Circuit Court Judge Jim Sherbin has deemed that the Deep Creek Lake Watershed Zoning Ordinance “mini-marina” amendments are defective and that the issuance of a permit to Lakeside Creamery owner Bill Meagher was, consequently, an error. Sherbin made his declaratory judgment on Tuesday, following a lengthy civil case.
St. Moritz Properties LLC, Bill’s Marine Service Inc., and Silver Tree Marine LLC filed a case against the Garrett County Board of Zoning Appeals, GC commissioners, and Meagher last year. The plaintiffs asked the court for a ruling on the legality of the amendments and the permit issuance.
Meagher submitted a proposal in spring 2012 to the Planning Commission and county commissioners to add a new category of use in the zoning ordinance that would allow “boat rentals, including boat rides and boat tours, as a separate business and not offering any other services associated with the marina.”
The Planning Commission approved the amendment and passed its recommendation on to the commissioners, who held a public hearing on the issue on May 31, 2012.
Information about the category contained the following sentence from the ordinance’s Table of Dimensional Requirements: “The use would require a minimum land area of 10,000 square feet in any districts where it is permitted.” One section of the ordinance states that a minimum of 10,000 square feet is required for the “sale or rental of recreational vehicles.”
The commissioners voted on the amendment on June 5, 2012. Commissioners Bob Gatto and Gregan Crawford approved the proposal. Commissioner Jim Raley voted against it, citing reservations about “unanswered uncertainties.
After the zoning administrator granted a marina permit to Meahger, the plaintiffs filed an appeal with the Deep Creek Lake Watershed Zoning Board of Appeals. The board heard the case last fall.
The plaintiffs and their lawyers questioned the legality of the amendment and permit issuance. They indicated there were several problems with the new land use and said Meagher did not meet the land-size qualifications.
By a vote of three to one, the appeals board upheld the decision to grant Meagher a permit, which allowed him to move forward with his plans to rent personal water crafts and pontoon boats to customers this year.
The plaintiffs pursued their case in Circuit Court, with various hearings held over the course of several months.
“The decision of the Garrett County Board of Zoning Appeals in this matter is reversed,” Sherbin wrote in his order this week about the permit issuance.
He also indicated that “the court need not reach the issue of compliance with the minimum [land] area requirements.”
