Road Expansion Plan Angers Bel Air Community

Residents of an upscale Harford County community took Tuesday’s County Council meeting by storm, displeased about road expansion plans they say could make their neighborhood more dangerous.

At issue are plans to continue Cedarday Drive, on the southern edge of greater Bel Air, so that it intersects Cedar Lane next to Cedar Lane Regional Park.

Dressed in red, at least 50 community members filled the seats at the A.A. Roberty Building. They said they were dressed the color of stop signs to send a message: more speeding traffic would not be accepted in their neighborhood.

“I want my boys to be able to ride their tricycles on our neighborhood streets, play ball with their friends and stand at the bus stop without constant fear of getting hit by a speeding car,” Amy Jahnigen told council members. Some 15 people spoke before the council.

Even a young boy and girl spoke during public comment. They claimed they did not want the value of their parents' homes to decrease, and that they wanted to feel safe playing outside.

Plans to change the structure of Cedarday Drive were actually finalized in 1987. Construction documents filed with the Harford County Department of Planning and Zoning indicate the roadway would run through the development and connect to Cedar Lane where it meets both the easternmost and westernmost corners of the tract.

Jahnigen and other residents, however, said given the way the area has changed in the past several decades, that plan should be revised.

“The county has changed drastically since then, and now in the current condition, the county doesn’t seem to be addressing the safety issue, the concern and the impact it’s going to have in our community,” she said.

“We’re not against access—we just think there’s better options,” she said. “There’s already an existing through-road. They seem for some reason to be protecting that and not really looking at that and other options instead of destroying a community.”

Council members James McMahan and Mary Ann Lisanti said they have been inundated with calls about the measure. McMahan noted that he has heard from some people who are for the plan.

After the meeting, McMahan said he and the rest of the council just want to facilitate a positive resolution.

“Safety is of great concern,” he said. “We’ve tried to ferret out the history.”

He recommended that citizens also meet with Harford County Executive David Craig and members of the Harford County Department of Public Works. 

They will get a chance to meet with public works officials later this month. McMahan and Lisanti have arranged a public information meeting with members of the Department of Public Works on June 21 at 6 p.m. at .