An abandoned shopping center in Baltimore County, the Lutherville Station sits with empty lots and empty store space, but one developer is looking to change that.
"We have a dilapidated property. It was built during the Lyndon Johnson administration. It is time to redevelop that property," said Mark Renbaum, the Principal of MLR Partners and the Lutherville Station Developer.
He said an original application was submitted in 2022. It proposed turning the site into a mix of housing and commercial developments.
They submitted an amended application to the county with big changes because of House Bill 538. That bill incentivizes developers to add affordable housing units to future projects by removing zoning barriers.
"All that is happening right now is that the County Executive would put this project in a priority letter to MDOT specifically to provide a recommendation that the state pick this up as a Transit Oriented Development designation,” said Renbaum.
He said the TOD at Lutherville Station would include more than 2 acres of open space, an event lawn, retail and office space, and a proposed 560 apartments. But, there could be more.
Also, improvements to an existing transit hub for the state and Baltimore County, but there is opposition.
"The concerns are that for this site that's just too many housing units," said Eric Rockel, the Vice President of the Greater Timonium Community Council.
Rockel said overcrowding schools and increased traffic are a worry for those in the community along with changing the character of the immediate area. He said the number of apartments needs to be scaled down.
"I'd say something under 300,” said Rockel. He also stated that when the county reviews the application, he's asking them to be open and honest.
"Hopefully, there will be transparency and open meetings in that process. We didn't see that in the last application he submitted. So, it would be upon the Olszewski administration to make it an open and transparent process,” said Rockel.
House Bill 538 will go into effect January 1 of next year.
