Commissioners press staff on Nells Acres mitigation, Ridenour Way connection and MD‑26 options

Staff presented aerial maps and master‑plan lines showing the planned Ridenour Way and Dickinson parallel service roads near the Nells Acres subdivision and said those links have been on the plan since 1977.

County staff described negotiations after Nells Acres Phase 1: the developer agreed to prepare engineering drawings and to contribute roughly $220,000 toward construction of a connector segment tied to Ridenour Way. To control buildout before the connector was advanced, staff said the developer was limited to 50 initial building permits and that further permits required technical review sign‑off; staff later allowed additional permits as plans neared completion.

Commissioners raised multiple concerns: whether county CIP funds had been committed without negotiated offsets; whether the planned connector would meaningfully reduce traffic on Maryland Route 26; and the effect on existing neighborhoods if two current entrances were closed. Staff advised that the county—IP includes projects for Monroe and Georgetown, noted coordination opportunities with private developers (for example, Hobie Wolf property), and said the county may take the engineering plans and move forward as a county project.

On mitigation, staff said State Highway initially accepted a Maryland‑T intersection concept at Progress Way and MD‑32 as developer mitigation, but a later review by the State Highway Office of Traffic and Safety opposed construction of the Maryland‑T and recommended a fee‑in‑lieu instead. Staff said negotiations about what the fee would fund have not concluded.

Commissioners asked for costs and feasibility before committing further construction dollars. Staff identified a Baltimore Metropolitan Council (BMC) grant opportunity — about $60,000 total with a roughly $12,000 county match budgeted — to fund preliminary engineering to define costs, property acquisition needs and feasibility for the Ridenour/Dickinson connections. Staff recommended pursuing that preliminary study and returning to the board with options on whether to proceed with Ridenour, to direct funds toward MD‑26 improvements instead, or to seek other partnerships.

Commissioners asked that the county continue to engage emergency services, DPW and State Highway as plans evolve and to provide solid cost and acquisition estimates before advancing construction funding.