The Baltimore County Council announced the results of the  Comprehensive Zoning Map (CZMP) process on August 26.  Four areas in northern Baltimore County were "downzoned" to protective classifications based on the request of Sparks-Glencoe. More property was protected from upzoning requests which would have increased the density of housing allowed on that property.

Under the previous zoning categories, many houses could have been built on the 1500 acres. By placing the land under Resource Preservation or Agricultural zoning, the County has protected natural resources and local agriculture in our area. Forests and wildlife habitat will be protected from destruction, recreational areas will remain inviting, water quality will be protected from the degradation caused by the additional housing, and growth will be reduced, along with the accompanying demands on roads, schools, and other services.

The areas affected by our downzoning requests include land in Parkton, in the Quaker Bottom and Corbett Road areas, and land north of Monkton bordering the state parks. For more information, see our spring newsletter.

Sparks-Glencoe thanks the members of our community who spoke in favor of protective zoning in the area. In addition, we are grateful to the support of North County Preservation, which provided planning assistance and financial support for our CZMP actions. Finally, we appreciate the work of the Baltimore County Office of Planning, the Planning Board, the Department of Environmental Protection and Resource Management, and the County Council, especially the Councilman representing our district, T. Bryan McIntire. Our combined efforts will protect the rural character of northern Baltimore County.