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Freeland Community Association - a Brief History.
In 1971 a local “promoter” decided to hold a “concert”
on his Bulls Sawmill Rd.
property. Afterwards, he determined it was such a success that he applied
to Baltimore County
for the right to build a recreational facility. Among the facilities to be
constructed was an amphitheater. Local residents saw things a little
differently. Problems from the concert included traffic jams, noise, and
drug and alcohol abuse, as was evidenced when remnants of the original
concert were found blowing across farms miles away a week or two following
the concert. Days after the concert, several residents were confronted by
strangers wondering the fields, looking for "the music."
Residents decided to get together to discuss the fallout of this situation
and to discuss the new facility plan. We met at the Sixth
District Elementary
School. It was then that the Freeland Community
Association was formed. After thoughtful discussions, the Association
determined that a facility of this size in the area proposed would be
detrimental to the quality of life in this area.
During this time, in 1971, concerts such as the one
mentioned above, required a gathering permit - issued by the
Baltimore County Chief of Police. Due to complaints from the community and
the Chief’s own investigation, further permits were denied to this
promoter. To circumvent this permit requirement, the promoter applied for
the right to build a recreational facility, which would allow the concerts
by right.
To prevent the creation of this recreational facility
on Bull Sawmill Rd
the new Association went to all the hearings within Baltimore
County. In most cases,
the hearings had to be moved from the zoning officer’s hearing room to the
county council hearing room due to the number of Association members in
attendance. The hearing officer ruled in favor of the community on the
grounds that the proposed facility was not appropriate for the area. The
promoter then filed appeals all the way up through the Maryland Court of
Appeals. At every level of appeal the decision was always in the
Associations favor. With this battle won and no other "burning"
issues at hand, the Association went into a dormant state for eight years,
until 1979.
In 1979, "our friend" the promoter returned.
This time his plans called for a country club on 44 acres across from the Sixth
District School
on Middletown Rd. Plans for the country club included a clubhouse, pool,
tennis courts, a nine-hole golf course, along with a 2,000+ seat
amphitheater. Several residents along Bulls
Sawmill Rd. and Gore
Mill Rd. called a meeting re-energizing the
Freeland Community Association. As with the previous issue, the Association
went through the Baltimore
County hearings, the
court system, and as previously, all rulings were in the Association’s
favor.
At the same time that this new country club project was
in court, Baltimore County
decided that it needed a new landfill and targeted over 110 locations in Northern
Baltimore County
as a repository for such a facility. In response to concerns voiced by
citizens across Northern
Baltimore County,
the Association sponsored a meeting in hopes of forming a group to fight
the landfills. Realizing that with the hearings and court battles it was in
the middle of with the “country club,” it did not have the resources to
take the lead on a battle such as the landfill. The result of this meeting
was the formation of the Citizens Alliance of Northern Baltimore County.
The Association still played an active role in the Landfill fight and later
the “Sludge Farm” on Middletown
Rd., where the Hunt Ridge North development now
resides. The “Sludge Farm” earned its name when the Maryland State Health
Department needed locations (farms) to spread the sewage sludge compost
from the Back River Sewage Treatment Plant. This material was to be spread
to a maximum depth of 1/8 of an inch. But with a blind eye by the Health
Department Inspectors, the sludge was not spread but just dumped by the
truckload on the land that is now Hunt Ridge North. This dumping was
finally halted by the work of then State Senator Frank Kelly and Delegate
Ellen Sauerbrey. Through their on-site inspections they found that the
State Health Department was not enforcing its own regulations, so with
several calls ALL sludge dumping was stopped in Baltimore
County.
But the association's work was not done. Again in the
late 1980s, our promoter returned for the third time trying to build his
“country club” and amphitheater on Middletown
Rd. But before the battle could begin, there was
an early ruling by the "highest authority" and our promoter
passed away, thus ending 20 years of contention.
But the Association's energies were not all spent on
courtroom battles. The Association also wanted to give something back to
the community. This was accomplished by holding food and toy drives during
the holidays and donating the collected items among the local churches. Any
toys the churches felt they could not use went to Toys for Tots. We also
took on a pet project of helping New Life for Children, a non-profit
organization dedicated to helping homeless or neglected children and their
families find the basics - clothes, diapers, soap, toothbrushes,
toothpaste, and such. Through raffles and donations we were able to donate
the needed items.
Over the years the association has represented the
community on various County and State committees and studies:
- Rail
Freight on the North Central Right of Way
- Original
North Central Hike and Bike Trail Citizens Advisory Committee
- The
Hereford
Study
- 2010
Master Plan for Baltimore
County
- CZMP
review committee
- CZMP
hearings on issues voted on by the members of the association.
- Various
meetings and presentations by the County
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Freeland Community Association