Havre de Grace council tables zoning change for group housing at former Mount Zion church after heated public comment

Havre de Grace — The City Council on Tuesday night voted 6-0 to table Ordinance 1168, a proposed amendment to Chapter 205 that would change zoning rules affecting “group housing” and could permit transitional housing uses at the former Mount Zion Baptist Church at 550 Lewis Street.

The ordinance drew more than a dozen public speakers and two hours of testimony from residents, veterans and the developer-operator at the podium. Opponents said the downtown residential neighborhood and a nearby elementary school would be harmed by an uncertain use; supporters, including the operator Communities Helping Empower Patriots (CHEP), urged the council to act to help unhoused veterans.

Why it matters: The ordinance as written would broaden the zoning definition for group housing in the RO (residential) district. City staff and the city attorney told the council that the draft language is broad enough to allow multifamily uses across the RO district unless the definitions and state-law links are tightened.

The debate focused on three issues: whether the proposed text sufficiently tracks state definitions and licensing…