New idea for the Dock
“We’re working within the existing zoning, but we are looking to change the height area designation of this particular parcel,” Fillat said.
The effort by Blonder and Fillat in 2018 called for a hotel that was 75 feet tall with 155 rooms, a ballroom on the roof and an underground parking garage underneath a public plaza. The site is currently occupied by the restaurant Latitude 38.
It garnered Mayor Gavin Buckley’s support, who was just weeks removed from winning the mayoral election in December 2017. Buckley tried to introduce legislation to rezone City Dock, but the measure failed.
Alderwoman Elly Tierney, D-Ward 1, has been skeptical of the project. She said flood mitigation at City Dock should be prioritized over redevelopment. The city recorded 18 days of sunny day flooding at City Dock, a new annual record.
“To entertain any zoning change now, other than subgrade elevation changes, is the cart before the horse,” she said. “Any new building would have to … take exhaustive [Historic Preservation Commission] review. I don’t believe that is in the city’s best interest right now.”
Changing height restrictions would require a text amendment in the C2 zoning code, said Alderman Ross Arnett, D-Ward 8.
That would open the area to other, taller buildings. Text amendments require City Council approval to change. If an amendment is approved, the project would then need to be reviewed by the Planning Commission and the Historic Preservation Commission.
“I don’t think HPC, or the council, are going to be interested in making changes that would have unintended consequences elsewhere,” Arnett said. “But I do think that a hotel down there is a good amenity and could be part of the charm of the redo of the City Dock area. I certainly don’t reject it out of hand.”
Buckley said he was opening to listening to the proposal.
“I think the idea of City Dock is to stimulate improvements to the properties around it,” he said. “I understand there is an acceptable size for some people for a boutique hotel. I would support an acceptable size hotel if Historic Annapolis were OK with it and the general population.”
Representatives for Historic Annapolis, a preservation nonprofit, have maintained they do not oppose development in the Historic District, but they do oppose rezoning. “Historic Annapolis continues to oppose any rezoning that would make way for changing the height and bulk restrictions at City Dock,” said Robert Clark, president of Historic Annapolis. “While we are not opposed to new development, we believe that any new proposal must be compatible with the new vision of City Dock that the City Dock Action Committee worked so hard to accomplish.”
Legislation to change the height restrictions in the area “is something we’re all talking about,” Fillat said.
Two years ago, the proposed hotel drew concern about its height, scale and character, among other issues, from residents in Ward 1. Fillat hosted several public meetings with the Ward One Residents Association to address concerns.
The effort by Blonder and Fillat in 2018 called for a hotel that was 75 feet tall with 155 rooms, a ballroom on the roof and an underground parking garage underneath a public plaza. The site is currently occupied by the restaurant Latitude 38.
It garnered Mayor Gavin Buckley’s support, who was just weeks removed from winning the mayoral election in December 2017. Buckley tried to introduce legislation to rezone City Dock, but the measure failed.
Alderwoman Elly Tierney, D-Ward 1, has been skeptical of the project. She said flood mitigation at City Dock should be prioritized over redevelopment. The city recorded 18 days of sunny day flooding at City Dock, a new annual record.
“To entertain any zoning change now, other than subgrade elevation changes, is the cart before the horse,” she said. “Any new building would have to … take exhaustive [Historic Preservation Commission] review. I don’t believe that is in the city’s best interest right now.”
Changing height restrictions would require a text amendment in the C2 zoning code, said Alderman Ross Arnett, D-Ward 8.
That would open the area to other, taller buildings. Text amendments require City Council approval to change. If an amendment is approved, the project would then need to be reviewed by the Planning Commission and the Historic Preservation Commission.
“I don’t think HPC, or the council, are going to be interested in making changes that would have unintended consequences elsewhere,” Arnett said. “But I do think that a hotel down there is a good amenity and could be part of the charm of the redo of the City Dock area. I certainly don’t reject it out of hand.”
Buckley said he was opening to listening to the proposal.
“I think the idea of City Dock is to stimulate improvements to the properties around it,” he said. “I understand there is an acceptable size for some people for a boutique hotel. I would support an acceptable size hotel if Historic Annapolis were OK with it and the general population.”
Representatives for Historic Annapolis, a preservation nonprofit, have maintained they do not oppose development in the Historic District, but they do oppose rezoning. “Historic Annapolis continues to oppose any rezoning that would make way for changing the height and bulk restrictions at City Dock,” said Robert Clark, president of Historic Annapolis. “While we are not opposed to new development, we believe that any new proposal must be compatible with the new vision of City Dock that the City Dock Action Committee worked so hard to accomplish.”
Legislation to change the height restrictions in the area “is something we’re all talking about,” Fillat said.
Two years ago, the proposed hotel drew concern about its height, scale and character, among other issues, from residents in Ward 1. Fillat hosted several public meetings with the Ward One Residents Association to address concerns.
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