BALTIMORE REGIONAL PARTNERSHIP Newsletter
Land Use and Transportation Issues Around the Region
June 5, 2002
___________________________

Contents:

*June 6 Rally to Feature Citizens and Elected Officials
*Carroll Strains Under Rapid Residential Growth
*Owings Mills Metro Center Project Hits Snags
*New Figures Show Commuting Pattern Changes
*State Preservation Program Nears 25-Year Mark
*"Airhead" Site Shows Your Pollution Contribution
*More Traffic, Fewer Dates in DC Area

__________________________

JUNE 6 RALLY TO FEATURE CITIZENS AND ELECTED OFFICIALS

Tomorrow night more than 2,000 citizens from across the Baltimore
metropolitan area, joined by the chief elected officials of nearly all
the region's jurisdictions, are expected to decend on the Baltimore
Convention Center at 6:00 PM to rally for improved public
transportation, expanded drug treatment, more housing choices,
revitalized communities, and open space preservation.  Sponsored by the
Citizens Planning and Housing Association (CPHA) and more than 200 other
organizations, the Rally for the Region will also feature Baltimore City
Mayor Martin O'Malley, Baltimore County Executive Dutch Ruppersberger,
Carroll County Commission President Julia Gouge, Harford County
Executive James Harkins, Howard County Executive James Robey, and Lt.
Governor and gubernatorial candidate Kathleen Kennedy Townsend as they
respond to the platform presented.  Anne Arundel County Executive Janet
Owens had planned to attend, but has been called out of town by a death
in the family.

For more information, including transportation to the Rally, visit:
http://www.CPHARallyForTheRegion.org

Baltimore Business Journal editorial available at:
http://baltimore.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2002/06/03/editorial2.html


___________________________

CARROLL COUNTY STRAINS UNDER RAPID RESIDENTIAL GROWTH

Carroll County's three commissioners continue to struggle with how to
respond to news that the county exceeded its six-year intended limit on
residential growth in less than five years.  With water shortages having
spurred a building moratorium in Carroll's Freedom growth area and
schools bursting at the seams in places like Mount Airy, growth appears
to be forced onto the commissioners' agenda and into the forefront of
media attention.  The Carroll County Times is in the midst of a
multi-part series on growth issues facing the county, having explored
issues from planning to agriculture to water and sewer service so far.

May 31 Sun story on commissioners available at:
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/carroll/bal-ca.board31may31.story?coll=bal%2Dlocal%2Dcarroll


Carroll County Times series on growth available at:
http://www.carrollcounty.com

__________________________

OWINGS MILLS METRO CENTER PROJECT HITS SNAGS

A high-profile effort to create a town center for Owings Mills on what
is now a more than 40 acres of parking lot adjacent to a Metro subway
station has taken substantially longer than Baltimore County and the
Maryland Transit Administration had originally anticipated.  Hurdles
reported in the local media range from the mix of public and commercial
buildings to the financing of the project's developer, LCOR, in the wake
of the economic downturn and impact of the September 11 attacks on New
York-based Lehman Brothers, a key investor for LCOR.  The project, which
anticipates a town square, stores, restaurants, apartments and
townhouses, as well as a hotel, library, and community college branch,
is one of the most prominent efforts in the region to construct a
walkable town center convenient to transit.  Local citizen leaders and
elected officials, though, have expressed concerns about retail
competition and other issues.

May 24 Sun story available at:
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-md.center24may24.story

__________________________

NEW FIGURES SHOW COMMUTING PATTERN CHANGES

Newly-released figures from the "long form" of the 2000 census indicate
that, since 1990, the average commute in the Baltimore region is getting
longer and fewer people are carpooling and riding transit.  While
transit usage increased in most counties, larger increases in people
driving alone meant that method of commuting consumed a larger share of
the overall pie in 2000 than in 1990.  Still, that ten-year snapshot may
not capture recent trends.  Recent information from the American Public
Transit Association and the Federal Highway Administration indicates
that transit usage has increased faster than driving for the last five
years in a row -- the first time that has ever happened.  Over that time
period miles driven increased by 12 percent, but transit ridership
increased by 21 percent.

May 31 Sun story available at:
http://www.sunspot.net/bal-te.md.commute31may31.story

Paper on "Transit Growing Faster than Driving" available at:
http://www.transact.org/decoders.htm

________________________

STATE PRESERVATION PROGRAM NEARS 25-YEAR MARK

Twenty-two years ago the state began preserving farmland through the
Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation, but now some are
raising concerns that landowners could get out of the agreements at the
25-year point.  To date the program has purchased development rights for
more than 70,000 acres or rural land in the Baltimore region, but the
contracts specify that landowners can buy back the development rights
after a quarter century, if state and local officials agree farming is
no longer possible.  While some landowners appear interested in pursuing
that option, others believe it is highly unlikely.

May 29 Sun story available at:
http://www.sunspot.net/bal-te.md.preserved29may29.story

_____________________________________

"AIRHEAD" SITE SHOWS YOUR POLLUTION CONTRIBUTION

A new site developed by the Chicago-based Center for Neighborhood
Technology focuses on the air pollution impacts of energy use and
transportation choices.  With a sharp look and a off-beat wit, the site
serves as a clearinghouse of information on air pollution.  It also
includes an "emissions calculator" through which you can calculate the
pollution associated with your particular energy and transportation
choices.

For more information, visit:
http://www.airhead.org

_____________________________________

MORE TRAFFIC, FEWER DATES IN DC AREA

A recent article in the Washington Post indicates that the D.C.
metropolitan area has an unusually high number of residents who rule out
possible dates more than a 30-minute trip away.  Fighting traffic during
rush hour seems to make area singles weary of battling congestion for
their social life, too.

June 3 article available at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A49176-2002Jun2.html

_________________________

ABOUT THE BALTIMORE REGIONAL PARTNERSHIP AND NEWSLETTER

The Baltimore Regional Partnership is an alliance of five civic,
environmental, and anti-sprawl groups:1000 Friends of Maryland
(www.friendsofmd.org), Baltimore Urban League (www.bul.org), Chesapeake
Bay Foundation ( www.savethebay.cbf.org), Citizens Planning and Housing
Association (www.CPHARallyForTheRegion.org), and Environmental Defense
(www.environmentaldefense.org).

This newsletter explores current issues, recent and upcoming events, and
ongoing deliberations that affect the region's quality of life through
transportation, economic development, and land use policy and planning. 

We hope to link citizens in the region who are working to fight sprawl,
promote clean and efficient transportation, protect valuable farm and
forest lands, and revitalize urban areas, older suburbs, and historic
towns. You can view past issues at
http://www.balto-region-partners.org/news.htm.

Has this newsletter been forwarded to you, and you would like to receive
it yourself? Go to
http://www.balto-region-partners.org/news.htm to sign up.

Send us information, too. Let us know about your work on land use and
transportation decisions that are affecting the Baltimore region. Email
information to Dan Pontious at danp@balto-region-partners.org.  Visit
the Baltimore Regional Partnership website at
http://www.balto-region-partners.org.