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Speaker says county needs more housing, opposes moratorium and previews public forum
Summary
An unidentified speaker at the meeting said two proposed projects — Stewart's Grama and Patuxent River Villages — would add housing stock, said they oppose a development moratorium, and said a public forum will follow an upcoming meeting.
An unidentified speaker at the meeting said Stewart's Grama and Patuxent River Villages would bring needed housing opportunities to the county and that they do not support a moratorium on development. “We have more people moving in than we have housing available,” the speaker said, adding that real estate agents report virtually no inventory.
The speaker said they oppose moratoriums on development and invoked property-rights and market principles in arguing against them. “If you're not doing anything that hinders or harms your neighbor and you have a right to do something with your property, you should be able to do it,” the speaker said, and referenced Adam Smith in a broader defense of limited government intervention.
The speaker said the next meeting will include discussion of the word "moratorium" and that a public forum will follow the meeting referenced as occurring on the “20 ninth” in the transcript; the transcript does not provide a clear calendar date for that forum. The speaker also said that when businesses propose uses — examples given included a gas station, a car wash and Dollar General — the county should ask applicants how they determined there is demand for that use.
The remarks were discussion, not a formal vote or directive recorded in the transcript. No motion or formal board action on a moratorium, on the two development projects, or on requirements for business demand studies is recorded in the provided excerpt.
