Aberdeen city planners and elected officials hope to transform the area around the MARC train station into a more bustling, vibrant neighborhood, and they want residents to be involved in building the vision.
Phyllis Grover, head of the city's planning and community development department, is leading a public workshop on a draft master plan for the station area to be held at City Hall Oct. 13 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
The draft master plan is being developed in partnership with the Maryland Department of Transportation and other local stakeholders.
Grover said Wednesday she already held a design workshop with stakeholders in August, which was not open to the public.
The redevelopment process was launched by a 2009 feasibility study. In June, the Aberdeen train station area was designated a "transit-oriented development" site by Gov. Martin O'Malley, making the planning process eligible for continued state/federal funding support.
Transit-oriented development creates compact, walkable communities within a half-mile of a transit station. Aberdeen's train station, which is along Amtrak's Northeast Corridor Line, is owned by Amtrak, a federally subsidized corporation. The station also serves MARC train commuters on the Penn Line from Perryville to Washington, D.C. MARC is operated by MDOT.
With the growth of Aberdeen Proving Ground because of BRAC, both the city and state governments have long hoped to redevelop the Aberdeen station as regional intermodal transit hub. Money has been a stumbling block to the concept moving past the taking stage, however, with both the state's and Amtrak's finances in a tenuous position in recent years.
MDOT did hire consultants to work on a master plan for the area near the station, which sits at the corner of Route 40 (Philadelphia Boulevard) and East Bel Air Avenue, the main crossroads of the city's downtown.
The master plan is set to be done by November, according to Grover, who said the Oct. 13 meeting will focus on what specifically the city wants for properties along Route 40 and downtown.
Grover said she hopes the master plan allows her to give a solid answer when property owners ask, "What do you envision for the area?"
She said the plan will promote transit-oriented development and use of the station, as well as other transit uses.
The feasibility of actually transforming the station and its surroundings lies mostly in the hands of private property owners and other stakeholders besides the government, she said.
"They need to get excited about what can potentially be on their property," she said.
Citing the number of vacant properties along Route 40, Grover said she would feel successful if she can get just five property owners excited for a new vision.
"There's a lot of opportunities for redevelopment," she said.
The train station, meanwhile, has definitely been seeing increased use, Grover said. Aberdeen Proving Ground has increased the number of shuttle buses it sends to the station to serve people who are commuting by both MARC and Amtrak trains to work on the post.
Grover said new residents are coming from areas like Fort Monmouth, N.J., that are familiar with transit and rail service.
Results from a "value exercise" done at the design concept workshop this summer show stakeholders value, in order of importance, having a "town center" character, walkability and accessibility, small-town character, a sense of place, safety and green space or recreation opportunities
To view a presentation given at the summer meeting online, go to http://www.mdot.maryland.gov/Planning/TOD/Aberdeen_TOD.html.