"After visiting Fort Ritchie and reviewing extensive background material provided to us by members of the National Trust, we are very seriously concerned that the redevelopment plan proposed by (COPT) is in clear conflict with the Programmatic Agreement and Design Guidelines that contribute to the redevelopment of historic Fort Ritchie," Moe wrote.
The Programmatic Agreement and Design Guidelines address building and design guidelines for the base.
"The COPT plan fails to conserve the open-space framework of Fort Ritchie, sacrifices the historic site's key cultural landscape, Fort Ritchie's wonderful Parade Field, and proposes the demolition of four contributing historic structures," Moe wrote.
Moe wrote that the base is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
COPT CEO Randall M. Griffin could not be reached for comment Friday.
Griffin said at a recent public hearing that development in historic areas would be done "tastefully."
"You don't have to worry," Griffin said. "We are committed to that."
The Maryland National Guard built the base, called Camp Ritchie, in the 1920s. It was built as an encampment to house the 58th Brigade Headquarters and the 1st and 5th Infantry Regiments, according to the base's 1997 Comprehensive Reuse Plan.
Much of the property is known by the Maryland Historical Trust as the "Camp Ritchie Historic District."
That district includes at least 50 stone buildings, two lakes and approximately 30 acres of open space known as the parade field.
The Army leased the property from the state in 1942 to accommodate 3,000 troops during World War II, the plan states.
Several years later, the base served as a support facility for Site R, the underground Pentagon in nearby Pennsylvania. From the 1970s, the fort took on a bigger role in performing communication and administrative missions for the Army, the 1997 plan states.
