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Staff file photo
Jan Gardner
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Frederick 's northern annexations have withstood the threat of a popular vote after a petition for referendum failed.
And developers have already accepted the realities of a five-year delay caused by Frederick County commissioners vowing to deny a zoning waiver.
But commissioners, who are unanimously opposed to the annexations of the 285-acre Crumland Farm and 151-acre Thatcher Farm properties, have one more card to play in the ongoing city-county debate.
Developers will have to seek and pay for sewer service from the county, according to the annexation agreements. The arrangement gives the county a great deal of control over development on those properties.
But it remains unknown whether the current or the future Board of County Commissioners will decide to withhold service as a way to delay or halt development on those properties.
"Ultimately we're going to have to sign an agreement with the city," said Commissioners President Jan Gardner.
"It's an outstanding issue that needs to be resolved," she said.
The commissioners have opposed the northern annexations primarily because city agreements with developers do not explicitly require them to fund an interchange at U.S. 15 and Biggs Ford Road. Both city and county officials view the interchange as vital for safety along U.S. 15 -- a roadway to which the two properties are directly adjacent.
The properties have the potential for bringing more than 1,000 houses and more than 2 million square feet of commercial space. Developers have said full build out is at least 10 to 15 years away.
Gardner said it would be at least 10 years before county sewer improvements would make service to the properties possible.
The city's annexation resolutions will prevent developers from obtaining permits to build before the interchange is fully funded but allow for a certain amount of commercial and residential development before that happens.
But with sewer service under county control, even limited development could be stymied if the commissioners decide to deny service to those areas.
"The city has given that particular control factor to the county by their own vote," Gardner said.
Mayor Jeff Holtzinger said he is hopeful the city and county can come to an agreement for how to service the area with sewer.
Sewer capacity for the annexations would come from a newly expanded Ballenger-McKinney Wastewater Treatment Plant. The city will contribute to the project, which will make the plant one of the most environmentally sensitive in the state.
But if the annexations lead to an impasse over an agreement to use that plant, Holtzinger said the city's only option would be costly and potentially damaging to the environment.
"I'm just worried we're going to be
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