Chairman Ball and Members of the Howard County Council:

The League of Women Voters of Howard County supports County Council Bill 5, introduced by Council member Fox, that requires pre-submission community meetings for minor residential subdivision applications outside the Planned Service Area for public water and sewer.

Our support position is based on providing information to the community about development activity in the rural area of the County similar to that which is currently required in the Planned Service Area. As currently written, Howard County Planning, Zoning and Subdivisions and Land Development Regulations specifically exempt minor residential subdivisions in the non Planned Service Area from the requirements of pre-submission community meetings.

Currently, except for frequent checking with the Department of Planning and Zoning, there is no public way for adjacent residents to be informed of proposed minor subdivision development because the property is not posted. They become informed when they see construction start to take place.

We urge a favorable County Council vote for County Council Bill 5.

Sincerely,

Grace Kubofcik,
Co-President
Howard County League of Women Voters