Jul 5, 2008 2:13 pm US/Eastern
Officials Working On Statewide Growth Plan
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) ―
Governor Martin O'Malley's administration is working toward creating a statewide plan to guide development.
The state has had a law on the books since the late 1970s calling for a plan that describes how Maryland should grow and develop. But with most land-use decisions made locally, no one has ever created such a plan.
But the O'Malley administration is working on it now, in part because of concerns about the effect of growth on the environment.
Richard Eberhart Hall, Maryland's planning chief, says a statewide plan could help steer growth the places that state officials want to go -- in particular, designated Smart Growth areas.
For example, officials want to see growth along sections of the Interstate 95 corridor where there are train and bus connections.
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