Hoffman Brothers asks Prince George’s County examiner to validate 1967 use-and-occupancy permit

Hoffman Brothers Towing Inc. asked the Prince George’s County Zoning Hearing Examiner on June 18 to validate a use-and-occupancy permit issued Dec. 18, 1967, for its Laurel property at 7808 Sandy Spring Road (formerly 1421 Sandy Spring Road), saying company investments and active towing contracts depend on the permit.

The company’s owner, Garner Gorley, testified that Hoffman Brothers “tows strictly for the Prince George County Police Department and also for Laurel City Police Department,” and that the business has relied on the 1967 permit for decades while maintaining county and state licenses. Senior land planner Eddie Diaz Campbell, testifying for the applicant, said planning staff have taken the position that the 1967 permit was issued in error because the property is in the county’s rural residential zoning category, where towing and used-car sales are not permitted uses under today’s code.

Why it matters: Validation would preserve licenses, ongoing county towing contracts and the company’s investments in vehicles and staff, the applicant said. County planning staff’s view that the permit was issued in error raises a legal question about whether the historic permit can be validated or treated as a lawful nonconforming use.

Testimony and evidence presented Garner Gorley, identified as owner of Hoffman Brothers Towing Inc., described continuous business activity at the Sandy Spring Road site since the 1960s and said the company is a primary night-time tow provider for local police. He testified the business employs about 10 people, operates eight tow trucks and holds multiple Prince George’s County tow licenses and an MVA license. Gorley said he and the company invested in trucks, payroll and insurance in reliance on the 1967 use-and-occupancy permit and annual county licensing.

Several witnesses with long ties to law enforcement or the company offered support for validating the permit. James Harvey, a former Maryland state trooper who later commanded the troop covering the Laurel area, said Hoffman Brothers provided reliable,timely service for accident scenes and that validation would not harm the public. Edward Joseph Puls Jr., who detailed long-term professional contact with the lot during police investigations, told the examiner he was not aware of fraud or appeals related to the 1967 permit and said revoking the permit could increase traffic pressure if the site were redeveloped to housing.

Planning analysis and legal question Eddie Diaz Campbell, a senior land planner working with applicant counsel Hejazi and Carol, testified that his review and a search with the county’s permitting records found only the 1967 use-and-occupancy permit and that the property has been zoned rural residential since the county’s zoning code took effect in 1961. He summarized staff’s position: “the permit was issued in error” because the uses listed in 1967 (towing of wrecked vehicles and operation of a used-car lot) were not permitted in that zone when the permit was issued.

Applicant requests and procedural developments Counsel for Hoffman Brothers requested that the examiner validate the 1967 permit and certify the uses listed therein as lawful nonconforming uses. During the hearing, counsel asked to leave the record open to supplement invoices, a lease and the CV of the planner; the examiner agreed to leave the record open and the parties said they would submit those items. The applicant also asked that one exhibit (historic aerial imagery, record item 15) be stricken; the record was left as submitted and counsel then said they were not truly opposed to keeping it in.

No final ruling on validation was recorded in the transcript. The hearing included sworn testimony, documentary exhibits (including the 1967 permit and deeds dating to 2011 and 2016), and requests to supplement the record. The examiner indicated the record would remain open for the limited additional materials discussed before the case is taken under advisement.

Background and local impact The property is on Sandy Spring Road in Laurel and sits near a gas station, a convenience store and an office building; witnesses described adjacent uses including a commuter park-and-ride lot. Applicant witnesses emphasized the business’s nighttime service role and said losing validation could disrupt county towing coverage in northern Prince George’s County. Planning testimony focused on the zoning history and the technical question whether a 1967 permit for uses not permitted under the rural residential zone can be validated now.

Next steps The record was left open for invoices, the lease and the planner’s CV; the record will be supplemented per counsel’s statement and the examiner will proceed after reviewing submitted materials. The transcript contains no final decision; any ruling on validation would be issued by the examiner following a review of the complete record.