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Special Exception Ernest Maier

Town of Cheverly

July 28, 2017

Zoning Hearing Examiner

County Administration Building

14741 Governor Oden Road Bowie Drive

Upper Marlboro, Md. 20772

RE: Special Exception 4792: Ernest Maier Inc.

The Town of Cheverly considered Special Exception 4792 during their June 19th and July 22nd Council Meetings to determine whether the Town should take a position. Given the Ernest Maier plant is within the municipality of Bladensburg the council decided not to take a position on this matter, deferring to the Town of Bladensburg and their residents.

The Town of Cheverly does believe that, in the future, this land will revert to a higher better use given its strategic location near the Bladensburg Waterfront and the burgeoning Hyattsville area. The Cheverly Council was encouraged to hear that the total investment for this construction was approximately 3 million and that the return on investment would be less than 5 years. Additionally, we were encouraged to hear that the owner of the property constantly evaluates alternative uses, leaving open the opportunity that this property can eventually be converted to a higher and better use.  

The Cheverly Town Council appreciates the thoughtful set of conditions put forward by the Bladensburg Town Council and it’s residents, as aspects of the Ernest Maier plant impact will extend well beyond the Bladensburg’s Municipal boundaries. In discussion, the Cheverly Town Council identified additional conditions that we believe would further enhance the water and air quality of the project, as well as improve pedestrian safety along the sensitive Route 202 and 450 corridors.

  1. All trucks arriving and departing from Ernest Maier should use the Kenilworth Avenue corridor to connect to Route 50, avoiding Routes 202 and 450 to improve pedestrian safety.
  2. All Ernest Maier trucks should be have GPS trackers that record the route and number of trips to and from Ernest Maier. Reporting from the GPS should be verified and provided to the Town of Bladensburg on a Quarterly basis for review to ensure that Ernest Maier is meeting their stated commitments to limit additional daily truck traffic to no more than 40 additional truck trips and that trucks are not utilizing the Route 202 and 450 corridors.
  3. Ernest Maier should establish a baseline of existing truck traffic and limit access and egress to 40 additional trips inclusive of both Ernest Maier-owned vehicles and any other independent truck traffic.
  4. Ernest Maier should be required to perform Storm-water remediation of the entire Ernest Maier site, not just the area defined by the new concrete batching site of the proposed block plant, to levels that exceed or, at a minimum, meet current standards.
  5. The concrete batching facility should be enclosed in a manner that is acceptable to the Bladensburg Town Council, in order to create a visual view shed that enhances the existing site. This condition is similar to the condition agreed to with SE-4502.
  6. Air Quality Monitoring should be implemented immediately in order to establish a baseline measurement and should continue throughout the life of the plant. Monitoring should be validated by external experts (University of Maryland). Monitoring should be continued after construction with validated results provided to the Town of Bladensburg on a quarterly basis for review.

Mayor Michael Callahan

Town of Cheverly
6401 Forest Road
Cheverly, MD 20785

(301) 773-8360