The developer that wants to build a $25 million senior living community in North Roland Park has hit another speed bump.
More than a month after the Appellate Court of Maryland determined that Baltimore’s zoning board acted properly when it ruled in 2022 that a Mississippi-based developer may construct a three-story assisted living facility near the intersection of Falls Road and Northern Parkway, neighboring property owners Margaret and Hunter Cochrane have appealed the decision in the Supreme Court of Maryland.
The appeal marks the third time in the past two years that the Cochranes have appealed court rulings that affirmed the actions of Baltimore’s zoning board. Each time, the developer has waited for a court ruling to find out if it may move ahead with its project.
The project is The Claiborne at Roland Park, a 110-unit residential care facility for about 120 people that has been designed to contain a mix of assisted living and memory care apartments. The developer, Claiborne Senior Living of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, has a contract to purchase a 12-acre wooded site to build its project. The sloping parcel is just east of The Falls, a 10-story apartment building at 1190 W. Northern Parkway. Claiborne negotiated its contract to purchase the land in early 2021 and has been working since then to obtain the permits necessary to begin construction.
The developer needs zoning board approval because part of the proposed construction site is zoned R-6. According to the city’s zoning code, assisted living is considered a conditional use on land that’s zoned R-6, and that requires additional approval from the zoning board, following a public hearing. The project that Claiborne wants to build cannot be constructed as of right in an R-6 zone.
On October 11, 2022, the zoning board approved Claiborne’s request to build its project as a conditional use in an R-6 zone and also agreed to waive a height limit on the property. The Cochranes initially appealed the zoning board’s decision in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, with attorney J. Carroll Holzer arguing that the board’s ruling was flawed and should not stand.
When Circuit Court Judge Gregory Sampson upheld the zoning board’s decision, the Cochranes filed an appeal with the Appellate Court, the state’s intermediate appellate court. The Appellate Court held a hearing in March and issued its ruling in May, affirming the zoning board’s decision in a 32-page opinion.
Claiborne’s project has support from four North Baltimore community associations: the Lehr Stream Neighborhood Association, the Sabina-Mattfeldt Community Improvement Association; the North Roland Park Improvement Association and the Poplar Hill Association.
The Cochranes had until early July to file their appeal with the Supreme Court of Maryland, the state’s highest appellate court, and they did so. Matt Grenfell, General Counsel for VH Companies, the parent of Claiborne Senior Living, said in an email message this month that “we are working on a reply brief.” The project would be Claiborne’s first in Maryland.
“We are eager to re-engage with the City to get final approvals and with our construction partners on final pricing,” Grenfell said in May. “Construction will commence as soon as we are able. This is a much-needed project for the City of Baltimore and we are excited about the prospects of moving forward.”