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Homeowners' counsel urges Howard County to preserve five‑year renewal as local compliance check
Summary
Counsel for Pleasant Chase Homeowners Association told the board renewal proceedings are a necessary local check to ensure long‑term compliance with county conditions and to protect residents from changing quarry impacts.
Samantha Bingaman, representing Pleasant Chase Homeowners Association and supervised by the University of Maryland clinical program, urged the Board to uphold Condition 23 and the county’s renewal proceedings as essential local safeguards.
"This case is about protecting the board's authority to ensure compliance with local conditions that were made for the county and by the county," Bingaman told the board, arguing that county renewal proceedings provide an accessible forum for residents and are distinct from state permitting. She outlined three reasons the county retains concurrent authority and urged the board to affirm the renewal provision so residents have periodic checks on quarry operations.
Opposing counsel countered that Condition 23 is functionally identical to the ordinance addressed in Eastar and therefore preempted; the board framed the issue narrowly as a legal question about preemption and later granted the petitioner’s motion. Bingaman told the board that, if renewal hearings are removed, residents would still have enforcement options through DPZ notices of violation but that those forums are less accessible than local renewal review.
