Development--sick of it!

[lanes]

Hi,
This is my first post on somd.com. My husband and I just moved here from Ohio last May. When he was looking for jobs, we had alot of different choices as to where to live (from Seattle to Buffalo) but we chose here, because of the rural beauty of the county and the Bay.

It seemed like the best of both worlds--nice people in a nice setting, yet close to DC and other cities if you wanted to do something.

But even since last May, I have been very disturbed at all the housing developments and commerical developments that are taking place. I know that it is nice to have restaurants and stores in town--i.e. Wal-Mart, Target, etc. But this town (Lex. Park) seems so poorly planned that I am about ready to move away.

We live at the Greens at Hilton Run right now, and part of the reason we chose it was because of the wooded setting--you really felt like you were 'away from it all.' Well, all that is changing, as the new Willows Woods housing complex is going in right behind out apartment. Where there used to be lots of trees, there is only a thin layer, and you can now see some of the homes through it.

Also, the geniuses who are clearing the land decided to burn all the trees they cut down (instead of doing something useful with them). So for the last 4 days, there have been massive bonfires in the woods behind the apartments. Several residents have smoke in their apartments, and there is a layer of ash on all the cars in the parking lot. Can developers do this? It just seems really wasteful to me.

Anyway...my husband and I are trying to figure out where around here we want to buy a home. We're thinking south of the base because it seems to be away from the development...but who knows for how long! Do you all have any suggestions as to where to begin looking? We would like a medium-sized home--doesn't have to be new. But we would like an acre or two of land.

Another constraint--I do not want to live too far out in the middle of nowhere, because I am a certified massage therapist and would like to have a home office--clients will not drive too far.

Any suggestions/comments would be appreciated.
Thanks!

 

[Warron]

I noticed the new houses going up there a few days ago. They are really packing them in. Looks like a good 5 feet between the houses. It wouldn't be my first choice if I was looking for a house. Especially with a large apartment complex right outside the back door.

I never understood why people bother buying a house on these tiny lots. Why not just buy a condiminium or a townhouse. Maybe the 5 feet between your wall and the neighbors cuts down on neighbor noise a little, but your lawn is completely public (all 20 sqft of it) and hardly makes investing in a lawnmower worthwhile.

 

[justhangn]

You and Smalltown should get along just fine!

 

[crash]

Unfortunately, I can't really help you with finding a home except to reccomend the realtors that you can find listed here on somd, unless you're particularly trying to stay away from realtors. I have lived here in St. Mary's County all my life and was born on Pax River. I'm only 23, but I can remember back when 235 was lined with trees and a coouple stores instead of stores and a couple trees. I often joke about it turning into another Waldorf, but it's essentially true. Lexington Park is very old and, yes, poorly planned. I believe it started out being a housing area for Pax River many years ago combined with a small center of commerce for the area. I'm glad that Pax has been successful and grown some, but, unfortunately, other bases have been closed and that led to a lot of jobs and family being moved here. And in come some more contractors. Following a growing population, in comes more businesses. Then more population, and so on and so forth. I'm sorry this has gotten wordy and useless. I miss the old St. Mary's somewhat. Good luck finding a home! Take care!





If Moderator sees fit, feel free to move the to another forum, I know I got off topic.

 

[SmallTown]

Yes.. Very poor planning indeed.. But if you came down last May, you saw most of it happening. I was also at the greens over two years ago, and they were already building the new subdivision.

Funny how people look at things.. You saying you might leave because it is too developed here, and people like me who are leaving because it is underdeveloped.. Well, it is not just the underdevelopment that is frustrating, but like you said the lack of planning.

I personally would not go south of the base, if for no other reason than to be able to avoid base traffic if you need to go north for any reason (shopping, eating out, etc).. Try coming north on a rainy day and you'll spend an hour in traffic.. Going a little further north, you will find plenty of open land that fits your desires, plus you will have a broader reach for clients. Mechanicsville area is SLOWLY growing and you can find housing there on more than 1 acre..

 

[SxyPrincess]

Originally posted by lanes

But even since last May, I have been very disturbed at all the housing developments and commerical developments that are taking place.

That is because transplants (such as yourself) are moving to the area. Would you rather have not been able to find a place to live because it was under developed?

 

[lanes]

Yes,
I know that transplants such as my husband and myself are part of the reason for all the new development--good point. We may try looking in the Mechanicsville area--thank you for the suggestion.

 

[vraiblonde]

Welcome to southern Maryland, Lanes!

Well, it is not just the underdevelopment that is frustrating, but like you said the lack of planning.

Yeah, man! I agree with that 100%.

 

[crash]

I want to apologize to "lanes." I did not mean to express anything towards you. The problem is mainly the bigger companies coming in. We do welcome you with open arms!

Robert

 

[lanes]

Hey,
No apologies necessary--I appreciate everyone's point of view. Have a good weekend everyone!

 

[Oz]

If you really want to make a study of it, go to the county's web site, and click on Planning and Zoning. From their section, you can find a link to the zoning maps, which will give you an idea of how developed a particular area, that you would like to locate your family, will become.

There are nice communities here. Working with a real estate agent will be helpful too, as they can give you an idea of particular areas and communities. This is a great place, but you have to look beyond the apartment and town home complexes to find the lower density that you seem to desire.

 

[RangerJohn]

Well I guess I'm a fellow transplant, and while I too agree that the town of Lexington Park is poorly planned, I have also been pleased by the progress I've seen in the past year and a half I've lived here.

I came from San Diego, with a stop in Athens Georgia in between, and like a lot of us, I came for the opportunities presented by NAVAIR's move to Pax, and the associated growth.

I also lived in the Greens while my house was being built, and everyone once in awhile I smelt the smoke from burning leaves, but let me tell you this....that is a small inconvenience compared to the smog of my native southern California that makes breathing unthinkable. When I retired from the Navy I was presented with a choice, go home to San Diego, where housing costs had skyrocketed....( $350K gets you a shack next to Tijuana!) or come to Pax, make $10 K more @ year, and buy a 5 bedroom house 250 yards from the bay for under $200K.

Also I don't have to worry about gangbangers harassing/recruiting my kids, traffic, or other luxuries that have taken hold of my hometown. People have been nice, friendly, usually helpful. Now I don't have all the stuff I was used to in SoCal, but Monterrey has some decent Mexican food, (although I crave a Roberto's Carne Asada burrito!) Starbuck's has come to the area, and I like to see some of the development that means that I don't have to drive to Baltimore, Annapolis, or DC to shop.

I came here, and I'm going to stay here for a good long while. I like my home, I like my new neighbors, and I hope the community grows to take the best of what transplants like myself have to add to this area, while maintaining what makes this a darned good place to live.

 

[Heretic]

Just hope the ashes from the burning dont catch your apt on fire. I know of someone in California whose house burnt down because someone down the street was burning stuff and the ashes were airborne and caught their house on fire.

 

[Oz]

Originally posted by RangerJohn
I came here, and I'm going to stay here for a good long while. I like my home, I like my new neighbors, and I hope the community grows to take the best of what transplants like myself have to add to this area, while maintaining what makes this a darned good place to live.

And as a native, I thank goodness that you are here, and the opportunity that brought you here exists in St. Mary's County. People can criticize all they want, but I am thankful we even have the "problem" which I prefer to call opportunity.

 

[pilot]

Nodnarb:

Well said! I grew up in a rural area in the midwest that was absolutely dead. My hometown keeps losing population, even though, ironically, it's in a beautiful geographic location similar to Pax River (on the coast of Lake Michigan, two hours from Chicago). There just aren't any jobs, nothing to keep young people. Believe me, you don't want to have the problem of NO growth.

That being said, I do wish they could be more intelligent about the way they do development here. They keep chopping down trees to put in new developments, while there's tons of empty real estate and vacant lots all over. Why?!!!

 

[Oz]

Tell me the Eastern Shore counties of Maryland wouldn't trade their Chicken Farms, and "light industry" for NAVAIR/Pax River? Our community is extremely fortunate, and we must do everything we can to protect that. Sadly, there are factions in the county who try to fight that, through environmental and anti-growth organizational "veils."

 

[Heretic]

Like I said before the area from Hollywood to Lexington Park is being turned into Generica and within 20 years will be one paved over mess that looks like the sprawl in 1000 different places.

 

[Oz]

Originally posted by Heretic
Like I said before the area from Hollywood to Lexington Park is being turned into Generica and within 20 years will be one paved over mess that looks like the sprawl in 1000 different places.

That's what the Zoning Ordinance intends to do. Direct development into DD's and TC's so that it doesn't sprawl. The intention of 1-in-whatever is intended to put the bulk of the population into these areas, and Hollywood, California and Lexington Park, just as you mentioned are the designated areas. Your statement is somewhat contradictory because if these areas are truly developed as intended, then it will limit sprawl.

The alternative is to have Hollywood-Lexington Park remain pretty much the same, but have a home on both sides of little side roads, "sprawled" around the county.

Add Leonardtown, and Mechanicsville to the areas you mentioned, and those are the areas that development is currently being directed to prevent sprawl, yet you call these areas sprawl? In these areas, you can put one home on each quarter acre. Sprawl would be having a home on every 5 (or even 20) acre parcel as you drive through the county.

Sounds like you would rather just put the brakes on everything? Or are you saying that all these consultants who make big bucks writing zoning laws, and directing growth to specific areas, don't know what they're talking about?

 

[Heretic]

I guess we have different definitions of sprawl. I don't consider a home on 5 acres sprawl, I consider that rural. What I consider sprawl is endless strip malls and stoplights along a major (the only) through way. What could have been done instead of putting all of the developements parallel to 235 is the centers could have been horseshoe shaped so that they make more efficient use of the parking lots and less land has to be paved over or there could have been some "exits" off 235 that lead to perpendicular roads with the developements on them. This would have allowed the same traffic throughput as a much wider road with a bunch of stoplights (like we have now). In contrast residential areas pave over very little compared to commercial areas. One such area to demonstrate my point is route 234 between Leonardtown and Morganza, there is just about one house on 5 acres and I dont consider that sprawl but from Hollywood to GreatMills road is sprawl, actually I find that area just about the nicest in southern MD I wouldnt mind living out there.

 

[Oz]

The idea is to fight sprawl with compacted development. What you are calling sprawl, is what the Zoning Ordinance is attempting to create. What the Zoning Ordinance calls sprawl is what you consider rural.

Sprawl is when development extends beyond the infrastructure (ie. water, sewage, town centers, roads, etc.) Based on your explanation, you are FOR sprawl, and against development within the infrastructure.

This is why people have problems with the Zoning Ordinance. They don't understand the document, or what it intends to create, and instead lobby FOR that which the laws intend to stop, as you are basically doing when you say you don't want more development along 235 where the infrastructure exists, but you don't mind development sprawling down Route 234 every 5 acres because that's rural.

That's where I challenged smcdem before, when he said he was FOR 1-in-20 because he doesn't want to come home from college to the landscape of Waldorf along Route 235. Yet, that is exactly what 1:20 intends to create, because it limits the use of the "sprawl" space, and instead, directs it at the Town Centers and Development Districts where facilities and infrastructure exists. The intention is that you put the bulk of the population into these areas, so that you preserve the rural character of the undeveloped, and unserviced areas.