BMZA approves subdivision to separate liquor store and residence on West Forest Park Avenue

The Baltimore Municipal Zoning Appeals board voted Aug. 5 to approve variances and allow the subdivision of a long‑standing split‑use lot at 2502 West Forest Park Avenue. The proposal separates a liquor store fronting Edgewood (to be zoned C‑1) from an adjacent single‑family dwelling fronting West Forest Park (to remain R‑1), resolving an administrative difficulty created after Transform Baltimore rezoned the parcel.

Attorney Drew Tilden told the board the liquor store has operated on the property since around 1940 and that the two structures historically functioned as separate uses long before the applicant acquired the property. The 2017 Transform Baltimore rezoning and a later corrective council bill had left an administratively awkward split‑zone lot; the applicant said subdivision would create two self‑contained lots consistent with the longstanding uses.

Planning staff supported the request, noting the subdivision reduces administrative hardship created by split zoning and will facilitate separate redevelopment or sale of the units. The board found the lot’s history and physical condition established the uniqueness and practical difficulty required for relief, and voted to approve the variances and the subdivision. Letters of support from the Forest Park Neighborhood Association were part of the administrative record. The board instructed staff to prepare a resolution and move the subdivision through the required administrative steps.