On July 29, the Planning Board overturned a decision it made in November 2002, because of a court order.
In 2002, F.S. People’s Realty, a company operated by Potomac resident Farid Srour, applied for a three-lot subdivision on 1.68 acres on the north side of South Glen Road, near Falls Road and opposite Gary Road. There is currently one house on the property, which will be removed.
The plan sought to divide the parcel into three lots, two on South Glen Road and the third behind them on a pipestem. The area is zoned R-200 (one house per 20,000 square feet), and the proposed lots would range from 20,400-22,500 square feet.
During the hearing in 2002, Planning Board staff recommended that only two of the lots be approved, according to Planning Board documents. Staff concluded that although the lot sizes fall within the proposed range for the zoning, a division into three lots would not be compatible with the existing neighborhood.
According to the subdivision regulations, all newly approved subdivisions must match the existing neighborhood in terms of the size and shape of the lots, among other criteria.
Staff determined at the time that three lots would be squeezed onto the parcel in a manner inconsistent with the existing homes. “The proposed lot layout would result in tight frontages and be out of character with the way the neighborhood has evolved,” said the documents.
The developer’s attorney, Steve Orens, argued that there are other lots in the neighborhood with similar characteristics and so dividing the property into three lots is appropriate. He further argued that the plan would amount to a subdivision, not a resubdivision, and therefore would be subject to less stringent compatibility standards.
The Planning Board agreed with its staff and approved only two lots on the property.
Srour then sued the Planning Board for the additional lot. In a judgment issued on Feb. 12 of this year, Montgomery County circuit judge Nelson Rupp Jr. agreed with Srour.
“The Circuit Court of Montgomery County reversed the decision,” said Tariq El-Baba, attorney for the Planning Board, at the July 29 Planning Board meeting.
“The difficulty I have with the decision by the Planning Board is that it does not apply the applicable law to the facts and the evidence which was before it,” stated Rupp in the court transcripts.
The plan was then remanded to the Planning Board, which approved the three-lot subdivision.
After the decision, Orens said that while the approval of one additional house in other parts of the county might not be worth a court challenge, this parcel was worth the time and effort.
“It reduced the value of the property by 33 percent — in Potomac. Do the math,” he said.