Council directs staff to draft MOU with county and developer on Glenarden Hills water-swale maintenance

City staff briefed the council on conversations with the developer and county about water swales and a proposed path forward to allow the final phase of Glenarden Hills to proceed while protecting the city from liability.

Mister Wood described a recommended three‑party MOU that would assign maintenance responsibility to the association, provide rights for the association to perform maintenance, and include hold‑harmless language so the city is not automatically liable for repairs. He said the approach mirrors agreements used by other municipalities and that the county requires an agreement in place before issuing a permit.

Council members raised concerns about whether maintenance obligations would be disclosed to homeowners and whether the city could be called on to step in if the association failed to act. Staff said the MOU could include enforcement mechanisms and fines and that public works would not be contractually obligated to perform structural maintenance unless it was within their normal responsibilities.

Council provided consensus to have staff draft the MOU and seek legal sufficiency for the final document before returning it to council for review; this action was not a signed MOU but direction to prepare terms for later approval.

What happens next: staff will prepare an MOU draft for council review and coordinate legal sufficiency checks with counsel before the city or county executes any final agreement.