The Long Reach village board has raised last-minute objections to the Rouse Co.'s plans to build 740 homes in Kendall Ridge, saying small lots, high-density housing and a shortage of open space will create a congested community unlike typical Columbia neighborhoods.
But David Forester, the Rouse Co.'s senior development director, said that housing plans for Kendall Ridge -- which include 64 townhouses for moderate-income families -- are in line with other Columbia communities. He said the Rouse Co. can satisfy the village board's concerns at a village board meeting Tuesday without changing its plans.
The timing of the village board's objections is "curious," he said, considering that it had several opportunities to comment at earlier stages of the planning process over the past two years.
Long Reach's sweeping objections come at a late stage when the county Planning Board typically focuses on smaller details and seeks to ensure that final plans match earlier agreements, Mr. Forester and Planning Board Chairwoman Joan Lancos both said. The Planning Board could approve Rouse's final plan for the project Wednesday.
But Ms. Lancos said "some finessing" of the plan is still possible. "Until we give the final OK, nothing's ever a done deal," she said. "As citizen planners, we're always willing to listen to the concerns of other citizens."
But Ms. Lancos said that, while the Planning Board welcomes citizens' comments, it "can't arbitrarily say no" to a developer who meets all regulations.
The village board wrote in a letter sent Monday to the county Planning Board that it is "deeply concerned" about development of a new section of Kendall Ridge, which is projected to grow from about 3,600 residents to nearly 6,000 over the next two years. The area, between Routes 175 and 108, is one of the few unfinished sections of Columbia, which the Rouse Co. began 27 years ago.
"While Columbia has been a largely successful innovation that tested many social conditions, it was never intended to be an experiment in human adaptability to congestion," wrote Cecilia Januszkiewicz, village board chairwoman.
"It was never Columbia's goal simply to be a place where more people lived," the letter says. "It was our goal and it is still the goal of Long Reach to be a place people find more livable. Together we can still achieve that goal by changing this plan."
The Kendall Ridge III plan calls for 540 multifamily units and 200 single-family homes on 145 acres originally zoned for commercial and industrial use. The village board supported Rouse's request to rezone the land to residential use in 1990.
In an interview, Ms. Januszkiewicz denied that Streamwood, a controversial, 64-townhouse affordable housing project proposed last summer as part of the plan, has inspired the board's most recent objections. "It hasn't motivated us to be picky about the rest of the parcel," she said.
She said the Rouse Co. appears to be trying to "put the maximum number of units they can" on the parcel without designating enough open space, especially for children to play.
Mr. Forester responded that all landowners aim for the "maximum economic return" from their land, adding that about 48 acres, or one-third of the project, is designated as open space. "We don't think this is congested," he said, adding that Snowden River Parkway is being widened to serve the development.
He said some of the single-family home lots are small -- less than a quarter-acre -- to allow the developer to provide housing at a wide range of prices. The company has built similar developments in Columbia over the past decade, he said.
"I think they misinterpret one of the goals of Columbia -- a broad range of housing," Mr. Forester said. "There's the same diversity throughout Columbia. It seems to have worked well the last quarter-century, and we think it will continue to work well."
Ms. Januszkiewicz admitted that the village board has had chances to review the plan with the Rouse Co. and comment before the Planning Board. But she said that concerns have developed as the plan evolved and that some potential problems were hard to recognize immediately.
The village board wants the Planning Board to reconsider the approval of single-family home lots that are less than 8,000 square feet, or about one-fifth of an acre, re-evaluate the housing density of the project and increase the amount of open space.