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Council advances updated forest-conservation code as residents appeal Legacy subdivision plan
Summary
Havre de Grace council approved first reading of an overhaul to the city's forest-conservation code while a citizen coalition has appealed the city's approval of the Legacy subdivision forest plan and has taken the case to circuit court.
The Havre de Grace City Council on July 6 approved on first reading an ordinance to repeal and replace city code chapter 81 on forest conservation, a change council leaders said aligns the city with Maryland’s updated forest-conservation standards and aims to prioritize existing tree cover and meaningful replanting when clearing is unavoidable.
The ordinance (12-25) was introduced by Council Member Vicki Jones and described by Council President Casey Boyer as a practical step to “support growth while protecting our community’s long term health.” The measure passed on first reading by a roll-call vote of 6–0. Council scheduled a public hearing on the ordinance for the next meeting, July 20.
The vote comes as members of the community pressed the council and staff about an approved development plan they say will remove mature woodlands. Carol Zimmerman, speaking during public comment as a member of the Coalition for Sensible Development in Havre de Grace, said she and others filed an administrative appeal of the Legacy subdivision’s final forest conservation plan, which she said would “result in the destruction of 17.7 acres of mature forest.” Zimmerman said the Board of Appeals dismissed the coalition’s filing on technical grounds and that, with pro bono help from the Chesapeake Legal Alliance and attorney Nicholas Iliff of the Wiley law firm, the group has appealed that dismissal to the Circuit Court of Hartford County.
“We believe the Legacy’s final forest conservation plan should not have been approved as it violated criteria for protection of forest specified in the city code,” Zimmerman told the council.
Council members said the ordinance update is intended to give residents clearer protections and to make forest-resource decisions more transparent as projects move forward. Jones told colleagues the ordinance aligns the city’s code with the state model and contains Habitat Grace-specific provisions.
The council recorded the ordinance’s first-reading adoption 6–0; a public hearing and subsequent vote are expected on July 20. The citizen appeal of the Legacy final forest conservation plan is pending in circuit court, according to Zimmerman’s public comment.
