Hearing on Proposed Rezoning in Aspen Hill

Photo of Blair H. Lee, President of Blair Development Group (BDG)

Last night there was a hearing by the MoCo Council on a proposed rezoning (minor master plan amendment) in Aspen Hill. It was clear that the main goal of this proposal was to allow Lee Development Group (LDG) to use its property that was formerly the very large Vitro / BAE building (now empty) to be used for other purposes.

I'm not sure which side of the dispute is right about the basic point, whether the community would be best served by having one or more large stores on this property or whether it would be best to prohibit that and only allow small stores there.

What was disconcerting, to say the least, were the tactics. Lee Development Group presented testimony from its leader, Bruce H. Lee. Later, a women who identified herself only by giving the name of her law firm gave testimony as an "individual," supporting Lee's proposal. Only when a Council member asked if she had a client she was representing did she say she her firm was representing LDG.

Then two more people who identified themselves as "individuals" speaking on their own behalf finally identified themselves as working for LDG, and County Council President George Leventhal wisely said they could not take up time presenting oral testimony that everyone knew would support LDG which was paying them.

This misrepresentation of making it appear that "individuals" in the community supported what LDG wanted, when they were on LDG's payroll, was in my opinion bordering on fraud.

In addition, some alleged that the new zoning being requested by LDG had not been considered by the MoCo Planning Board until almost the end of the Planning Board's consideration of this issue, long after public comments were supposed to be made openly and in public.

LDG might have a good case for the rezoning they want, but in my opinion their tactics undermined their efforts to sway people such as me who had not yet taken a firm position.