State Board to Take Up Lavender Lot Sale

The sale and redevelopment of a public parking lot in Parkville could be another step closer to fruition after a Board of Public Works meeting next week.

The three-member state panel is scheduled to take up the proposed sale of a state-owned sliver of land along Harford Road that is part of the Lavender Avenue public parking lot.

The board, comprised of Governor Martin O'Malley, Comptroller Peter Franchot and state Treasurer Nancy Kopp will be asked to approve the sale of the two-tenths acre property to the Baltimore County Revenue Authority for $52,950.

The proposed sale price is more than three times higher than the $14,000 the authority expected to pay for the property.

The proposed sale price, however, is lower than two independent appraisals that value the tax-payer owned property at $160,000 and $233,000 respectively.

It is not clear how the increased price will affect the agreement between the Revenue Authority and Towson-based DMS Development, which plans to build a Walgreens Pharmacy on the property.

The authority voted more than a year ago to sell the 56-space lot at the corner of Lavender Avenue and Harford Road for $500,000.

The authority, which oversees a number of public parking lots around the county as well as four public garages in Towson and five public golf courses, wants to sell the property because revenues generated by the 56 spaces do not cover the maintenance costs.

Don Hutchinson, the chairman of the authority's board, said in April that increased costs for the state-owned portion of the property could make the deal unprofitable for the quasi-public agency.

The authority plans to put $100,000 back into the Parkville community through various groups. Talk in April of an additional $100,000 in costs related to the state-owned property was reason for concern, Hutchinson said.

"It would take a $500,000 deal and turn it into a $300,000 deal," said Hutchinson in April. "We'll have to see if it's worth it."

The Revenue Authority plans to update the status of the Lavender lot sale at its next meeting.That meeting is scheduled for Thursday morning in Towson.