Revenue Authority Board Member Offers Solution For Lavender Lot

On the eve of a community protest to save the Lavender Avenue parking lot, a Baltimore County Revenue Authority board member is proposing to lease the plot to neighborhood groups rather than sell it.

Concerned residents have planned a "park-in" for Friday to protest the revenue authority's plan to sell the lot, which they believe is the lynchpin in revitalization efforts for the Harford Road main street.

"If there's this kind of interest from the community, I think I and others would like to see an agreeable resolution," said Leslie Pittler, a member of the authority's board.

Earlier this week, Pittler sent an email to his fellow board members and to the authority's chief executive, William L. Cook III, stating his intention to introduce two motions at the board's April 28 meeting.

"The first motion is [for the Revenue Authority] to enter into a year-to-year lease agreement with the Parkville-Carney Business Assciation or another entity they create to rent the lot from May 1 of this year until April 30, 2012," Pittler said.

If the motion were approved by a majority of the five member board, the authority would lease the lot to the Parkville-Carney Business Association for the sum of $1,000 for the year—at the end of the year, the lease could be renewed subject to agreement from both parties.

Should that motion fail, Pittler has another to back it up. 

"I'm only one board member—if [the first motion] isn't satisfactory to the others, I'm going to propose [as a second motion] that if the lot sells for $250,000 or more, the revenue authority allocate $100,000 to the Office of Economic Development to benefit the citizens of Parkville," Pittler said.

If neither motion passes, Pittler said he favors holding a special meeting between the authority, community stakeholders and elected officials.

The parking lot in question, located on Lavender Avenue just off Harford Road, first became an issue for the community about a year ago when the authority began the procurement process to sell it.

"We would always look at surface parking lots—you look at things economically. If it's not performing you can determine whether or not to sell it," Pittler said. He said the lot usually brings in about $5,000 in revenue each year.

After the lot went out for bids, community members and elected officials—state Senator Kathy Klausmeier and state Delegates Joseph Boetler and Eric Bromwell among them—met with the authority to ask that they postpone the sale, according to Pittler.

Sixth District Councilwoman Cathy Bevins and Fifth District Councilman David Marks have also been active in the issue. 

In the months since she took office, Bevins has had several meetings with Greater Parkville Community Council President Ruth Baisden, Parkville Carney Business Association board member Ed Pinder, authority board members and staff from the county executive's office.

Marks, whose district does not include the lot, has also written letters to the authority opposing the sale.

Of course, regardless of Pittler's planned motions, the authority could still decide to sell the parking lot—that's why the Greater Parkville Community Council and the Parkville Carney Business Association have planned the "Park-in for Parkville II" demonstration for Friday at the lot. 

From 5-8 p.m. Baisden and Pinder said they expect about 50 residents to turn out to show their support. 

"We had a vision for Parkville—a way to market our neighborhood—and that lot was central to it," Baisden said. She explained that the demonstration—set on April Fool's Day—was an excellent opportunity to show that Parkville is nobody's fool.

The two community organizations believe the parking lot is central to revitalization efforts along Harford Road that began with a decade-old streetscape project. 

Currently, 11 storefronts in the main street business district sit vacant, a fact that Pinder and Baisden attribute partly to the lack of available parking.