Plat

HAGERSTOWN - In a split vote, the Hagerstown Planning Commission on Wednesday approved a preliminary plat plan for 204 town houses off Burhans Boulevard. The project, called Linwood Hollow, would be near Sweeney and Noland drives. The planning commission approved the preliminary plat 4-2. Chairman Douglas S. Wright Jr. and commission members Frederick A. Nugent, Dennis C. Miller and F. Christian Wright IV voted yes. Commission members Kristin B. Aleshire and Martin E. Brubaker voted no. Commission member James W. Stone abstained.

New commission officers elected The Washington County Planning Commission on Monday elected new officers. Donald Ardinger, who is vice chairman, will be the chairman beginning in July. Paula Lampton currently is chairwoman. Commission member R. Ben Clopper will be the new vice chairman. Planning Director Michael Thompson said the Planning Commission elects officers every June, as required in the commission's bylaws. Plat for Mount Aetna subdivision tabled A preliminary plat for five dwelling units in the Mount Aetna subdivision was tabled for 30 days Monday night.

By DON AINES Staff Writer, Martinsburg MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The hardware giant Lowe's recently submitted a preliminary plan for a home improvement center in Berkeley County on W.Va. 45, but a company official would not say whether it will be built any time soon. "We do not announce anything until we actually have leased or purchased a property," said Clarissa Felts of Lowe's Investor Relations Department. She said the "sketch plat" sent to the Berkeley County Planning Commission is submitted by the company when it's looking at a particular property.

Three subdivisions north of Hagerstown, totaling about 260 units, received unanimous approvals from the Washington County Planning Commission at a meeting Monday. The three were among eight proposed projects put on hold while the county engineer's office studied the area around Longmeadow Road and Maugans Avenue as a whole, Acting Planning Director Steve Goodrich said after the meeting. When the study ended, some of the others were approved, Goodrich said. A few are awaiting approval.

By DON AINES Staff Writer, Martinsburg MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - An addition to the U.S. Coast Guard Operations Systems Center will be nearly twice as large as the existing building, according to a preliminary plan submitted to the Berkeley County Planning Commission. The three-story, 73,957-square-foot addition would be on approximately 10 acres at the Liberty Business Park off W.Va. 9 East, according to the sketch plat reviewed by the commission Monday night. The existing Coast Guard building, dedicated in November 1991, is approximately 40,000 square feet and cost about $5 million to build, said Ken Lowe, the managing partner for Panhandle Venture II, which owns the business park.

BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. -- Three revised subdivision regulations were approved with additional changes Friday by the Morgan County Commission. Under family transfer exemption changes, new wording was added to the section regarding family transfers and division among heirs. The new wording allows the formation of parcels transferred as gifts to those designated family members. It can be done with or without obtaining a well or septic permit, but it must be stipulated on the deed.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - It measures 28,000 square feet, but a proposed addition at the Guardian Fiberglass plant would increase the size of the facility by only about four percent. The addition was the subject of a pre-application conference Monday night before the Berkeley County Planning Commission. The manufacturer had already submitted a sketch plat and the next step is a detailed preliminary plat for the project, according to Planning Office Director Harry Carter. The addition would be to the south side of the plant, located off Exit 8 of Interstate 81. Guardian Fiberglass did not send a representative to the meeting, but Carter said most of the addition would be primarily for a loading area.

martinsburg@herald-mail MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - Developers told the Berkeley County Commission on Thursday that they agreed with most of the Berkeley County Planning Commission's fee increases as long as the additional revenue goes toward hiring another engineer for the county. Three developers at the public hearing voiced their concerns and suggested changes on the fees. About 10 developers attended. The planning commission's proposed fee increases only affect subdivisions and include: - A $45 increase on preliminary plat reviews, increasing the total fee to $240.

By DON AINES Staff Writer, Martinsburg MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The Lowe's hardware store on Winchester Avenue is only about five years old, but the hardware giant is planning to close it and open a Lowe's Home Improvement Center twice its size by next summer. "They must be happy in Martinsburg," said James Cochrane, the president of Resource Consultants & Developers Inc. of Parkersburg, W.Va. He said his firm is developing the project in a joint venture with T&F Properties of Aiken, S.C. The store will be on 27 acres on Route 45 at the South Queen Street interchange and would have 600 parking spaces.

The new tax and fee rates are: Taxes Real-estate property tax: $.798 per $100 of assessed value, an increase of 1.9 percent. Business property tax: $1.995 per $100 of assessed value, an increase of 1.9 percent New Fees Planning Department zoning verification fee: $25 per single-family home; $50 for all others. Fire department juvenile intervention program fee: $150 per child. Old fees, higher rates General government Department of Motor Vehicle flagging for municipalities fee (for failing to pay fines)

HAGERSTOWN -- A project to widen an alley that would connect East Washington Street in Hagerstown to the Arts and Entertainment District Parking Deck is expected to begin this spring, City Administrator Bruce Zimmerman said. The Hagerstown City Council voted 5-0 during a meeting Tuesday to introduce an ordinance that would transfer 0.151 acre of land to the city for the alley's construction. The land currently is owned by Bowman 2000 LLC, according to city documents. If the council passes the ordinance next month, it would become effective June 26. Zimmerman said after the meeting that the widened alley would stretch from the parking deck to the site of the former adult bookstore at 23 E. Washington St. The project also includes new sidewalks, landscaping, ornamental street lighting and a 29-space parking lot that would be constructed just east of the alley, he said.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- A fly-in community envisioned for Back Creek Valley attracted plenty of concern Monday evening at the Berkeley County Planning Commission's regular meeting, but the preliminary plat for the 64-home development met the county's requirements and was unanimously approved 5-0. Planning Commissioners Gary Matthews, Thomas Conlan and Ted Bostic were absent. Richard Rauch recused himself from the vote, which ultimately came with a condition that eight septic tanks be relocated out of the 100-year flood plain.

BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. -- Three revised subdivision regulations were approved with additional changes Friday by the Morgan County Commission. Under family transfer exemption changes, new wording was added to the section regarding family transfers and division among heirs. The new wording allows the formation of parcels transferred as gifts to those designated family members. It can be done with or without obtaining a well or septic permit, but it must be stipulated on the deed.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- Oral arguments in a developer's circuit court appeal of a Berkeley County Planning Commission decision against controversial home-building plans in northern Berkeley County are expected to be heard April 4. The petition filed last month on behalf of Trinbar LLC, the developer of the proposed Waterfall Farm Estates subdivision near the community of Bedington, was assigned to 23rd Judicial Circuit Judge David H. Sanders, who...

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - A developer's voluntary offer to set aside $100,000 for road improvements and legal advice from the Berkeley County Planning Commission's attorney didn't stop commissioners Monday night from denying a controversial residential development off Mouth of Opequon Road. The Planning Commission's 4-2 vote against Waterfall Farm Estates, a project consisting of 103 single-family lots and 152 town houses on about 74 acres near Bedington, W.Va., is expected to trigger a lawsuit.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - A development near Shepherdstown, W.Va., that is being geared to the local artisan community and is generating controversy because of its proximity to Morgan's Grove Park was given preliminary approval Tuesday night by county planning officials. The Jefferson County Planning Commission approved a community impact statement for the proposed Town Run Commons, but did attach several conditions for approval, said Sherry Kelly, Jefferson County's acting chief planner and zoning administrator.

HAGERSTOWN - The Hagerstown Planning Commission on Wednesday approved a developer's final plat request to build 82 town houses close to downtown. Bruce Pitts, president of Revere Development of Gaithersburg, Md., said town houses in the project, known as Deerfield Knolls, will cost about $265,000 each. But that price could change based on market fluctuation, he said. Deerfield Knolls is situated on roughly 6.2 acres of land on the west side of Burhans Boulevard, just north of Salem Avenue, Pitts said.

CHARLES TOWN, W.VA. - An attorney for three local developers trying to remove Todd Baldau from the Jefferson County Planning Commission over alleged misconduct argued in Jefferson County court that he could show there was "radical attempt to go beyond the law. " The developers have argued that Baldau has claimed that planning commission members can deny subdivisions because they act with discretion - which is using one's own reasoning - rather...

WILLIAMSPORT - Paula Moore began an afternoon French II class at Williamsport High School wearing a yellow duck floatation device, big round sunglasses and a white visor. She dragged a suitcase around the classroom as she spoke emphatic French, encouraging her students to use their French vocabulary to guess what she was packing in her suitcase for an imaginary trip. Moore's unique approach and engaging style won her a spot on USA Today's 2006 All-USA Teacher Team. Twenty teachers from around the country were selected to the team by a panel of judges.

On April 7, 2005, I was appointed to the Jefferson County Planning Commission. I serve as a volunteer, without compensation. Last month, a petition was filed in West Virginia Circuit Court to have me thrown off the planning commission. The planning commission is responsible for enforcing the county's subdivision ordinance. This involves hearing variance requests, declarations of violation, reviewing community impact statements and, perhaps most importantly, voting on "final plat" applications.