County Councilman Guy J. Guzzone plans to reintroduce his original bill restricting large mixed-use developments despite Planning Board recommendations that would weaken it, he said yesterday.

Guzzone, a Laurel-Savage Democrat, said he will let the council and the public decide what changes ought to be made in the bill, which seeks to reassure community residents worried about traffic and congestion from large village-style projects.

The county Planning Board proposed last week removing the toughest provision in the bill -- requiring that proposed roads be completed before any home construction could begin.

The board refused to accept a compromise proposed by county Planning Director Joseph W. Rutter Jr. to allow construction to begin when funding for roads is locked into a budget. That action angered Guzzone, who accused the board of favoring developers' suggestions over residents' ideas.

"There were actually other [compromise] proposals the Planning Board didn't address," Guzzone said, adding that he wants council members to decide how to change the bill after a public hearing late next month.

"Another round of public hearings will lead to the best product," he said.

Guzzone said he will add a clause grandfathering the Rouse Co.'s 1,145-home mixed-use development proposed along Route 216 in his district. "This is not intended to be retroactive," he said.

But if the council approves some version of the bill, it will cover another proposal for a 1,168-home project several miles west on the Iager farm in fellow Democratic council member Mary C. Lorsung's district.

Guzzone said he expects and wants some changes to be made to the bill, but he isn't sure which ones he favors. "I'm not trying to shut down the world," he said.

Rutter said he will stand by his staff's report when the bill comes back before the County Council. The report recommends a 10 percent minimum of open space rather than the 30 percent Guzzone proposed, and the road budgeting compromise.

Like most professional planners, Rutter said he favors mixed-use developments for their flexibility, especially in a county such as Howard, where redevelopment of older neighborhoods increasingly will be the issue.

Tying building construction to road construction could discourage or delay those kinds of projects, he said.

Pub Date: 3/18/99