still does.