By Tyisha Henderson
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
The Baltimore County Council is considering a bill that would allow the owner of Towson Square to redevelop the outdoor shopping mall so that all of the center’s retail outlets are at street level.
County Councilman David Marks, who introduced the legislation at Tuesday’s council work session, said Towson Square currently resembles a “canyon” because stores like Pier 1 and Trader Joes are located underneath East Joppa Road.
Under Bill 3-16, the county’s zoning regulations would be amended so that Towson Square could be leveled out and flow seamlessly into the rest of downtown Towson.
The redevelopment would include retail stores at street level and apartments on upper floors. It would also connect Barnes & Noble on Joppa Road to Towson Town Center.
“I think it’s a very good project,” Marks said.” It’s keeping with our goals to redevelop downtown Towson.”
One reason the bill is needed is because the current zoning regulations do not allow for a modern, urban development, according to Andrea Van Arsdale, the county’s director of planning.
She said the development is necessary, adding that it is time for a “dramatic overhaul” to address all the problems of having retail buried in what she considers a “pit.”
The redevelopment will help keep up with the “walkable” concept that embodies the Towson area, Arsdale said. She said the legislation is needed to complete that concept and to interconnect the downtown area.
“This is a critical piece between the mall and downtown,” Arsdale said.
Arsdale said the planning for the development is still in its early stages. The developer, Retail Properties of America, has not drawn up anything yet, but she said she is confident in the developer’s plan to raise the “pit” and connect Towson Square to downtown Towson.
The president of the Towson Manor Village Community Association, Joe La Bella, said during a work session of the council on Tuesday that he is concerned about the project.
He said he has not been notified about any plans except for a little information about the apartments. He said he does not know enough about the plan to inform his neighborhood.
If the bill is passed when it comes before the council on Feb. 16 at 6 p.m., Marks said the developer would submit its plans for Towson Square to the county’s Design Review Panel, a nine-member body charged with ensuring the high quality of development projects. Marks said the public would have an opportunity to voice its concerns at that point in the process.
Marks told La Bella that he will have the developer reach out to him. Marks said the project would likely get lots of “public scrutiny” and that it would have to fully comply with the county’s open space requirements.
Arsdale said the development would act as a bridge that interconnects downtown Towson.