Development Proposed for Crystal Spring, Annapolis

Campaign Goal: limit (or prevent) the proposed development that would bulldoze 49 acres of an 80-acre priority forest, the bulk of an 111-acre tract in the Crab Creek/South River/Chesapeake Bay watershed, build a retail complex nearly the size of Annapolis Harbour Center along with an 80-room spa and hotel, 130 non-age-restricted townhouses, 376 units of “senior” housing (including a six-story building), three two-story apartment buildings, 33 single-family and duplex houses, a health center with 52 suites, and 40 more senior apartments above some of the retail shops.

Leaders: the campaign is coordinated by David Prosten of the Anne Arundel County Group; dprosten[@]yahoo.com.

Actions: help fight this development by contributing to the Crystal Spring Legal Defense Fund, and by writing to Mayor Pantelides at Mayor[@]annapolis.gov. 

 

Crystal Spring Development: Background

Annapolis Mayor Says City Should Acquire, Preserve Crystal Spring

by David Prosten, 1/22/14.
The newly-elected mayor of Annapolis says he wants the 111-acre Crystal Spring tract of forest, wetlands and fields to be purchased by the city. His position gives a big boost to a broad coalition of area residents concerned about what harm a proposed mega-development there would do to the environment, traffic and school overcrowding.

Mike Pantelides, whose campaign platform last November included opposition to the Forest Drive development, said purchasing Crystal Spring would benefit area residents, thousands of whom have signed petitions, attended meetings and otherwise expressed concern about the plan.

The development as proposed would include a shopping center nearly the size of Harbour Center, more than 500 living units and an 80-room “inn and spa.”  One county study said the new traffic generated by the development would create failing intersections along Forest Drive.

The Sierra Club and other environmentalists are concerned about the loss of dozens of acres of forest and new runoff threats to Crab Creek and the South River that would result from development.

The land in question is under contract with the developer, Crystal Spring Development LLC., owner Janet Richardson-Pearson told the Capital. That means the developer would have to withdraw from the deal before a new buyer could be considered.

When she purchased the property, she wrote to neighbors on May 5, 1998 how “My family and I always dreamed about owning this land to preserve the natural beauty of the Bay environment we love so much.”  She was asking their help in stopping a proposed road that would have cut through the south side of the property.

Pantelides said the city could need help from the state and county to pull off a purchase.

References:

More information about the development and how to get involved in efforts to prevent it can be found on www.crystalspringfacts.com; the Factsheet is available as a PDF.